Artists misunderstood in their time
JEFF JACOBY loses credibility in the closing paragraph of his Sept. 26 op-ed "Getting away with art," when he writes, "Someday the art world will rediscover the standards it has abandoned." In reality, the art world only moves forward. And with each step it usually faces extreme criticism by those unwilling to dig a little deeper to consider issues and theories behind the work. There is nothing so easy as to take a quick glance and declare something unworthy. In fact, every major art movement worth its salt was ridiculed at its inception. When we are confronted with something so different from what we expected, it takes a little time, effort, and reflection to understand it. They called Vincent van Gogh a madman. Today he's a genius. I can only imagine Jacoby standing in front of an early Jackson Pollock, ready to dismiss it without a second thought. Thank goodness others are a little more open-minded.
PETER MINOR
Franklin 