--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I write some art criticism, and one thing…" description: "\"I write some art criticism, and one thing that's clear to me is that politics is fashionable in the American art world in a way it maybe isn't in Ameri..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bca/katie-kitamura-13105_art_i-write-some-art-criticism-and-one-thing_305438.jpg" --- # I write some art criticism, and one thing that's clear to… ![“I write some art criticism, and one thing that's clear to me is that politics is fashionable in the American art world in a way it maybe isn't in American fiction. Your work of art becomes fashionable the moment it has some kind of political commentary. I think this has its dangers - the equation…” quote by Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bca/katie-kitamura-13105_art_i-write-some-art-criticism-and-one-thing_305438.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bca/katie-kitamura-13105_art_i-write-some-art-criticism-and-one-thing_305438.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bca/katie-kitamura-13105_art_i-write-some-art-criticism-and-one-thing_305438.jpg) > “I write some art criticism, and one thing that's clear to me is that politics is fashionable in the American art world in a way it maybe isn't in American fiction. Your work of art becomes fashionable the moment it has some kind of political commentary. I think this has its dangers - the equation between fashion, politics, and art is problematic for obvious reasons. Nonetheless, the notion of politics as being de rigueur in the world of fiction is almost unthinkable. In fiction in America at the moment, the escape into whimsy is far more prevalent than the political.” [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Art becomes trendy when it includes political themes, linking fashion, politics, and art, which can be risky. **In simple terms:** Political art is seen as fashionable, but this mix can be problematic. Key Takeaway Beware of treating political commentary as a style trend. Themes art politics fashion culture risk Mood critical thoughtful analytical Type commentary observational critical When to use this quote - gallery openings - art reviews - curatorial decisions - media coverage Key Concepts aesthetic theory cultural critique market dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How does political content affect artistic value? - Can art remain timeless without political trends? A Different Perspective Political relevance may eclipse artistic merit. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Art Fashionable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-fashionable-1669219/) [Art is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-is/) [Art Problematic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-problematic-2910152/) [Art world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art-world/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Criticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/criticism/) [Danger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/danger/) [Fashion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fashion/) [Fashion Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fashion-politics-2910150/) [Fashionable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fashionable/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Obvious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obvious/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Politics Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics-art/) [Politics Fashionable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics-fashionable-2910151/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Unthinkable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unthinkable/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Everything about art has become problematic; its inner life, its relation to society, even its right to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodor-adorno/everything-about-art-has-become-problematic-its-inner-life-its/) [Theodor Adorno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodor-adorno/) > [When you mix fashion and politics, you get fascism. Politics have fashion, and it's bad; fashion has politics, that are ugly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nate-lowman/when-you-mix-fashion-and-politics-you-get-fascism-politics-have/) [Nate Lowman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nate-lowman/) > [No art should be fashionable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ngaio-marsh/no-art-should-be-fashionable/) [Ngaio Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ngaio-marsh/) > [Art has a will of its own. It has nothing to do with the taste of the moment or what's expected of you. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-frankenthaler/art-has-a-will-of-its-own-it-has-nothing-to-do-with-the-taste-of-the/) [Helen Frankenthaler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-frankenthaler/) > [Fashion and politics are almost the same industry, in many regards, because it's about identity, and it's cyclical, and people get really emotive about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-wylie/fashion-and-politics-are-almost-the-same-industry-in-many-regards/) [Christopher Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-wylie/) > [“One can be interested in both fashion and politics, don't you think? They so often go hand in hand. Appearances, saying the right words,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhiannon-thomas/one-can-be-interested-in-both-fashion-and-politics-don-t-you-think/) [Rhiannon Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhiannon-thomas/) > [Art is not fashionable. That's why fashion and art are two different things. Fashion can never be art because fashion deals with whim, what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/duane-michals/art-is-not-fashionable-that-s-why-fashion-and-art-are-two-different/) [Duane Michals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/duane-michals/) > [Politics is the art of controlling your environment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/politics-is-the-art-of-controlling-your-environment/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [If politics is the art of the possible, research is surely the art of the soluble. Both are immensely practical-minded affairs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-medawar/if-politics-is-the-art-of-the-possible-research-is-surely-the-art-of/) [Peter Medawar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-medawar/) > [A lot of politics in art is just institutional critique, which, in my opinion, is not all that political.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-kushner/a-lot-of-politics-in-art-is-just-institutional-critique-which-in-my/) [Rachel Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-kushner/) > [Politics is politics; art is art. If you play a political role, you have to stop being an artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/youssou-n-dour/politics-is-politics-art-is-art-if-you-play-a-political-role-you-have/) [Youssou N'Dour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/youssou-n-dour/) > [Politics has always been the art of the possible. Today it's too often the art of the probable - tinkering around the edges without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/politics-has-always-been-the-art-of-the-possible-today-it-s-too-often/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Politics is the art of preventing people from busying themselves with what is their own business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/politics-is-the-art-of-preventing-people-from-busying-themselves-with/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [It's sometimes hard to talk about politics and art. Obviously, I have my core beliefs, but I think art is best when it's troublesome…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-greene/it-s-sometimes-hard-to-talk-about-politics-and-art-obviously-i-have/) [Robert Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-greene/) > [Surely to root politics out of art is a highly necessary undertaking: for the freedom of art, like that of science, depends entirely upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/surely-to-root-politics-out-of-art-is-a-highly-necessary-undertaking/) [Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/) ## More by Katie Kitamura > [Translated literature can be fascinating. There's something so intriguing about reading the text second hand - a piece of prose that has already been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/translated-literature-can-be-fascinating-there-s-something-so/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [The point about sales is relevant because it suggests there are cultures out there that are supporting and consuming, on a vast scale, challenging…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/the-point-about-sales-is-relevant-because-it-suggests-there-are/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [It took me a long time to accept that I was a writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/it-took-me-a-long-time-to-accept-that-i-was-a-writer/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [“life rarely finds its exact likeness in a novel, that is hardly fiction’s purpose,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/life-rarely-finds-its-exact-likeness-in-a-novel-that-is-hardly/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [As a writer, I think the greatest danger would be self-censorship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/as-a-writer-i-think-the-greatest-danger-would-be-self-censorship/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [There's a long relationship between science fiction and the 'novel of ideas,' and I think writers of science fiction are able to draw on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/there-s-a-long-relationship-between-science-fiction-and-the-novel-of/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [I'm often a little perplexed, when I read a review of a book, by the quotes that are pulled out as evidence of excellent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/i-m-often-a-little-perplexed-when-i-read-a-review-of-a-book-by-the/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [I don't speak any languages well enough to make an expert assessment on writing in translation, but since I'm interested in awkwardness in prose,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/i-don-t-speak-any-languages-well-enough-to-make-an-expert-assessment/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [I think it's poignant and powerful, this idea that if someone knows your name, they have the ability to kind of hail you and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/i-think-it-s-poignant-and-powerful-this-idea-that-if-someone-knows/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [“A place has a curious quality when you have only a partial understanding of its language, and in those early months the sensation was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/a-place-has-a-curious-quality-when-you-have-only-a-partial/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [“People were capable of living their lives in a state of permanent disappointment, there were plenty of people who did not marry the person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/people-were-capable-of-living-their-lives-in-a-state-of-permanent/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [I was introduced to fighting by my brother - he's a tattooer, a tough guy - and I completely fell in love with it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/i-was-introduced-to-fighting-by-my-brother-he-s-a-tattooer-a-tough/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [I don't know why I write. The honest answer is that I don't have an answer. I wouldn't die if I couldn't write fiction.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/i-don-t-know-why-i-write-the-honest-answer-is-that-i-don-t-have-an/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [“It was a terrible thing, to love and not know whether you were loved in return, it led to the worst sensations--jealousy, rage, self-loathing--to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/it-was-a-terrible-thing-to-love-and-not-know-whether-you-were-loved/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [The first fight I saw live, the fighter I was shadowing lost in front of a crowd of forty thousand people. The scale of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/the-first-fight-i-saw-live-the-fighter-i-was-shadowing-lost-in-front/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) [Explore all 51 Katie Kitamura quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I write some art criticism, and one thing that's clear to me is that politics is fashionable in the American art world in a way it maybe isn't in American fiction. 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