DLG303 Did Ben Davis's childhood give him an extra dose of objectivity when writing about art?

Dr. Lisa Gives a Sh*t

I start this session by blurting out to my guest, ArtNet's National Art Critic, Ben Davis, that I have an art critic crush on him because I do! And I barely know him. Ben is one of the most insightful, honest, direct and hilarious art writers I have ever read. He really stands out to me in his art writing in that he is able to place art in a cultural, economic and social context in a very articulate, comprehendible way, while somehow uniquely incorporating a great sense of humor which makes his work a pleasure to read. Let's give ArtNet a BIG SHOUTOUT too for having Ben in his role there!

I dig into whether Ben sees himself they way I see him, as a bit of a rebel in the art world, and turns out Ben had an unusual childhood which I think, gives him a certain objectivity on culture. Ben grew up on a sailboat! This somehow full-on blows my my mind and I have a lot of gee wiz type questions to get to the root of Ben’s perspective on the world from his unusual traveling environment growing up.

Ben has just published a new book which we touch on, but mostly I implore him to describe how other art people process his writing. And then I find out about how he grew up which is awesome and not like anyone I've met. I think his upbringing has allowed him to be more objective than most but still with less cynicism than myself and many other folks—you know who you are!

BEN'S WEBSITE: http://www.benadavis.com/

BEN'S NEW BOOK: Art in the After-Culture: Capitalist Crisis and Cultural Strategy https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/1662-art-in-the-after-culture

BEN"S HIGHLY ACCLAIMED PREVIOUS BOOK: 9.5 Theses on Art and Class https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/503-9-5-theses-on-art-and-class

ARTICLES THAT BEN WROTE THAT WE REFER TO IN THIS EPISODE:

http://www.benadavis.com/archives/2021/3/31/i-looked-through-all-5000-images-in-beeples-69-million-magnum-opus-what-i-found-isnt-so-pretty

https://news.artnet.com/art-world/madonna-beeple-2112374

https://news.artnet.com/opinion/inside-nft-rush-axie-infinity-dreamverse-alesso-2042849

https://news.artnet.com/art-world/kaws-what-party-brooklyn-museum-1948026

https://news.artnet.com/opinion/dutch-museum-nail-salon-emily-in-paris-art-2063605

https://news.artnet.com/opinion/artreview-power-100-culturetrack-superblue-merch-2045335

LISA LEVY SCOPE ART FAIR 2006: "My Kid Could Have Done That.": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tPzvshzOgp8