ALISHA BANSAL
The late Peter Schjeldahl published his art writing regularly since the 1960s until his death. I had only read Schjeldahl in article form (mostly in the New Yorker) until I read his collected writings in Hot, Cold, Heavy, Light—these may or may not be ways you might describe art. Until reading Schjeldahl, I didn’t really know what “art criticism” could be. It was more that prescriptive; it’s one’s own process of looking, thinking, and feeling. “You may feel your mind and heart open wide in response, as mine do” (pg 297, Felix Gonzalez-Torress in the New Yorker, March 21, 1999). That is exactly the feeling I seek, but always catches me by surprise, when looking at art. It’s a feeling that I (and I think Peter) think and hope everyone can have. Art is for everyone, hot or cold, heavy or light.
