New York art critic and painter Carol Diehl speaks at ASU for the Forkosh Hirshman Lecture on Art and Society, March 21

TEMPE, Ariz. - New York artist and critic Carol Diehl, one of America's foremost contemporary art writers, discusses "The State of Art: Its Relevance and Meaning in the 21st Century" at 7:30 p.m., March 21, in Katzin Hall, on the Arizona State University campus. Diehl's free lecture is part of the ASU Art Museum Forkosh Hirshman Lecture on Art and Society, a series sponsored by Valley residents Linda Hirshman and David Forkosh to foster dialogue about cultural and social issues.

Diehl will explore the current state of art from the dual perspectives of working as both an artist and an art critic. She will examine the rapidly-shifting context of the contemporary world and discuss the responsibility that artists have to address art's relevance to both contemporary art issues and social concerns.

Since 1982, Diehl has written nearly 150 art reviews and features for publications such as Art in America, Art News, Art & Antiques and New York magazine. Considered an expert on post-modern theory, Diehl has profiled the work of major figures in contemporary art - from sculptors Louise Nevelson, Richard Serra and Mark di Suvero - to painters Anselm Kiefer, Richard Pettibone and Wayne Thiebaud, among hundreds of others.

Diehl, who teaches at the School of Visual Arts in New York, says that "although the art world is booming with increased museum attendance and opportunities for artists, many careers are built on hype, rather than real accomplishment.

"We needed groundbreakers like Duchamp, Cage, Warhol, and Smithson, and for the tyranny of 'art movements' to give way to a wider definition of what art is and can be," says Diehl. "At the same time we've lost the kind of passion and commitment that a belief in those collective ideologies once engendered."

Diehl's lecture coincides with the ASU Art Museum exhibition Lawrence Gipe: 3 Five-Year Plans, for which she contributed a critical essay to the exhibition catalog.

The Forkosh Hirshman Lecture on Art and Society series is made possible by the FMH Foundation.

The ASU Art Museum, named "the single most impressive venue for contemporary art in Arizona" by Art in America magazine, is part of the Herberger College of Fine Arts at Arizona State University. The museum is located on the southeast corner of Mill Avenue and 10 th Street in Tempe and admission is free. Hours are 10 a.m. - 9 p.m. on Tuesdays (during the academic year), and 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. To learn more about the museum, call 480-965-2787 or visit http://asuartmuseum.asu.edu.

Media Contact:
Denise Tanguay 
480.965.7144
denise.tanguay@asu.edu