Art Writer Robin Cembalest
has produced everything from investigative journalism to profiles, trend stories, hard news, reviews, and early listicles and blog posts. She’s published in the the Village Voice, New York Observer, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, El País, most of the major art magazines, design publications, and many other places.
Working at ARTnews, Robin covered the major cultural events and controversies of the 1990s and 2000s— government funding and the Mapplethorpe obscenity trial, the ecological art boom, the growth of the Guggenheim, censorship cases, multiculturalism, diversity, Native American art, the rise of social practice, and the transformation of the art museum, among other topics. She’s also written extensively on Spanish art and culture for publications in Spain and the U.S.
Following is a non-chronological sampling from Robin’s hundreds of publications.
Between a Cross and a Hard Place
The controversy over the removal of a four-minute David Wojnarowicz video from the “Hide/Seek” exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery had observers wondering whether the culture wars were back—and whether anything could be done to stop them.
Native American Art: Pride and Prejudice
Outdated images of Indians abound in museums and the art market. As the Native American community fights to transcend those stereotypes, museum policy, scholarship, and Indian art itself are changing radically. Published in ARTnews, February 1992
Should Curating Be Crowdsourced?
In attempting to avoid controversies over content, a Smithsonian panel might be setting the stage for even more