(WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass.) — Peter Schjeldahl, art critic for the New Yorker, will present a free lecture entitled The Critic as Artist in 2011: Updating Oscar Wilde, at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute on Sunday, September 11 at 3 pm. In this special lecture, Clark Prize winner Peter Schjeldahl will discuss whether dedicated art criticism is still relevant today, using as his starting point the great playwright and critic Oscar Wilde, who argued for criticism as an art in itself. The lecture will be followed by open discussion.

Peter Schjeldahl has been a staff writer at the New Yorker since 1998 and is the magazine’s art critic. He came to the New Yorker from the Village Voice, where he was the art critic from 1980 to 1998. Previously, he had written for the New York Times’s Arts and Leisure section. His writing has also appeared in Artforum, Art in America, the New York Times Magazine, Vogue, and Vanity Fair. Schjeldahl has received the Frank Jewett Mather Award from the College Art Association for excellence in art criticism and a Guggenheim Fellowship. He is the author of numerous books, including The Hydrogen Jukebox: Selected Writings and Let’s See: Writings on Art from The New Yorker.

The Clark presented Peter Schjeldahl with the Clark Prize for Excellence in Arts Writing in 2008. The Clark Prize recognizes writers whose work advances the public understanding and appreciation of the world of visual art in a way that is grounded in scholarship yet appeals to a broad range of audiences. “The prize is a natural extension of The Clark’s dual mission of advancing scholarship while building public appreciation of art,” said Michael Conforti, director of The Clark. “Peter Schjeldahl’s insightful, fluid, and concise writing has increased the general public’s interest in art as it has contributed to our collective critical understanding of sometimes difficult and challenging work.”

The Clark

Set amidst 140 acres in the Berkshires, The Clark is one of the few major art museums that also serves as a leading international center for research and scholarship, presenting public and education programs and organizing groundbreaking exhibitions that advance new scholarship. The institution’s research and academic programs include an international fellowship program and conferences; together with Williams College, The Clark sponsors one of the nation’s leading master’s programs in art history.

The Clark is located at 225 South Street in Williamstown, Mass. The galleries are open Tuesday through Sunday, 10 am to 5 pm (daily in July and August). Admission is $15 June 1 through October 31. Admission is free for children 18 and younger, members, and students with valid ID. Admission is free November through May. For more information, call 413 458 2303 or visit Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute.

September 11— Peter Schjeldahl, art critic for The New Yorker, will present a free lecture entitled The Critic as Artist in 2011: Updating Oscar Wilde at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute on Sunday, September 11 at 3:00 pm. In this special lecture, Clark Prize winner Peter Schjeldahl will discuss whether dedicated art criticism is still relevant today, using as his starting point the great playwright and critic Oscar Wilde, who argued for criticism as an art in itself. The lecture will be followed by open discussion. The Clark, 225 South Street, Williamstown, Massachusetts, 413 458 2303, clarkart.edu