Last Monday (hey, this site's been on the air, what, three days? I'm catching up), artist Jeff Jahn over at the PORT blog calls the O's art critic, DK Row, "Death Row." On Wednesday, WW's Scoop gleefully points to the posting, saying that "Jahn views the O's visual-arts coverage, all too often, as necrotic and wrong-headed." Later that same day, Jahn basically says WTF?:
[M]ust be a slow news week (yet still no art feature in the WWeek... in fact no review this week), whereas the Oregonian has been lavish with visual art coverage. Also, I've always thought that "Death Row" is about the coolest nickname a critic could possibly have. If the editors are gonna fling mud at each other they might as well fling some arts coverage around as well. The last WWeek feature article on the visual arts was in June!!!* Even the Mercury ran a feature on the affair art fair last month.
*Correction the WWeek ran 1 feature article between June and today's date but it is not archived online, "PAM Deconstructed" on September 28th. Similarly the old reviews are not archived either but that is by design... (bad design but design it is).
Ouchie.
And I agree, Death Row is a totally awesome nickname. DK, if you're out there, bumper stickers should be issued.
Howdy and thanks, PORT has been covering the Portland art scene since June 1.
jj