The New York Times on the wrong way and the right way to be a Modernist artist:
Roberta Smith on Kenneth Noland's refusal to change with the times:
In the 1960s, Color Field painting vied for dominance with Pop Art and Minimalism, ultimately losing the contest in terms of both critical stature and market share. Perhaps to his detriment, Mr. Noland was ardently loyal to his formalist principles.
Michael Kimmelman on Pierre Boulez's strength through accommodation:
[Daniel] Barenboim phrased it another way when we talked one recent afternoon: “What makes Pierre a towering modernistic figure is that he has managed in his life to move between revolutionary moments and evolutionary moments. When revolution was necessary, he was there, courageously, to lead it.
“But he is a great strategist. And he doesn’t overestimate himself. He is too intelligent to stick to beliefs or opinions when they are no longer necessary. I remember him coming to my concert in Paris once and being very disparaging about Bruckner. But then, 15 years later, there he was conducting Bruckner himself, not out of weakness but because his thinking evolved.”