"I commend Amy Fung on the courage it obviously takes to write a bi-weekly column, and weblog, on a subject on which she is clearly far from an expert. As an artist, it is always interesting, though frequently aggravating, to read how people think about art. Recently I attended a round-table discussion about the “Alberta Biennial” show on now at the AGA, which inexplicably featured Fung as a panelist, who again showed her remarkable willingness to speak publicly on a topic she is mostly ignorant about. So, bravo.

I should point out, “a handful of previews per month” was NEVER “sufficient or even remotely satisfactory”, and the addition of “Prairie Artsters”, in digital or paper format, does little to rectify this situation. It seems with art in Edmonton, the old saying could be updated: those who can, do, those who can’t, teach, and those who don’t have a clue one way or another, write about it. So it goes…

Fung is right about a few things, though. “There is a real and diverse visual arts community here, but you would never know it from just absorbing media.” Over the years, I have tried to engage several of the art writers in town (and some of their editors), at one time or another, in a dialogue on their ‘craft’, which, as an artist, I take very seriously as public commentary on my profession. Unfortunately I have yet to meet the art writer, in this town, anyway, who takes it as seriously as I do. They may protest to the contrary, of course (although I doubt they would care to), but the proof is in their 'writing'.

What can one make of Fung’s complaint that rag-writers like her “are often bound to covering the “legitimate” shows up in commercial and artist-run galleries” other than to simply, loudly, call “BULLSHIT”? Clearly, the weeklies have never felt “bound” to cover so-called “legitimate” venues, and have always found column-inches to spare for the latest café/hair salon show (especially if the artist is in their own inbred “scenester” clique). Besides: there are at least 27 public, private, and artists-run galleries in the Edmonton area? Have Edmonton’s "art writers" really exhaustively covered these professional venues to such an extent that they must look to the naïve, amateurish offerings regularly found on, say, the walls of the Sugarbowl? Please...

Fung writes, “There are of course exceptions, like the installation-driven curation behind “The Apartment Show” that occurred in the spring and the do-it-yourself graffiti posters of the “Make It Not Suck” projects along Jasper Avenue—both of which received plenty of media attention, with the latter spurning a lot of discussion.” I’m sure she meant to write “spurring”, but “spurning” is, sadly, more accurate. Rather than added dialogue, the poseur graffiti (which, ironically, DOES suck, quite a bit) on Jasper contributes virtually nothing to an informed discussion of art, rather, merely presents the annoying noise of bewildered, whining whelps. Fung may be right in observing that such things will increase our art community’s “notoriety”, although she doesn’t make clear why on earth she thinks being “notorious” is a good thing. Somebody, for god's sake, please, buy her a dictionary…

When it comes to art, there are more things in Edmonton, Alberta than are dreamt of in Fung’s philosophy, and fortunately, there are OTHER people thinking and writing clearly about art, more than just the Fung-and-Friends handful you read in these tawdry pages. Studiosavant, a quality-oriented artblog based in Edmonton, has been publishing on art and cultural issues since February 2006, and can be found at www.nesw.ca (click the “S” on the compass). There is intelligent discussion of art to be had in Edmonton… you just have to know where to look. Elsewhere."

[Edit: Text VUE deemed not suitable for publishing is marked in red]