An Elite Experience for Everyone’: Art Museums, the Public, and Cultural Literacy
Author(s)
Zolberg, Vera L.
Abstract
It may be argued that a postmodern world encompasses more than one elite culture, just as there coexist parallel, ‘nonelite’ minority cultures. In some cases, proponents of the latter seek entry into the most prestigious institutions both for their artworks and their supporters. Although their works may be viewed with horror by conservative critics, the enrichment that it has brought to the domain of art in the past endows new forms with a less threatening quality. It is by interpreting these new works of art and developing appropriate aesthetic discourse and meaning for its publics, old and new, that the art museum may help to create that elite experience for everyone.
