The article reflects on the responsibility of critical art writing in the Southeast, sparked by the announcement that Art Papers, an international art magazine based in Atlanta, will sunset in 2026 after 50 years. The author recounts a debate among local art workers about reviewing the forthcoming Minnie Evans retrospective organized by the High Museum of Art and traveling to the Whitney Museum, which he initially declined due to a conflict of interest with curator Katherine Jentleson. He ultimately agrees to write, emphasizing the need for Black scholars to engage with self-taught Black artists. The piece examines how Evans's narrative has been mediated through the lens of white photographer and art historian Nina Howell Starr, questioning the power dynamics and what remains unknown about Evans's own agency.
This matters because it highlights the systemic gaps in critical discourse around regional, self-taught, and Black artists, and the ethical dilemmas faced by critics who are also community members. The closure of Art Papers underscores the fragility of independent arts journalism in the South, while the Evans retrospective at major institutions like the High Museum and Whitney brings overdue attention to an artist whose legacy has been shaped by external mediators. The article calls for more nuanced, culturally informed criticism that centers the artist's own perspective rather than relying on historical intermediaries.