Artful Affinity

Thanks to Christopher Knight for his entertaining essay, more provocative than persuasive, on diminishing government support for public art (“You Get What You Pay For,” Dec. 26).

Knight fails to recognize that many of us are none too impressed with the modern-day images of publicly funded “art.” As far as I’m concerned, the vacuous celebrity shows of the sort Knight disdains--namely those of “Saatchi, Tiffany or Armani”--sound like an integral part of the contemporary art scene. Not all impostors underwrite their own exhibits.

The other big problem is censorship. Either the government refrains totally from selective approval, or it gets out of the business altogether.

Finally, Knight callously slights some very significant touring shows at the L.A. County Museum of Art. The three recent ones I saw--Picasso, Van Gogh and Rivera--were all immensely rich in true artistic value. I was especially struck by the spiritual affinity between the visions of Rivera and Van Gogh. And each show opened my eyes to a wider range of work by the artists.

Now tell me, did the NEA create the Getty, LACMA or the Norton Simon?

DAVID LEWIS

Piedmont