Harsh Perspective

I think Christopher Knight’s review of the current Museum of Latin American Art exhibit was quite harsh and showed considerable lack of understanding for the motivation and intent of the collection (“Old-School Aesthetics Run Deep,” March 9).

I am not an expert, but I have looked at a great deal of art, new and old, challenging and traditional, here and in Europe. While I agree that a number of the works are rather derivative in nature, I find that quality is often charming. There is a fresh twist and a completely different aesthetic in many of the “Cubist,” “Chagall-like” and surrealistic paintings. It speaks to me of a common idiom, reinterpreted through a different and vibrant culture.

CAROLYN BIXBY

Seal Beach

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I take strong exception to Knight’s deprecating review. The art displayed from the permanent collection is typical of a certain period in Latin American art when European work was influential. The reviewer should look at the art itself and give his critical reaction instead of telling us what he thinks should be there.

No “conservative” easel paintings and pedestal sculptures for Knight. He notes the lack of assemblages, installations or videos. Knight would like the artist to be engaged with “the fundamental idea of what constitutes a work of art,” whatever that means. Indeed, the same criticism could be made of the art in the collections at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art or the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

GEORGE SACKS

Redondo Beach