or another branches of the art world. Right now that seems to be happening in the area of painting and sculpture. A number of artists are angry, but some of that anger seems to us to originate from the long-term turmoil the Bermuda Society of Arts is undergoing.

Art criticism and theatre criticism are difficult areas in which it is rarely possible to please anyone if you do your job properly. When this newspaper has had relatively gentle critics like the late Marion Robb, who was both highly intelligent and a very talented writer, there were complaints that she was not tough enough and seldom very critical. Artists frequently asked why they could not have someone who would be more critical. Now we do have a knowledgeable critic who has our full backing and who is young and tough, sometimes very tough, and people complain.

As we see it, newspaper criticism of the arts is simply one person's informed opinion of what they see and hear. A critic is not a jury of the artists' peers rejecting works for shows nor is a critic a salesperson who should boost the works so that artists can make money. A critic is not meant to encourage artists as "amateurs'' when they are charging top New York prices, nor should the critic be concerned with the "feelings'' of the artists. A critic writes about what is on show and that is the limit of the responsibility.

Critics are not destroyers but purveyors of their opinion, and you can take that opinion or leave it. The problems arises because artists take the opinion if it is favourable, but find it difficult to ignore if it is unfavourable.

Works of art are put on public show and most of them are for sale. Many of them are highly appreciated no matter what a critic says and often they sell despite adverse criticism. The viewing and buying public exercises its own opinion and its own taste and that is as it should be. Many of the great artists who are venerated today were poorly received in their own time, but they continued their work.

If an artist does not have enough confidence in their work to withstand the criticism of one person, then they have to give consideration to whether or not they want to subject themselves to public scrutiny. Confident artists who are sure of their talent simply ignore the critics.

The artists, of course, are just as entitled to express their opinions of the critics' abilities and opinions as the critics are entitled to write opinions about their work. It would be well and good if every artist in Bermuda was a future international star and every critic wrote acclaimed reviews. That is not and never will be the case.

There was a time in Bermuda when a number of tough critics were writing theatre reviews. We are confident that at the time the criticism resulted in some very good local theatre leading to today's high standards. The same thing may well happen to painters and sculptors.