One Day About: The Autonomy of Art is Ordinary – Kim West

Images: (left) cover of The Autonomy of Art is Ordinary by Kim West; (right) Kim West at French National Institute for Art History ((INHA) November 2025, photo credit Tancrède Vilain.

A lecture and discussion with art historian and critic Kim West organized by artist and Professor of Fine Art Lisa Tan.

Description
Our lives and practices as artists are inextricably tied to the dominant beliefs and politics of the times, as are the existence and operation of our common institutions and shared settings. Given the consolidation of art institutions and government oversight of cultural production in Sweden, this session concerns art and its changing role as a political tool.

Kim West gives a richly illustrated lecture of his recent book, The Autonomy of Art Is Ordinary: Notes in Defense of an Idea of Emancipation, published by Sternberg Press.

A synopsis of the The Autonomy of Art Is Ordinary
“Over recent decades, a post-critical theoretical and methodological paradigm has become increasingly dominant in the human sciences. Proponents of this approach have come to dismiss the idea—central to all modern aesthetics—of the autonomy of art. …this book is a defence of art’s autonomy and addresses some of the major arguments against it in recent post-critical writings. West critiques three key positions: first, that the concept of art’s autonomy equals a myth of objective independence; second, that it is inextricably tied to traditions of formalist elitism; and third, that the ideal of autonomy reinforces the illusion of the inherently free and rational subject. From within this critique, West advances principles for how the autonomy of art could be understood today.”

Register
To attend this lecture, you must register by email to lisa.tan@konstfack.se A limited number of places are available. Participants should arrive having read the text in advance. When you register for the lecture, you will receive a pdf copy.