{"id":5057,"date":"2026-06-10T17:20:42","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T00:20:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057"},"modified":"2026-06-13T14:31:45","modified_gmt":"2026-06-13T21:31:45","slug":"5057","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057","title":{"rendered":"“Care is control”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In this response to artist Josh Kline\u2019s essay on the state of American art, I take a closer look at the idea that the art world has recently fallen into crisis. Kline argues that today\u2019s system is no longer able to support artists in meaningful ways. I question that view by looking at the history of modern art and its institutions. From Soviet Constructivism and the WPA to the rise of Abstract Expressionism during the Cold War, art has always depended on political, economic, and institutional support. Rather than seeing current tensions as evidence of a broken system, I argue that they are a longstanding feature of cultural life. The essay challenges common assumptions about artistic independence and asks whether the art world was ever as autonomous as many people imagine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In this response to artist Josh Kline\u2019s essay on the state of American art, I take a closer look at the idea that the art world has recently fallen into crisis. Kline argues that today\u2019s system is no longer able to support artists in meaningful ways. I question that view by looking at the history of modern art and its institutions. From Soviet Constructivism and the WPA to the rise of Abstract Expressionism during the Cold War, art has always depended on political, economic, and institutional support. Rather than seeing current tensions as evidence of a broken system, I argue that they are a longstanding feature of cultural life. The essay challenges common assumptions about artistic independence and asks whether the art world was ever as autonomous as many people imagine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[945],"tags":[225,1266,404,451,1263,1074],"class_list":["post-5057","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-art-history","tag-art-history","tag-constructivism","tag-contemporary-art","tag-dave-hickey","tag-josh-kline","tag-tom-wolfe"],"yoast_head":"\n"Care is control" - Julia Friedman<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\""Care is control" - Julia Friedman\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In this response to artist Josh Kline\u2019s essay on the state of American art, I take a closer look at the idea that the art world has recently fallen into crisis. Kline argues that today\u2019s system is no longer able to support artists in meaningful ways. I question that view by looking at the history of modern art and its institutions. From Soviet Constructivism and the WPA to the rise of Abstract Expressionism during the Cold War, art has always depended on political, economic, and institutional support. Rather than seeing current tensions as evidence of a broken system, I argue that they are a longstanding feature of cultural life. The essay challenges common assumptions about artistic independence and asks whether the art world was ever as autonomous as many people imagine.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Julia Friedman\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-11T00:20:42+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-06-13T21:31:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Screen-Shot-2026-06-10-at-5.11.59-PM.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"514\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"488\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"jfriedman\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"jfriedman\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/?p=5057#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/?p=5057\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"jfriedman\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/9120ffb6bd1d9684130c3eed0e059423\"},\"headline\":\"“Care is control”\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-11T00:20:42+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-13T21:31:45+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/?p=5057\"},\"wordCount\":136,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/?p=5057#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/Screen-Shot-2026-06-10-at-5.11.59-PM-400x380.png\",\"keywords\":[\"Art History\",\"Constructivism\",\"Contemporary Art\",\"Dave Hickey\",\"Josh Kline\",\"Tom Wolfe\"],\"articleSection\":[\"art history\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/?p=5057\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/?p=5057\",\"name\":\"\\\"Care is control\\\" - Julia Friedman\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/?p=5057#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/?p=5057#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/Screen-Shot-2026-06-10-at-5.11.59-PM-400x380.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-11T00:20:42+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-13T21:31:45+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/9120ffb6bd1d9684130c3eed0e059423\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/?p=5057\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/?p=5057#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/Screen-Shot-2026-06-10-at-5.11.59-PM.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/Screen-Shot-2026-06-10-at-5.11.59-PM.png\",\"width\":514,\"height\":488},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/\",\"name\":\"Julia Friedman\",\"description\":\"Art History and Contemporary Art\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/9120ffb6bd1d9684130c3eed0e059423\",\"name\":\"jfriedman\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/0cf77d93238e5347982ad42865cd8df61e2924b6583223548a94b3e12a098d78?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/0cf77d93238e5347982ad42865cd8df61e2924b6583223548a94b3e12a098d78?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/0cf77d93238e5347982ad42865cd8df61e2924b6583223548a94b3e12a098d78?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"jfriedman\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/juliafriedman.org\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"\"Care is control\" - Julia Friedman","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"\"Care is control\" - Julia Friedman","og_description":"In this response to artist Josh Kline\u2019s essay on the state of American art, I take a closer look at the idea that the art world has recently fallen into crisis. Kline argues that today\u2019s system is no longer able to support artists in meaningful ways. I question that view by looking at the history of modern art and its institutions. From Soviet Constructivism and the WPA to the rise of Abstract Expressionism during the Cold War, art has always depended on political, economic, and institutional support. Rather than seeing current tensions as evidence of a broken system, I argue that they are a longstanding feature of cultural life. The essay challenges common assumptions about artistic independence and asks whether the art world was ever as autonomous as many people imagine.","og_url":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057","og_site_name":"Julia Friedman","article_published_time":"2026-06-11T00:20:42+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-06-13T21:31:45+00:00","og_image":[{"width":514,"height":488,"url":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Screen-Shot-2026-06-10-at-5.11.59-PM.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"jfriedman","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"jfriedman","Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057"},"author":{"name":"jfriedman","@id":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/#\/schema\/person\/9120ffb6bd1d9684130c3eed0e059423"},"headline":"“Care is control”","datePublished":"2026-06-11T00:20:42+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-13T21:31:45+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057"},"wordCount":136,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Screen-Shot-2026-06-10-at-5.11.59-PM-400x380.png","keywords":["Art History","Constructivism","Contemporary Art","Dave Hickey","Josh Kline","Tom Wolfe"],"articleSection":["art history"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057","url":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057","name":"\"Care is control\" - Julia Friedman","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Screen-Shot-2026-06-10-at-5.11.59-PM-400x380.png","datePublished":"2026-06-11T00:20:42+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-13T21:31:45+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/#\/schema\/person\/9120ffb6bd1d9684130c3eed0e059423"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?p=5057#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Screen-Shot-2026-06-10-at-5.11.59-PM.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Screen-Shot-2026-06-10-at-5.11.59-PM.png","width":514,"height":488},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/","name":"Julia Friedman","description":"Art History and Contemporary Art","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/#\/schema\/person\/9120ffb6bd1d9684130c3eed0e059423","name":"jfriedman","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0cf77d93238e5347982ad42865cd8df61e2924b6583223548a94b3e12a098d78?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0cf77d93238e5347982ad42865cd8df61e2924b6583223548a94b3e12a098d78?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0cf77d93238e5347982ad42865cd8df61e2924b6583223548a94b3e12a098d78?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"jfriedman"},"url":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5057","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5057"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5057\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5062,"href":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5057\/revisions\/5062"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5057"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5057"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/juliafriedman.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5057"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}