Feature image: Out of the Picture Marquee sign at the Grand Theater Wausau, Wausau, WI. Photo: Grand Theater.
Wausau.
By Rachel Hausmann Schall
It’s likely that you’ve heard the saying, “If a tree falls in the woods, but no one is around to hear it, does it actually make a sound?” This mind-bending phrase forces one to consider their own perceptions and experiences under a philosophical umbrella. In my line of thinking, this familiar turn of phrase exemplifies the indispensability of the arts writer.
Artists use their work as a way to communicate with the world and to express their ideas. Arts writers build bridges between the artist, exhibition, arts institution, and members of the general public. The arts writer is the person 50 yards away from the fallen tree, calling out to let others know the news, or screaming to watch out for another one. Arts writers make necessary, critical, and insightful connections by underscoring the significance of contemporary art and artists today. They get people excited about art and encourage curious readers to explore new perspectives.
Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of working with journalist, critic, and filmmaker Mary Louise Schumacher. Her film Out of the Picture chronicles the stories of several arts writers in the United States during a period of dramatic change for journalism. It has screened around the world since its debut in 2024. This film is the first feature-length documentary about arts writers and culminates over 10 years of Mary Louise’s research. The film includes a segment about Mary Louise’s personal experience losing a position at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel after almost two decades of being the only full-time art and architecture critic in the city. Mary Louise’s story is an all-too-familiar encounter for the entire arts journalism industry, and unfortunately for artists, galleries, and arts writers, it’s not a problem that can be solved overnight. Out of the Picture brings up thought-provoking questions around arts criticism and its definition and purpose in an ever-changing landscape of media consumption, especially considering the decline of print media in recent history.
Picture in Wausau, WI. Photo: Grand Theater.
Picture in Wausau, WI. Photo: Grand Theater.
After a screening of the film hosted at the Grand Theater in collaboration with the Woodson Art Museum in Wausau, I left with an array of questions myself. As both an artist and writer, I related to many of the challenges the film brought into the spotlight.
What exactly is art criticism? Who is it for? What is its purpose? How do we access it? Why should we care about it? How is it changing with the times? How can we continue to support it? – Rachel Hausmann Schall
Out of the Picture calls out a reality that arts writers have been grappling with for years. I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling motivated to continue pushing for conversations about the need for more arts writing in the Midwest–in any format. I think picking up a copy of Artdose magazine is a great way to forge ahead, and perhaps by the next issue, the arts writers will be even louder about the trees that have fallen in the woods.
Visit outofthepicturemovie.com to learn more.
Not Out of the Picture Just Yet is published in Vol 39. Purchase a copy here.
Rachel Hausmann-Schall is a visual artist, writer, educator, and arts organizer living and working near Milwaukee, WI. She received her BFA from the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design (MIAD) in 2015 and became co-founder and co-director of After School Special, a satellite artist collective that supports emerging and underrepresented artists through exhibitions and programming. She has exhibited her painting, sculpture, and installation work nationally at many galleries, alternative, and artist-run spaces. In addition to writing for Artdose, Hausmann Schall is also a contributing writer for the Chicago-based arts publication Sixty Inches From Center and serves as the curator of education at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum in Wausau, WI.