After the Avant-Gardes

what he calls, “a real cure”—one which “treats our mind and imagina-

tion as well as our behavior.”^2 The spirit of Turner’s concern for the cri-

sis confronting our culture inspired the meeting and it inspires the

contributions to this volume.

Most of the contributors are pessimistic about certain paths that art

has taken, but like Turner, express hope about the future for art, as long

as art can break away from a certain obsession with the avant-garde.

Turner speaks in terms of a “new constellation of hope.”^3 The essays in

this collection can be said to be part of such a constellation of hope for

the future of art.

Due to various circumstances, some of the essays have remained

untouched for several years while others have been updated more

recently.

viii Introduction

Avant Garde final TS_Szasz Under Fire final rev 11/10/15 1:54 PM Page viii