Dear Readers,

Troublemaker Dave Hickey blew into town last month. The outspoken art critic held forth at the Grand Central Market, gracing Angelenos with his caustic observations about the corroding art world. There was much tweetin’ and hollerin’ after (and apparently during) his talk: something dumb he said about women, his problem with identity politics in the art world and how that stuff just ruins the purity of art, blah, blah, blah.

Yes, Dave, I’m wistful for the days of yore too, when the art world was small and brilliant and nobody expected to have a career. And I respect what you have come to stand for in the art world. You’re smart and you say what you think and that’s refreshing, whether I agree with you or not. But mainly, I am fond of you, Dave, because you provide good fodder for me. 

I’ve started a number of columns riffing on the MacArthur genius award-winning provocateur. But with this current issue of Artillery, I can only wince at the thought of what Dave might say. For years now he’s included identity politics as one of the principal sins of the current generation of artists—along with going to school, teaching at school, and otherwise integrating into the “system.” Identity politics, as in making art that speaks of one’s experience as if it actually mattered.

Well, this time we’re guilty. On our cover we have a photograph of transwoman artist Zackary Drucker. The photograph was made by Drucker and her partner in life and love, Rhys Ernst. Ernst is a transman. Both of these transgender artists address trans life in their art.

We’re featuring Drucker and Ernst because their work is startling, arresting, provocative and intriguing to look at. They have mastered their media in order to illuminate their personal stories. It might be a yawn for Dave but it’s gotten Drucker and Ernst an invitation to this year’s Whitney Biennial.

The work they will debut there is a suite of photographs taken during the five-year journey of their lives together. The pictures depict the many stages of their transitioning to opposite genders. The result is a strong, intelligent and raw portrait of two lives intertwined in love, discovery and creativity. 

We’re proud to feature Drucker and Ernst as our cover story, but I have to confess, it’s not the first “identity” artist we’ve featured in the magazine. It’s what’s out there. It’s what you see when you go to the galleries… and the fairs, biennials and auctions. If that’s really what Hickey finds so objectionable, then yes, he might best reconsider quitting the art world—again.

But I’m not complaining, I actually like what I’ve seen recently when I get out and about. There are some good shows out there. That’s not to deny that some of the art is not so good—so much that you might find yourself questioning the validity of the entire art world—the market, the institutions, even the art itself. 

But that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it? We need more Dave Hickeys in the art world. We need someone to stir up some trouble. And not the kind of trouble we get from celebrity-artist troublemakers—say, a multi-million dollar diamond-encrusted skull. No trouble there, just commerce.

It’s too late to turn back the clock Dave. But keep tellin’ it like it is. I know you’re not trying to win a popularity contest. The purity and beauty of art is hard to find these days, but it’s still there. You just have to dig a little deeper and you’ll find it. Even in identity art, it’s there. Because it’s the truth, and as we all know, truth is beauty. That’s where Dave and I get back together.