Proposal

Journal: The Burlington Magazine, published 12 times a year by The Burlington Magazine Publications LTD. London by BAS Printers, Somerset.

Since it was founded in 1903 by a group of eminent art critics, connoisseurs and historians, including Rodger Fry, Bernard Berenson and Herbert Horne, the Burlington Magazine has aimed to cover all aspects of fine and decorative arts from ancient times to the present day and it is unique in its combination of depth and range of content.  The prestigious publication successfully combines rigorous scholarship with a critical insight into art and views of modern and contemporary art with the same importance as art of the past.  This publication is currently the worlds leading monthly art periodical and remains the most authoritative source of information on the visual arts. 

Each issue of the Burlington Magazine usually focuses on a particular theme in the main articles and short notices.  For example, the September 2007 issue was based on twentieth century art, October 2007 on Art in Britain which included a special article on the Birth of Paul Mellon (1907-99) and November 2007 to Italian Art.  In addition some monthly issues are devoted to certain themes as February is devoted to Dutch and Flemish Art, June to the Decorative Arts and December to Sculpture.

To celebrate its centenary in March 2003 the Burlington Magazine published a series of special publications and hosted a series of extraordinary events.  Special articles included ‘A more and more important work’ Roger Fry and the Burlington Magazine by Caroline Elam and Fry, Jaccaci and the ‘Art in America’ section of the Burlington Magazine, 1905-10 by Flamina Gennari Santori.

The style and structure of the magazine is traditional in appearance with the front cover setting the tone of the magazine which denotes its serious and sophisticated attitude towards the arts.  The large colour image on the cover is eye catching and usually taken from one of the main articles.  It is enhanced by a white border set against the black background and the dominant title of the publication is displayed in capitals in a large white font.  As is typical of most magazines the month and price of the issue in three different currencies (pounds, dollars, euros) are shown emphasizing world wide appeal.  Additional information on the cover includes the theme, titles of the main articles and names of the artists from the exhibition review section which entices the readers interested in its content.

Following the front cover are the advertisements, contents page, editorial, main articles, short notices, book reviews, exhibition reviews and the calendar.  The publication’s advertising pages, which appear before the main articles rather than interspersed between sections, present a view of some of the finest works of art on the international market from both galleries and auction houses, together with announcements of museum and dealer exhibitions, arts fairs and the latest books.  Analysis of the publication reveals that this section ranges from approximately ten to thirty pages and includes advertisements from prominent businesses such as Christies, Yale University Press, Bonham’s and Chanel.  The back page of the publication is also devoted to an advertisement from either Rob Smeets, Otto Naumann Ltd. or Daniel Kratz. The magazine also provides notices on curatorial vacancies, services provided by insurers, conservators, restorers, shippers, financial institutions and luxury goods on offer.  All the advertisements and notices have been carefully considered to appeal to the targeted readership of the publication which includes private collectors, museum directors, dealers, scholars and people interested in art.

Richard Shone has written the editorials throughout the last six months where he sets the tone of the magazine and often discusses international relations, current events, topical issues and the effect of government policies and budgeting on art funding. In the December 2007 issue based on the main theme of sculpture Shone discusses the infestation of public spaces in London and elsewhere by statues and memorials which he hardly classes as sculptures.

The Burlington Magazine publishes concise, well written and well structured articles and short notices based on original research, presenting new works, art historical discoveries and fresh interpretations.  These articles range from the serious and scholarly to the scandalous and gossipy.  Analysis of the last six months has shown that the numbers of articles and short notices vary from two to eight main articles and up to eight short notices.  For potential contributors a style sheet is available from the website specifying a word count of between 2,500 and 5,000 for main articles and up to 2,500 for the short notices.  It also gives more detailed instructions on layout, illustrations, how to display quotations, fonts, spelling, footnotes and referencing.  The collection of articles in each publication is both entertaining and instructive and provides a significant insight into the world of art.  The Burlington Magazine receives voluntary contributions, rather than commissions, from a range of twentieth century historians and critics including Kenneth Clarke, John Pope-Hennessy, Dennis Mahon, Theodore Raff, Pierre Rosenberg and David Sylvester.  Contributions have also been made by influential figures from art and literature including Henry James, Walker Sickert, George Baselitz and Bridget Riley.  The range of writers and topics covered allows the reader to encounter discoveries that shed new light on familiar topics and how great art collections were built. The language used is informative, intellectual, descriptive and highly sophisticated which caters to the regular readership of the Burlington Magazine and assumes a prior knowledge of art and art history as well as wider topical issues.  The diversity of subjects provides more extensive reading, ensuring each magazine is original and stimulating and keeping the reader entertained and well-informed.  The Burlington Magazine does not include reproduced and superficial biographies, general and undetailed articles on styles or periods in art or pieces largely based on secondary sources.  Each article includes detailed, high quality colour illustrations, usually one per page, which is aesthetically pleasing and enhances the readers experience to gain a greater understanding.

Reviews on all important books and major exhibitions from both the commercial and public sector are included in every issue to keep the reader up to date with the latest art historical discoveries and current international art scene.  The Burlington Magazine is concerned with printing lasting comment rather than headlined topicality which is why it presents an informative and sometimes highly critical look at the art world.  On average there are seven book reviews per issue (this can range from six to fourteen) which often appear a significant time after the book has been published.  Each issue has anywhere between eight and fourteen exhibition reviews that range from between 910 to 1785 words with the average review being 1359 words in length.  In the exhibition review section the reviewers give their unvarnished, neutral, critical judgement on important exhibitions using language appropriate to the publication.  A quotation I would consider typical of The Burlington Magazine is ‘Even so, his final canvases are explosive, geological confections slathered with crunchy impasto and almost psychedelic patches of acrylic.  Surfaces crack, mossy clusters protrude and swirls of paint convert topography into modelled light and shade.’  Taken from a review Riley, de Kooning, Olitski and other exhibitions by James Lawrence in the January 2008 issue.  Lawrence demonstrates an articulate, informative, descriptive and poetic style of writing.  As a regular contributor, usually reviewing exhibitions on twentieth century art, he challenges the reader to question and make decisions themselves, an example of this is ‘It is worth pondering why paintings by de Kooning the sober geriatric should attract pseudo-clinical judgements when paintings by de Kooning the younger alcoholic do not.’ The Burlington Magazine is renowned for its diverse viewpoints from a range of independent critics.  Other regular writers for the exhibition review section of the publication include Christopher Bedford and Lynne Cooke.  When expressing their personal opinion they often refer to themselves in the third person. 

Letters to the editor often add further knowledge and response to a published article, review or editorial from a previous issue.  They are also concerned with more general topical issues.  The monthly calendar claims to be the best available guide to transnational art events but is predominantly focused on events in Europe, North America and a few from Australia, China and Japan so consequently possesses an air of cultural bias.

In the editorial from the January 2008 issue Shone claims that they are undernourished in certain areas including the arts of the classical world, on German art, the arts of India and the Far East, Latin American Art, Photography, and on twentieth-century art, particularly from the post-1945 period.  I propose to write an exhibition review on Chuck Close’s exhibition at the White Cube, Masons Yard, London from October 10th to November 17th 2007.  This caters to one of the undernourished areas and will give the reader an insight and knowledge into twentieth century post-war art.  I believe that this exhibition review will appeal to the regular readership of the publication who have a knowledge of art and art history and who are also regular visitors to exhibitions.  The variety of the publications content and the standard of writers who provide fresh points of view are reasons for the magazines success and survival.  Therefore to keep consistent with the publication’s style, I aim to raise fresh issues and make lasting comments relating to Chuck Close’s portraiture since the development of photorealist painting and advancements in technology and compare his development from earlier paintings on display to his most recent tapestry works.  I will give my unbiased critical judgement on the exhibitions layout and content using language appropriate to the publication.