Libby Anson is a writer, artist, creative and professional development coach and lecturer. She studied Fine Art at the University of Newcastle-Upon-Tyne before undertaking postgraduate Art Gallery & Museum Studies at Manchester University. She has since worked in the public and private gallery sectors, curating exhibitions and working as a gallery educationalist. Since 1990, she has been a freelance art critic and from 1993, a member of the International Association of Art Critics (AICA). Her work as a critic followed on from her management at the end of the '80s of the commercial Creaser Gallery, Portobello, London, concentrating on contemporary abstract painting.
Her writing has been published in various national and international publications, including Art Monthly, Contemporary Art Magazine, UNTITLED, Taïde (Hungary) and Material (Sweden), among others, producing mainly exhibition reviews and artists' interviews. Libby co-authored the 'A-Z of Art' and has written and contributed to a number of exhibition catalogues. Libby has edited art historical books, practical drawing guides and art education publications. She has also been a fine art lecturer and creative development coach for over thirty years. She currently works at The Glasgow School of Art, supporting students and graduates with their preparations to become professional practitioners while maintaining her own writing and fine art practice, focusing on painting and drawing. Alongside this, she writes creative non-fiction and performs and writes for theatre.
For as long as I can remember, my favourite activities were drawing and painting. Art history became part of my 'A' (Advanced) level art studies at school. Then, I was arrogant enough to think I didn't need to know about other artists or their work in order for me to make mine. However, art history, studying other artists, became the mainstay of my Fine Art undergraduate degree and I went on to be an art critic. Learning how those that can and do, has remained the inspiration for my own creativity since.
I wanted to pass on what I have learned, and still keep learning, to others. Also, I very much enjoy my interaction with students and what they can teach me!
The key thing, I feel, is curiosity. Art history encompasses so many things - politics, sociology, psychology, religious beliefs and technical craftsmanship, among others. These are just a few of the elements to investigate when one is considering art of a particular period and it is crucial to have an interest in them. They all contribute to art being the way that it looks and feels, produced at a particular time.
Am I allowed to have at least two? I enjoy the 17th century and I must qualify this by adding this is with particular reference to Dutch painting. Artists working in the Northern hemisphere have an extraordinary capability for representing the silvery light of the region; masters such as Rembrandt and Vermeer cannot be bettered in this and other painterly respects. Frans Hals, too, is extraordinary. To me was a highly skilled Impressionist painter, before that term had been invented; he captured the human so exquisitely. My other favourite period of Western art history is Modernism - i.e. circa 1920 - 1960s. For me, this is when art comes alive with startling new ideas. This period produced some of my favourite British and American painters: Francis Bacon, Lucien Freud, Willem de Kooning, Richard Diebenkorn, Andrew Wyeth and Mark Rothko... Oh, I could go on!
The module content determines to a large extent what students will study - i.e. Western Art History from pre-Renaissance to the present day. I encourage students to develop their investigative and analytical skills and not to be afraid to give their own opinions - so long as they can justify them with evidence. Given the word limit, I am also keen for students to develop their editing skills, so that they understand what it is to capture what is most relevant to a particular question. If at all possible, I also encourage students to read as much as they are able to beyond the module itself, so that they gain a broader view of their topic beyond the module author's.
The artists I have mentioned previously have proved most influential. In addition, I am becoming more increasingly drawn to artists working with abstraction or in an abstract way. (And by the way, I am a stickler for craft too. It's very difficult to craft a good abstract painting and technical ability is crucial). My challenge as an artist and as a writer of creative non-fiction is to make visible in line, paint, or words what is felt or experienced, rather than what is seen. I know this seems an impossible task, but I feel the greatest artists manage to do this. This may not be apparent initially in the work of artists such as Picasso, Anselm Kiefer, Cy Twombly, Luc Tuymans or Marlene Dumas, for example, but this is why studying their intentions as an artist and understanding their own challenges is, to me, the most rewarding thing about being an art historian.
When a student tells me how excited they are about having discovered and enjoyed a particular period or art or art movement that they did not think they would like, this is a joy! Being able to explain the particular wonders of a piece of art to a student who then understands this for themselves is also a great part of the job. Witnessing a student journey through their course of studies, blossoming and thriving, clearly developing their knowledge and appreciation to the extent that they wish to continue is the most rewarding. It is really great to see students run with their own ideas about and enthusiasm for art - whatever kind of art it happens to be.
Be courageous, be curious. Art Appreciation may be totally new to you, but trust yourself and your own curiosity to guide you through your course one step at a time... and don't be afraid to ask questions. Ultimately, the most important thing is that you enjoy what you are studying.
Each module has been carefully constructed by leaders in their field. I felt privileged to be guided by my tutor's vast wisdom, credentials and art world gravitas.
Bridport, West Dorset
©2025 The Art Institute. All rights reserved.