lifestyle

Philip Kennicott’s top art and architecture of 2011

Resize Text

Print Article

Comments

1 of 10

Full Screen

Autoplay

Close

Skip Ad

×

Caption

It was a year without theme or focus, haunted by financial and political anxieties, but culturally diffuse. Which is to say, a year like most others in this age of no discernible isms or movements, no dominant ideologies, no marching to a single manifesto. The opening of major memorials to the events of Sept. 11, 2001, gave the late summer an elegiac quality, but that was a mere punctuation in a year best remembered as another annum of too much stuff and too little time. Pity the artist in an era when culture is chaotic and unorganized, when noise rather than harmony is dominant. It’s hard to be heard. But the best always stands out, and the following certainly made it into the wild scrapbook of memories from the worlds of art and architecture.

“Possible Worlds: Photography and Fiction in Mexican Contemporary Art” at the Art Museum of the Americas Wry and slyly subversive, literate and referential, full of the absurd and the apocalyptic, there was something haunting about this summer exhibition of contemporary Mexican photography at the Museum of the Americas. Artists such as Mauricio Alejo and Daniela Edburg were standouts in this strangely memorable show. Courtesy Daniela Edburg

Buy Photo

Wait 1 second to continue.

See the stunning images in the 4th annual International Drone Photography Contest

Professional photographers and amateur drone-photo enthusiasts around the world submitted images to Dronestagram and National Geographic’s 2017 competition. Here are the winning photographs.

What the Obamas have been doing since they left the White House

Take a look at the family as they begin their post-presidency lives.

The scene in California as firefighters work to contain wildfires

Fires up and down the state have forced hundreds to flee their homes.

Show Comments

SuperFan Badge

SuperFan badge holders consistently post smart, timely comments about Washington area sports and teams.

More about badges | Request a badge

Culture Connoisseur Badge

Culture Connoisseurs consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on the arts, lifestyle and entertainment.

More about badges | Request a badge

Fact Checker Badge

Fact Checkers contribute questions, information and facts to The Fact Checker.

More about badges | Request a badge

Washingtologist Badge

Washingtologists consistently post thought-provoking, timely comments on events, communities, and trends in the Washington area.

More about badges | Request a badge

Post Writer Badge

This commenter is a Washington Post editor, reporter or producer.

Post Forum Badge

Post Forum members consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on politics, national and international affairs.

More about badges | Request a badge

Weather Watcher Badge

Weather Watchers consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on climates and forecasts.

More about badges | Request a badge

World Watcher Badge

World Watchers consistently offer thought-provoking, timely comments on international affairs.

More about badges | Request a badge

Post Contributor Badge

This commenter is a Washington Post contributor. Post contributors aren’t staff, but may write articles or columns. In some cases, contributors are sources or experts quoted in a story.

More about badges | Request a badge

Post Recommended

Washington Post reporters or editors recommend this comment or reader post.

You must be logged in to report a comment.

Comments our editors find particularly useful or relevant are displayed in Top Comments, as are comments by users with these badges: . Replies to those posts appear here, as well as posts by staff writers.

All comments are posted in the All Comments tab.

More about badges

Get a badge

To pause and restart automatic updates, click "Live" or "Paused". If paused, you'll be notified of the number of additional comments that have come in.

Comments our editors find particularly useful or relevant are displayed in Top Comments, as are comments by users with these badges: . Replies to those posts appear here, as well as posts by staff writers.