Is Ran Morrissett one of the 21st Century's Great Art Critics??

[brad_miller]

Interesting essay in the weekend WSJ, "That Was From the Artist's Green Period" by John Paul Newport. The best part of the essay was probably Newports wife's definition of art which stands up well when one spends some time on the grounds of the worlds golf masterpieces. This being said, is GMBF one of the great critics??

Just remembered, has Ran ever written a less than glowing review???

[Joel_Stewart]

Just remembered, has Ran ever written a less than glowing review???

I believe if you ask Ran, he only writes reviews on courses he likes or has some architectural interest.


I read the WSJ article this morning and have to send a response to John Paul Newport congratulating him.  I think he could have been tougher, never mentioning Fazio by name except for the photo of Shadow Creek next to the Cezanne landscape.

I love the fact he talks about how tough it is to articlate the difference between Pine Valley and Pebble Beach and how golfers can understand the distinctions intuitively.

[Josh Smith]

Just remembered, has Ran ever written a less than glowing review???

I believe if you ask Ran, he only writes reviews on courses he likes or has some architectural interest.






I agree with Joel completely.  Anyone fortunate to know Ran a bit outside of the website, knows he is very outspoken about his tastes, good and bad

Josh

[Tommy_Naccarato]

Is Ran an Artista-nista?

I can't answer that. I'm still basking in the glory of my win at Stone Eagle...

[Adam Clayman]

Ran once published an article titled something to the affect of the "The Ten Architectural blunders of the 20th Century".

Not exactly his course profile ethos.

P.s. I wonder if the new SFGC will get his nod?

[Phil_the_Author]

Only if the one he is criticisizing is named Hills.

[Geoffrey Childs]

Ran is a great critic and reviewer of golf courses

He is equally good a politician (at least in his choice of words on this website.

In addition to the good Dr Vostinak's mention of no review for SFGC, a well known place that Ran does not think of as highly as many on this board he has over the last few years played and not reviewed

Atlantic Golf Club
Boston Golf Club
Stone Eagle
Sebonak
others

What are we to conclude?

Adam - he did go out on a limb in his 10 biggest blunders of the 20th century article and he had the good sense to name Roger Rulewich's butchering of Yale among the 10!!!

[Adam Clayman]

Geoffrey- I was especially glad to see his comments about Pebble Beach. People need to know that the brains behind that mindset isn't fit for stem cell research.

[Tiger_Bernhardt]

There are so many great courses in the world to review, discuss and learn from. Why would one highlight a course which has significant flaws?

[Phil McDade]

"There are so many great courses in the world to review, discuss and learn from. Why would one highlight a course which has significant flaws?"

Ummm, to learn from them, maybe?

True, each course is unique, and fitted for the land by an architect. But, as many, many GCA threads have pointed out, you can make a great course out of ordinary land, or an indifferent course out premier land, or butcher a course/change it dramatically from its original incarnation. All of those strike me as worthy things to discuss in a review of a golf course on a website devoted to golf course architecture.

In addition, Ran's reviews are kind of like Kremlin statements in the old Cold War days -- you have to sift through them, and read between the lines, to get at some of his criticisms. Notice the recent Royal County Down review, where he obliquely criticizes Doak's Ballyneal and C&C's Sand Hills for being "perfect," a condition not often found in nature. And many if not most of Ran's review focus intently on the relationship between what an architect is trying to do with the lay of the land of the course.

[Tony_Muldoon]

I can't remember if I've posted this on here before, so apologies if I'm repeating my self again.

In London we have the Design Museum, which provides a good day out.  http://www.designmuseum.org/  it focuses on the built environment, graphics and everyday objects. Recently I’ve been at leas t once a year with my daughter as she's growing up.  Each time they have a floor given over to a new exhibition, often putting a name and face to many contemporary objects we see all around us. (Or in one case highlighting the career of the man who designed the opening credits to Goldfinger – remember the ball being putted into her navel?)

Last year I wrote to the Curator and asked her to consider putting on an exhibition of Golf Course Architecture.  I argued that it was a huge industry with many interesting designs (and included a copy of the Sailor article) and it would be a move forward for the design Museum to move into this area.  He reply was very short but polite.

I still feel such an exhibition would give GCA some respectability and raise the profile of why some courses are so enjoyable whilst others are forgotten before the car boot closes. I can see the problem of presenting 3 dimensional courses that are subject to all the elements in largely pictographical way, but a smart curator would find a way.  It would be a way of spreading the gospel and I think ultimately of improving new golf courses.