When Is It ‘Silly’?

I feel compelled to comment on the use of the adjective “silly” in Christopher Knight’s review of the Yayoi Kusama retrospective (“Abstraction as Illusion,” March 11).

I wonder if Knight has ever used the word “silly” to describe the work of a male artist. To me, it gave off a strong whiff of male chauvinism. It also made me question Knight’s ability to accurately judge the work of this extraordinary and unique artist. I had hoped, probably foolishly, as we come to the end of the 20th century that art criticism would have progressed beyond the limitations of gender.

TRACY TYNAN

Los Angeles

For the record, Knight has also deemed “silly” works by David Reeb, Anish Kapoor and Patrick Ireland.