ABSTRACT
The idea that judgments of aesthetic merit can be affected by the nationality of the observer would not come as a great surprise to even casual followers of international figure-skating competitions. Even more narrowly, that French and American judgments can differ considerably is witnessed by the relative esteem of film critics from the two countries for Jerry Lewis movies, or of their wine experts for California vintages. This chapter tests for national differences between these countries in a very different domain, that of modern painting after World War II. The general issue considered here is an intriguing one: is the canon of modern art significantly different in different countries, or is there an international consensus on the relative merit of modern artists?
