Art and art history have shifted their interpretive modes from documentary, formalist, intentionality, and connoisseurship to discussions of power structures, reception theory, social bases of art, and identity issues within art. Many disregard or dismiss this situation. Why is theory so depressing to some artists and art historians, yet so compelling to others? Why do some professionals regularly reiterate a concern for a focus on objects and the integrity of the object? What does the discussion of ideology contribute to an understanding of art? Is it necessary to provide a context for the work of art? Does theory help communicate and expose coded territories and symbolic structures? Or not? This art history/studio session will address these issues and the role of critical theory in making, studying, teaching, and critiquing art. Papers are encouraged on the value of theory, including applications, as well as considerations of theory as an obfuscating device.