My all-time favorite art/culture critic hero has got to be the man, the wonder, the Vegas institution - Dave Hickey. In an interview with a college journalist several years ago, he told her, "I have a kind of electric meat theory about the human condition, and I am spiritual as snot." You have to appreciate anyone who has this outlook on life.
I first read his Invisible Dragon in college, and it was the first time it occurred to me that you can write about art and museums and history and not sound like an elitist gas bag (*cough*Clement Greenburg*cough*). Ever since, I've been an avid fan of his work, and more interested in art criticism in general.
Also see Air Guitar: Essays on Art & Democracy, and for more fluffy fun, Stardumb (with John deFazio).
