As the most influential Western art critic in the later half of the 20th century,Clement Greenberg left us with an enormous and precious legacy for contemporary art theories and criticism . He provided the most definitive argumentation in the history of modernist art which became the starting point of discussion about contemporary art theories and criticism . His successors,Leo Steinberg and Michael Fried,either criticize Greenberg in the terms of art history,or advance his theory from the philosophical perspective . Up until now,the issues they raise remain the focus of wide discussions in the field of art history and art theory .