Peter Plagens has been a prominent voice in American art criticism for decades, providing trustworthy and eloquent guidance to the enigmatic and sometimes bewildering world of contemporary art. Plagens is also a practicing painter, which affords him special insight into art practices and sets him apart from other critics. He is drawn to undervalued work and has repeatedly demonstrated the rewards of looking carefully at what the klieg lights have ultimately passed over. On the occasion of Peter’s retirement as art critic for the Wall Street Journal, we are republishing this essay, which originally appeared in Art News in 2010. The piece starts with a look at Ralph Meeker, a half-forgotten movie actor, and opens into something larger: memory, family, and a life of paying attention to the things other people walk past. A pleasure to read, it’s the work of a critic who trusts his own eyes and his own words.  –Sharon Butler