It may be the worst decade in US history, but America 's greatness is still reflected in its art.
It's hard to be anti-American if you like modern art, not least because the most influential artwork of the past 60 years is an American flag. Jasper Johns made his Flag in 1954-5 by building up wax-based encaustic paint and cut-up newspapers; it is subtle and poetic and there they fly - the stars and stripes. Johns' Flag, the true source of every contemporary readymade, says everything you need to know about the story of art since 1950.

To admire contemporary art is to admire America ; anyone who believes differently is kidding themselves. After 1945, European modernism shrank to a grim gathering of ashes. Manhattan leapt into the void. Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko and Barnett Newman created modern art with more elbow room than its European antecedents. Something about abstract expression liberated creativity even in artists like Johns, who rejected the movement. The sheer number of first-rate artists the US produced in the 50s and 60s is stunning. From Pollock to Warhol to Donald Judd, they made British and French artists look mediocre.

Here's a paradox. Ten years ago, this story seemed to be ending. Yet here we are, deep into the worst decade in modern US history, and its art looks great.

 It would be absurd to think the grandeur of US art is a credit to George Bush. But he can't stop it, and hatred of him shouldn't blind us to it. What has happened is that certain artists have emerged as masters in the same league as those great names of the 50s. Brice Marden and Richard Serra were born in 1938 and 1939 respectively, and were contemporaries at Yale. Their abstract art is as strong as anything in the American heritage.