Modern Art

my friend likes to say, “anything i can do myself, isn’t real art.” he’s referring, of course, to Modern Art.

after thinking about it for awhile i heard another expression:

modern art = “i could do that” + “yeah, but you didn’t”

for the ordinary modern artist this quip may be enough. it even sounds like art. but the argument isn’t sufficient.

if we continue the thread:

• i could do that, but it’s a waste of resources
• i could do that, but that’s not my purpose
• i could do that, but i’d rather spend time with my family
• i could do that, but then i’d be called a modern artist
• i could do that, but attention is limited, and i don’t want to distract from those with something better to say

Modern Art fails due to a lack of self-awareness. the Starving Artist is its byproduct when she posits “i will build it and they will come,” but no one ever does.

art… real art… is what we seek to consume. not that which seeks to consume us. real art doesn’t tell us we’re wrong, it suggests what might be right.

when i go to hip museums twice a year and squint at an installation, Modern Art thinks it has won. but the joke is on the Artist, because that government subsidy attached to my ticket is no different from an unemployment check.

Modern Art = (societal pity + ignorance) * arrogance.