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- Last week I came across an artist YouTuber who blew me away. Her name is Lena Danya. Here’s the video:
When it comes to art, I don’t have a very sophisticated eye. I took one art appreciation course as an undergrad. But I know what I like. And like this painting, which Lena calls The Mirror. Here’s why:
- Beauty: Lena’s depiction of herself immersed in a tranquil body of water is extremely easy on the eyes.
- Awe: How the hell did she do that? It looks like a photograph for heaven’s sake.
- Inspiration: Lena has certainly mastered her craft. I could never reach that level of skill as a painter. But I might be able to reach that level of skill as a welder—if I’m willing to put in the work.
- Joy: I look at her painting and it makes me happy. I feel a little better about the world and humanity.
Now let’s juxtapose Lena’s art with the kind of art our Woke Overlords are infatuated with. Here are some examples of “art” on display at The Museum of Modern Art in New York:
Do any of these pieces meet your definition of beauty? Do any of these pieces leave you in awe? Do any of these pieces inspire you? Do any of these pieces bring you joy?
The above MOMA-approved art does nothing for me. I look at those pieces and I see nothing but half-assed attempts at art by some marginally talented, marginally sane souls. I don’t see accomplishment. I see a seventh-grade art class run amok.
A Better Comparison
Perhaps I’m being unfair? Instead of comparing Lena’s art to the pygmies in the woke art world, let’s compare Lena’s art to one of the giants.
Here’s The Mirror abutting The Scream, by Edvard Munch.
Now, if you were rummaging through an attic in an old home and you came across these two paintings, and you knew nothing about their histories or their painters, which would you find more impressive?
The Scream looks very primitive next to The Mirror. The Mirror looks like it was done by a professional—someone who spent thousands of hours honing his or her painting skills. The Scream, on the other hand, looks like it was done by a novice—someone who was momentarily inspired to paint after watching Home Alone.
My point here isn’t to dunk on The Scream. It’s a fun painting. But is it great because it’s objectively beautiful and represents a towering technical achievement? Or is it great because someone paid $120 million for it in 2012?
Art Defined by Our Woke Overlords
The cultural hegemony of the woke is nowhere more evident than in the world of art. Every major museum, gallery, and art school in the country is run by dedicated wokesters. And rather than use this immense power to promote art that reflects great skill and kindles the “better angels of man’s nature,” they use it to promote art that reflects pedestrian skill (at best) and pays obsequious homage to their narrow worldview (i.e., THE MESSAGE). Art in the hands of our Woke Overlords has become nothing but a boarish vanity project—just another way to attack their political foes and distinguish themselves from the great unwashed.
I don’t envy artists who seek renown in today’s art world. If you want an NEA grant, an opportunity to exhibit your work at MOMA, or an enthusiastic tongue bath from The New York Times art critic, you better…
- Be on Team Blue and have the preferred traits. A Team Blue artist will always get the nod over a Team Red artist, and a Team Blue artist who is neither white nor straight will always get the nod over a Team Blue artist who is white and straight. Promoting “colonizers”—even if they’re on the right team—is so yesterday.
- Produce art that reinforces THE MESSAGE. America, small government, rugged individualism, capitalism, Christians, Republicans, cops, men, heterosexuals, and white people—bad. Third-world, big government, dependency, socialism, atheists, Democrats, thugs, women, homosexuals, and black and brown people—good.
- And, finally, produce art that the average joe can produce. Our Woke Overlords love looking down upon the great unwashed. And what produces that high better than finding beauty and genius in art that the average joe finds repulsive and amateurish?
So there you have it, artists of America. If you want renown, you have to either sell your souls or be company men. The gatekeepers of art, our Woke Overlords, won’t have it any other way.
Final Thoughts
Okay, groovy freedomist, that’s all I got. What say you? I say if you want art that is truly beautiful, truly masterful, and truly edifying, you need to search out the Lena Danyas of Youtube or create it yourself. You can’t depend on our Woke Overlords. They’re more content serving up propaganda-laden slop than art that makes you smile and makes you feel a little better about your world.
A wise man once said that “everything woke turns to shit.” This, sadly, is no truer than in the world of art. Peace.
Mr. Groovy,
Oh You are Spot On.. I follow Lena’s channel and what a talent… I also enjoy Hyper-realism which is an exceptional form of Art.
Back to what is known as Modern Art:
I am convinced that I will never be able to understand what is known as Modern Art… I went by mistake to a museum which has Modern Art exhibition .. I couldn’t even spend 10 minutes in the museum. (It has cost me approximately 20 USD what a waste!!!) …
I guess I am not alone on hating this Modern Art Trash!!!
Thanks for stopping by, ATM, and sharing your thoughts on Lena and modern art. I couldn’t agree more. The woke gatekeepers of the art world hate art and hate us. The sooner the great unwashed realize this and find new gatekeepers the better. Peace, my friend.
Fort Worth has a Modern Art Museum . Why has the word “Modern” become a synonym for vulgarity and basically garbage? One of their most puzzling exhibits (admission was free that day) is a fluorescent lamp mounted diagonally on the wall. Hey, at least that one isn’t vulgar.
Another commenter noted that the subject looks like she is sliding into second base. Strangely enough, at the Kimbell in Fort Worth there is a sculpture of a woman in a similar pose (albeit sans clothing) adorning the court yard outside their restaurant. Otherwise the Kimbell has an excellent collection, including Michaelangelo’s first known painting.
r.
Hey, EG. Thanks for sharing your perspective. I couldn’t agree more. Vulgar or garbage–the two qualities most frequently embraced by modern art. I don’t remember which museum it was, it may have been MOMA, but one of the exhibits I saw on my visit to this museum was just numerous pieces of string attached to the floor on one end and the ceiling on the other end. The brilliance of it was right up there with the fluorescent light you saw mounted to the wall. Check out this clip from the Batman TV show. It turned out to be a perfect prophecy of our societal decay.
Gothem City Art Contest
Lena’s work looks like a tribute to Maillol’s L’air. Perhaps with a tinge of irony as hers is in water. There’s a similar statue at the entrance of the Getty museum here in LA (i also saw one in NYC but can’t remember where). To me, it’s a classic image of femininity and beauty.
Or it’s a woman sliding into second base…lol.
And the cleats are up! Lena has a bit of a mean streak.
Thanks for the keen interpretation. It does look like a watery version of Maillol’s L’air.
mrs. smidlap is a fine artist, mostly a painter of abstract expressionism. she is trained with an m.f.a. from your alma mater at UB. here’s the thing: she chooses to paint abstracts but could easily do renderings of scenery, portraits, etc.
the modern art is a choice. we all like and appreciate what we like and appreciate.
http://www.marybegley.com
Absolutely. When I was in grad school I kindly helped out a peer by sharing my notes for an entire course. She worked at MOMA and rewarded me with two posters: Jackson Pollack’s Lucifer and Jasper Johns’s Flag. And I love those paintings. So I completely agree that abstract or modern art has its place. While I don’t find The Scream particularly compelling from a technical standpoint (I could easily duplicate something similar), I do like it. It’s fun. The lane art in Melbourne, Australia, and a lot of the graffiti in New York City are also fun. But is any of it worth $120 million? This post was a commentary against our Woke Overlords, not a commentary against abstract art, impressionist art, or any art that deviates from the realism of classic art. Thanks for stopping by, Mr. Smidlap. Great comment as always. Cheers.
I’ve commented on this very topic, generally coming to the conclusion that rich people (who buy modern art) are stupid.
OTOH the local billionaire’s grandson started something a few years back. He offered a quarter million bucks to the artist who did best. And the definition of “best” was arrived at by public voting through a mobile app and QR codes. This went well for a few years until it was coopted by wokesters, interest waned, and then Covid panic.
Nevertheless, if you’re in Grand Rapids Michigan in an even numbered year after Labor Day, keep an eye out for “Art Prize.”
My deathless prose from a decade ago expands on this:
https://diogenesclubarchives.blogspot.com/2011/09/taxonomy-of-artprize-entries.html
and here:
https://diogenesclubarchives.blogspot.com/2013/10/making-art.html
Thanks for the links, my friend. Very prescient posts. I particularly liked the way you described propaganda:
It’s just there, declaring some message in the most heavy-handed way imaginable without the slightest breath of humanity or humor. It can be produced by a crowd of 6-year-old draftees or by some too-earnest “artist” toiling away in his garret.
Give a 4 year old a box of 8 crayons and he’ll create art better than the dreck at MOMA. (Maybe I finally know a word that you don’t know? But only because it’s Yiddish.)
Mrs Groovy recently posted…Our Woke Overlords and Art
Haha! You still got to work on your vocabulary. I am familiar with “dreck.” Regardless, your point is spot on.
You should see some of the art work our 4-year-old granddaughter creates, true works of beauty in the eyes of her biased grandfather. She’s certainly not a dreck (gotta admit, I had to look that word up to be sure).
I agree with the thesis of the post that art is becoming as trashy as our society at large. Sad…
My parents still held on to a few other yiddish words like schmatta (rag, as in “Can you believe she wore that schmatta?!” and kinder (children, as in “The kinder! The kinder!” when they didn’t want us to hear what they were talking about.
Same is true of modern sculpture, and architecture – designed to be as hideous and anxiety-provoking as humanly possible.
Excellent point, JDF. I couldn’t agree more.