Why I hate modern art (part 2) - Tillie the Dog Artist

Some while ago I wrote an article that attemptedNews, The National Geographic Network, Animal
to explain why I hate modern art.Planet, The New York Post, The Washington
The thrust of my article was that modern artTimes, Esquire Magazine, and many others
appreciation has shifted the emphasis from theworldwide. Time Out New York described it as
finished artwork to the act of creation itself.“a masterpiece of conceptualism.”
Consequentially, a splattered mess of paint can beJane Hart, curator of the Hollywood Art and
considered great art if it has a provenance toCulture Centre is quoted as saying, “if you put
explain its purpose and meaning.  her work before someone without telling them
To take an example, the first and possibly mostthat a dog did it, they wouldn’t be able to tell
famous piece of conceptual art was Marcelit apart from a human artist’s”. The
Duchamp’s “Fountain”. Fountain was aremark appears to be an indication of how
signed urinal, purchased, not made by the artist.“good” Tillie’s painting is!
Duchamp claimed it to be a work of art because;So I know its all a bit of a joke, but there is a
he chose the item, he gave it a name, placed it inserious side to the story.
a different context, and so created a newIn 2006, media mogul David Geffen sold Jackson
thought for that object.Pollock’s “No. 5 1948”, for $140 million.
The Times newspaper recently ran a story onThis made Pollock’s work the most
“Tillie”, the ten-year-old Jack Russell terrierexpensive painting in modern history.
who paints (it also ran an item on a tree thatGiven the comparisons between Tillie’s and
draws, but let’s not go there). Tillie wasJackson Pollock’s outputs, it’s no surprise
reported to have notched up her 20th solothat society can willingly accept the scratchings of
exhibition, earned more than $100,000 from salesa dog as meritorious art!
of her work, visited five countries and drawnWe have been taught not to question the merit
comparisons with the abstract expressionistof art: if someone tells us something is art (e.g.
Jackson Pollock. Her “artworks” sell forputs it in a gallery), we believe that to be true.
between $100 and $2,000.We are afraid to express an opinion for fear of
The Hollywood Art and Culture Centre inridicule. And yet, it would be perfectly reasonable
Hollywood, Florida, is the latest gallery to put theto look at “No. 5”, and remark that it
dog’s output on show, with an exhibitionlooked like a dog had made it.
entitled “The Tillamook Cheddar Mid-CareerTillie is doing what dogs do. She is scratching and
Retrospective, 1999-2009”.biting. She is not composing, conceptualising, or
Tillie “works” by scratching and biting atexpressing herself. It is utter madness to portray
overturned painted vellum; the pressure of herthe outcome of her clawing at paint and paper as
claws, paws and teeth transferring the colouredart. Placing value on a similar painting produced by
pigment on to paper below.a human is insanity. The only genius at work here
Her “art” has been featured by CBSis the seller’s – not the artist’s.
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