My Visit to THE MUSEUM OF BAD ART or Why My Bad Art Falls Short

http://www.museumofbadart.org/collection/portraiture-1.html

Website of The Museum of Bad Art.

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I learn a lot from reading reviews of paintings. I must say that bad art can teach a great deal about art. I cannot stop visiting MOBA. Lucy, the portrait you will see when you first click on the link is my favorite. Some excerpts of the critiques:

"The motion, the chair, the sway of her breast, the subtle hues of the sky, the expression on her face -- every detail combines to create this transcendent and compelling portrait, every detail cries out "masterpiece...

"What is Norman Mailer's head doing on an innocent grandma's body, and are those crows or F-16's skimming the hills?"

Currently, I am an advanced beginner painter, progressing as an oil painter. I really enjoy painting now. I must say that I create some bad art but nothing approaching the magnificence of "Lucy." How can one artist get all "that" into one painting????

Every piece of art has something interesting to read about its technique and history. Lucy is by far the best for me. My other favorites include:


http://www.museumofbadart.org/collection/portraiture-2.html
Sunday on the Pot With George. It is simply visually "stunning." Enough said.


http://www.museumofbadart.org/collection/portraiture-4.html
Mary Todd Lincoln... "A painting that could have changed the course of the Civil War."


http://www.museumofbadart.org/collection/portraiture-8.html
The Athlete. I have a lot to say about this piece. See... This is a good example of where I get it all wrong. I would have told the guy to take off the white socks and black shoes or simply done a portrait of someone else. (Although there is some controversy about this piece being created to be bad.) You see this style of dress at some of the traditional Highland games too. Full costume but with the black shoes and white socks. Someone had the guts to show it like it really is.

I should have done a portrait of the Italian guy I saw at the last Highland games. (I can only guess he has a wife from the clan.) There are still a lot of unknown factors in modern times. We always wondered what the Italians wore under their kilts. This man was swinging some heavy thing (that I forget the name of) to throw and it kicked up his "skirt." Now we know. Italian men wear blue shorts under their kilts along with the black shoes and white socks. Now that would have been a piece that tells a story.


http://www.museumofbadart.org/collection/portraiture-9.html
Eileen. I like people to see this one because it was actually stolen from the gallery. A reward of $6.50 was offered for Eileen's safe return. This is a record amount for MOBA. Longtime Friend of MOBA, David Robertson, offered to match the curator's reward penny for penny.

http://www.museumofbadart.org/collection/portraiture-10.html
Peter the Kitty. I don't have a lot to say about Peter the Kitty except that you have to see it. Before even reading the critiques, I am laughing too hard to the point of snorting. (I thought I had finally licked snorting by 7th grade.) I think that the model for "Peter the Kitty" must be some sort of reincarnated form of King Henry the Eighth.

Go visit and learn! Remember, we learn from reading the history of "The Athlete" that truly bad art is not supposed to be striven for. It simply happens.