Posted on 12/18/2005 6:27:16 PM PST by nickcarraway
MORITZBURG, Saxony: A German art expert was fooled into believing a painting done by a chimpanzee was the work of a master.
The director of the State Art Museum of Moritzburg in Saxony-Anhalt, Katja Schneider, suggested the painting was by the Guggenheim Prize-winning artist Ernst Wilhelm Nay.
"It looks like an Ernst Wilhelm Nay. He was famous for using such blotches of colour," Dr Schneider confidently asserted.
The canvas was actually the work of Banghi, a 31-year-old female chimp at the local zoo. While Banghi likes to paint, she is not able to build up much of a body of work as her mate Satscho generally destroys her paintings before they can get to the gallery.
But this one survived long enough to give Dr Schneider a red face. "I did think it looked a bit rushed," she told Bild newspaper.
Penguins on parade TOKYO: Staff at Asahiyama Zoo have put the penguins on a strict regime of exercise after they started to put on too much weight in response to a cold winter.
The zoo's 15 king penguins are taken on two brisk 500m walks each day. It is normal for penguins to put on weight during the winter, but at least one of them is tipping the scales at 18kg, the top end of the weight range for the species.
"Just like in humans ... the fat accumulates during the winter months, and the blood-sugar level rises," spokesman Tetsuo Yamazaki said. "In order to withstand the cold, the penguins have a habit of standing very still during winter months."
The penguins can only exercise in winter as their webbed feet are too tender to walk on anything but snow, Mr Yamazaki said.
Everyone's a critic.
This is more evidence that the greater part of what is called modern "art" is mere sham.
I was thinking of that great saying, "A sucker is born every minute!'
Heheh...
I can't believe people pay big money for this. One reason may be that since even an expert cannot reliably tell the difference between the work of a "master" or a chimpanzee, anyone can have an opinion about the "work". Rich dummies can sound learned discussing these things.
I saw a piece on TV some years back about a former Wallstreet Type who left his career for the art world. He learned the art blab-speak lingo very well and was quite successful. One of his "works" was a display of three wet/dry vacs. arranged in a tier to give an idea.
I have to believe after a showing he had to go off by himself and laugh at the people who bought this.
btt
And one of the biggest buyers of monder "art" is the various governments and colleges. There was an "art" exhibit at a local university that consisted of a square frame of welded steel about 9 ft sq. Inside it were several pedistals of pieces of u-channel steel that had been cut to various lengths and welded to the steel pedistals. And that was it. I'll bet they paid $50,000 or more for it.
It is a sham to relieve stupid, gullible people from ther money.
Evolutionary Art
Rhesus Pieces
Monkey Shines
Chimp Panzee
Chimp Chump
ping
If this doesn't put the final nail in the coffin of the art posers, then it's proof that they are sustained only by their lackeys in the media.
I work security at the Fogg Art Museum @ Harvard. Some of the modern-art paintings are utter crap. Mark Rothko & Jackson Pollack are at the bottom of the turdpile.
This art debate is an endless one, but I have to agree with you on Jackson Pollack. I'm not familiar with the other clown. I would think it's about time this Deconstructionist/Post-Modern conceit died its inevitable death so art can return to an endeavor that elevates Man rather than diminishing him.
Brilliant! [yawn]
Mark Rothko: 
This is the stuff of sheer artistic genius... or maybe a chimp, I can't really tell.
Agreed! On the bright side, though, 99.9% of them are probably Democrats;)
LOL!
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