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Since we purposely can't see his face, why do you assume the expression on it is perplexed? Nothing about the position of his body says that. I think that the indications of "class" Rockwell gives us - his suit, his gloves, his hat - says he's learning something, and we don't know what the outcome will be.

Nothing about the position of his body says that. I think that the indications of "class" Rockwell gives us - his suit, his gloves, his hat - says he's learning something, and we don't know what the outcome will be.

I think I may have overstated my case on this one. That does not mean, however, that your take is right either. The painting is called "The Connoisseur". The man is in a drab-gray suit. He's not learning anything by looking at the painting. He's "appreciating" it because that's what he's been told is great art. Seeing that it was done by the ultimate anti-modernist, the painting simply could not be more ironic.

Rockwell has always been despised by the "connoisseurs." He couldn't come right out and say it without it seeming the height of artistic arrogance, but he must have wondered "Why is this splatter-junk in the greatest museums of the world, and my work is derided as 'old fashioned' and the supposed 'connoisseurs' look down their nose at me?"

History is the great winnowing fan of art. Rockwell will go down as the iconic graphic artist of American greatness and his works will appear in people's homes for hundreds of years. Jackson Pollack, Andres Cerano, Cy Twombly, and all the rest will eventually have their works accidentally thrown in the trash by an overly scrupulous janitor.

I read Rockwell's notes on the painting. The gentleman is supposed to be perplexed. He also mentioned that one of the reasons he did it was to get a chance to try some of the splatter painting. He said it was a lot of fun, but not something that he had an interest in pursuing.

He was pointedly not critical of postmodernist art, but seemed comfortable working in his way, while accepting that other artists did different work for different audiences.

The more modern "shock art" is a reaction to increasing public indifference to recent fine art trends, particularly in visual arts. In many instances, they're doing anything they can to attract attention. They consider themselves "rebels", although you'll notice the same willingness to disparage Christianity, but not Islam, that is evident in the mainstream press. They choose to be brave against people who they are fairly sure will not firebomb their galleries.