My kid could paint that!

How is it possible that an art historian and a museum educator can have a child and not be constantly posting about his explorations in art? I'm not sure, but I hope I can start to catch up with this post -- which will include images of Holden's "recent work" interspersed with snarky banter about the art world (I couldn't resist).

To start with, Holden gets to create art almost every day at his day care. They have an art activity room, but the teachers also come up with fun and creative things for the little tots to do in their own classroom. For example, a couple months ago, the teachers taped paper to the bottom of a table, and had the kids scoot under the table to paint on their backs ... a la Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel. Some of the kids were too scared to do this, but not Holden -- he had a blast! They also do a lot of finger painting, and playing with materials and textures with art projects. Outside of his day care, we also make sure Holden's coloring and drawing (how else is he going to maintain his mad art skills?!). These past few weeks, in the cold of winter, we've been going to the Climatron at the Botanical Garden where they have a coloring activity station for kids. Holden was more interested in the kids books and puzzles, but I managed to catch a pic of him coloring with mommy (shown here).

But let's get down to business ... so how does Holden's painting hold up to professional artists working in the "real" art world? I mean, ever since the 2007 film "My Kid Could Paint That," I think every parent wonders if their toddler can make paintings that they could slip into the Museum of Modern Art and absolutely get away with it (or, if not, whether they could pull off a scheme that would get them lots of money and media attention at the expense of their 4-year-old child, and absolutely get away with it). The 2007 film obviously sparked a lot of controversy, as it tapped into the single most frequent comment or thought that visitors have when looking at modern abstract painting ... "my kid could paint that." I've heard it in lots of variations, but it's always a challenge hurdled at any museum that displays work by artists like Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning, Joan Mitchell, Cy Twombly, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Julian Schnabel, etc. etc., and to the museum educators at those museums who are faced with these stubborn (yet somewhat valid) concerns about modern and contemporary abstract or minimalist painting. This challenge is particularly difficult for the museum educator who happens to have a small child at home who is creating art and coming out with products that seem only mere steps away from hanging on the wall of an art gallery or auction house. Perhaps these feelings are somewhat akin to those of the parents of Marla Olmstead (the talented child at the center of "My Kid Could Paint That"). Anyway, I thought I'd have a bit of fun looking at some of Holden's recent art projects through the lens of some "art speak" and those artists Holden already seems to be paralleling:

Here are two rather transgressive paintings that Holden has created in the past 3 months, both untitled. You can see how he truly cites the smudge as each work's proper subject -- each mark with its own history. More performative than illustrative, Holden's inimitable visual language of scribbles, scratches, and scrawls are employed to both suggestive and sublime effects
[for those of you interested, I'm pulling this straight from the Art Institute of Chicago's section on artist Cy Twombly]:


The image below is a detail of a work that Holden created by scribbling on a piece of reflective cardboard. What parent wouldn't be proud of such spontaneous mark-making, obviously the result of both split-second decision-making and happenstance, choreography and chance. Each physical "performance" is a unique and unrepeatable event, but the final product is always subject to artistic will.
[these fine words have been adapted from the National Gallery of Art's praise of none-other-than Jackson Pollock].


And here are some of the artists and artworks that Holden is aspiring toward as he develops his own painterly style (you can see some similarity here already, and perhaps even with your own kid's art):

Joan Mitchell
(don't get me wrong, I really do love her stuff)

Cy Twombly (adult)

Cy again (much deeper)

2010 graduate from Yale's MFA painting program
(actually, I think Holden's already doing better than this)

OK, snarkiness aside, I am actually really happy that Holden gets to experiment with finger-painting, coloring, and making messes with art supplies ... and I hope he never loses his excitement and creativity. While Holden's paintings shown above will never be exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art (unless I try to slip one in on my next visit), they will certainly be on view on our fridge ... at least until we get a fresh supply of new work. And we'll try and keep you updated on his expanding oeuvre ; )