Dying is a great career move for artists.
The dead artist is like any other dead person, the greatest most incredible and amazing human being on earth (at the time of the burial), with the added bonus that his work is now worth ten times more. Of course, the problem of dying is that you get dead, and that may pose a bit of a complication when collecting the money for the artwork.
So the question is: Is there a middle ground where the artist can boost his value and get a shitload of money for crappy artwork without having to jump off a building? Maybe there is.
One solution is to become a socialite like Andy Warhol. Andy got recognition through social engineering. Lots of parties, sex, studios in New York and a ridiculous hairdo were the most important aspects of his art, those colorful paintings called pop-something were just props.
The other solution is something much more appealing than wearing a stupid wig. Promote your injuries. The concept is not entirely new, but as a certain Mr. Gogh discovered, chopping off an ear doesn’t quite cut it (so to speak). You have to be a bit more creative and dramatic than that. This is where the piece Krippmeister’s Series of Unfortunate Events comes in. It is a satellite view of my neighborhood where I’ve marked a few of the many injuries sustained during a normal childhood jumping barbed wire fences, crashing bikes, trespassing, climbing rooftops... In short, all the things normal children did before there was free porn on the internet.
So there you have it! It’s not as good as dying, but then again, not as inconvenient. It has dramatic and narrative interest and is a great excuse for all of you loaded pitiful pseudo-intellectuals to pay lots of cash for my artwork and feel important for it.
Just click on the picture to see it full size.
