After a mediocre attempt to generate some excitement in the community about art (I failed to reel in any new fish, just the usual suspects), I was massively entertained by the art historical references in some unusual places. Namely Futurama and The Simpsons. Now, of course the Futurama episode in which the gang goes to "Future Roma" (haha), is a spoof of The Da Vinci Code, so it's indirectly art historical, but still. In fact, the more I think about that show, which has wormed its way into my brain via a certain man's obsessive zeal, it's an incredible example of cartoon culture analyzing our own cultural identity. Flipping the story of Leonardo Da Vinci on its head is only one instance in which those crazy writers and animators nerd out and inject history into the comedy.
And really, if we could just blame all the art thefts and general badness on Mr. Burns, wouldn't life be swell?
Aside from playing "Twister" on a bunch of animated oil paintings--"Left hand Rembrandt!"--The Simpsons has always thrown a wrench in the typical lower class identity of Homer and Co. by revealing tiny moments of cultural awareness on the part of their characters. I for one wouldn't mind having one of those characters come to an ArTalk. But there are some real life people who just can't open their minds far enough.
Funny how you can find art on television. Maybe that's why all the big museums now have LCD screens, and there are so many video installations. That seems to be this century's current medium of choice. And bridging the gap between oils and animation are a bunch of occasionally vulgar, fictional characters. But how to use this for the benefit of this particular community, I have no idea...
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