Art and Hype

Chicago’s Art Institute, while housing some of the most precious works of art in the world, is home to some of the most worthless, overly-hyped paintings in America today. In particular, Grant Wood’s American Gothic is perhaps the most notable work featured in this category of art. It isn’t uncommon to see large crowds gathered around the piece at the Art Institute, standing in awe of the pretentious painting while muttering disconnected observations pertaining to its meaning and beauty. The painting is of a man and his wife, both farming types, standing in front of a cottage in what appears to be rural Kansas. That is all!  There is nothing really there to invite the viewer in, or even speak to anything other than “life on the farm”. While the detail in the painting is quite skillful, the content of the piece leaves little to take home with at the end of the day.
    The main concern with this painting revolves around the fact it leaves no room for the imagination to direct the experience of the viewer. It is a painting of a couple in front of a cottage, and that’s it! Nothing else! There is not space left to read into the piece without sounding like you’re trying a tad too hard. To give this painting any depth would be like giving depth to something like a cotton swab. No matter how you look at it, the fact remains that it is still a cotton swab. American Gothic, while pretty to look at, offers little to any true appreciator of art. Hype is hype, and a painting of a farmer remains a painting of a farmer. How does art like this become so popular?