Artists sell paintings of items to buy items the paintings depict

For about a year, New York City artists Justin Gignac and Christine Santora make paintings of things that they want and price them at exactly what it would cost to buy that item. Once they sell the painting, and buy the item, they take a photo of the item or experience and post it in their Flickr stream beside the painting. Top, plane trip from New York City. Below that, Nixon watch. Wants For Sale (Thanks, Mathias Crawford!)

David Pescovitz is Boing Boing's co-editor/managing partner. He's also a research director at Institute for the Future. On Instagram, he's @pesco.

MORE: Art and Design

More at Boing Boing

The technology that links taxonomy and Star Trek

Hackers prepare for first "national holiday" in their honor

alowishus

You know, that is one hideous watch. I mean, does it come with a big busy moustache and a Magnum P.I. Hawaiian shirt?
The Lizardman

Going back to the renaissance and beyond, art has always been a means to get money from rich “idiots”. Most days, I would be willing to argue that that is, in fact, the defintiion of art. Whether it is ‘stunts’ or a portrait of the patriarch or cathedral it was all done to get some money from the rich
eti

That’s not a Nixon watch! THIS is a Nixon watch!
http://tinyurl.com/pgwmdc
The Lizardman

@24 Troofseeker

I said MOST days and only that I would argue for it – not that I would be right. But even if I were right about it, I could also argue that does not necessarily exclude your other activities from being ‘art’ because I have a philosophy degree and I can ‘argue’ most anything
Avram / Moderator

“Art is whatever you can get away with” is what they told me in art school.
Ernunnos

This is exactly the kind of cynical hipster shit I usually hate, but today I find it charming. I like the cartoonish depictions, I like the utter shamelessness of it. It’s not cynical if everyone is in on the joke. There’s nothing wrong with being a patron of the arts, or an artist seeking patronage. I see this as a one-of-a-kind receipt for a donation. And anyone who thinks this is crap is welcome to… patronize a different artist. All in all, yes, I think this qualifies as a wonderful thing.
afo

“Support Mah Gamblin’ Problem”
$299.98
merreborn

What a racket.
nosehat

When you really, really want an airplane wing, you’ll stop at nothing!
Artsee

…tell you with certainty, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.:)
Takuan

clerk in drug store: “What….what is this?”
pato pal ur

Isn’t this the same guy who put ordinary garbage in a box and sold it for $100?
failix

Whether you like it or not, it doesn’t affect its status as art. Art isn’t defined by the beauty of something. It’s defined by the idea behind it.
Takuan

better than canned poop.
phillamb168

@Takuan at least canned poop has resale value as “fertilizer.”
Takuan

sadly, not artist poop.
Anonymous

They obviously put some time into these and some only sell for $3. I’m a painter and know that canvas costs at least double that. Seems like they are doing this more for the fun of it than trying to get rich. On their site there’s also a link to Needsforsale.com, their charity site. Gotta respect that.
Anonymous

I hope they have other income, because otherwise they may have an income tax problem next April. Maybe they should sell a painting depicting their check to uncle sam.
TroofSeeker

In my observation, a lot of wonderful art is appearing right here in Boingtown, and all over the internet, all for free. I get a lot of fantastic photos from Flickr, and see a lot of incredible videos, crafts and art.
I think the Internet is causing an explosion of art that would otherwise not have been seen or even created. God Bless the Internet!
weststudio

Wow, if someone actually paid money for either of those mediocre paintings, I’m going to start painting the Ramblas for my trip to Barcelona.
dw_funk

do you mean freshly canned poop, or poop that comes from that Cloaca machine? It’s not art anymore to just shit in a can, but if you manufacture it, I think that’s pretty cool.

Why is it that most Boing Boing posts about any sort of conceptual or non-representational art are all followed by a chorus of people shouting how it’s not art?
Moriarty

With stories like these, I’m always way more interested in the buyers. How can I get in touch with these people who apparently have loads of cash to throw at other people’s whimsical, tossed-off conceits? Is that box of garbage prominently displayed in someone’s home? Was it some drunk rich person in an art gallery tittering at the idea and buying it ironically, only to return it to whence it came?
nosehat

Wait, wait, was the artist this guy?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6TXz38DzDY
TroofSeeker

That vidoe was terrifying! …well, to me it was. Those blue feety-jammies dredged up a horrific memory:
A drowsy infant, just over a year old, awoke in the dead of night in his bed, got up, and staggered into our bedroom. He crawled into our bed on my side. Like every night.
Soon I felt those creepy, scratchy plastic feety bottoms on my back, pushing at me to give himself more room. Like every night.
But something was different this time- they felt cold and wet and slimey. And stinky.
He had walked thru dog crap.
TroofSeeker

“I would be willing to argue that that is, in fact, the defintition of art…”

Not fair, Lizard Man. True, I do design work to stave off the bill collectors, but I never take money from family or friends when they want art. I’ve done lots of artwork solely for others’ pleasure (even some for you knuckleheads), and would never take money for it. The way I see it, my “gift”, if it be such, is given to the community, and I am just a stewart of the talent.
I’d like to think that most artists feel the same, and often give their art to friends and family.
toxonix

Wow these people have no imagination.
Gold Aviators? A GT4 guitar?
Whats next, a V-Neck T-shirt? Skinny Jeans?
Colorful retro sneakers (already on the list)
I guess if you have no talent, you might as well just get shit that makes you feel cool.
choxielove

stupid crap sold to people with too much money
hbl

I definitely dig the idea, but what’s in it for the buyer? The minimal sharpie pen cartoonism of the pieces isn’t involved enough for the price tags attached, and the argument that they buyer has a piece which reflects the artist’s wants and desires is undermined by the purile consumer crap they want to buy.

It’s a nice idea, but the execution is dreadful. Maybe that’s the point, that people will spend any amount of money on anything.
darue

Oh it’s art alright. Just me… I’m sick of these art “stunts” – but hey, it’s a good way to get money off rich idiots, so good going guys!
Anonymous

Picasso did it first.

At the height of his career the old fraud could have anything he wanted just by painting it and *directly exchanging* the painting for the goods. Heck, I understand the man’s signature was worth so much he could pay restaurant bills by signing them.

(not a troll, just not a boinger)
Takuan

who was the guy who used to buy stuff with drawings of money?
Tdawwg

J. S. G. Boggs. Lawrence Weschler wrote a good book about him.
szielins

Do they sell nudes?
TroofSeeker

I borrowed a pen from a security guard to forge a ticket into a dance, using the flap from a pack of Zig-Zags. It almost worked, but the guard came back for his pen and busted me. I don’t mean he busted me- I never got busted by no dang security guard. But he took his pen back, so I had to panhandle a couple bucks to get in.