Komar and Melamid's 'Painting by Numbers' Uses Polls to Question Artistic Authority and Universal Taste
In their 1997 publication, 'Painting by Numbers: Komar and Melamid's Scientific Guide to Art,' Vitaly Komar and Alexander Melamid employ scientific polling to explore the notions of authorship and aesthetic appeal. The artists conducted surveys across several nations, such as the U.S., Russia, Kenya, and China, uncovering a worldwide preference for a blue landscape painting, while geometric abstraction was largely dismissed. Komar observed a paradox of American conformity amid its reputation for individualism. Their work intertwines art with statistical analysis, referencing various cultural traditions, including figures like Stalin. Melamid contended that the blue landscape serves as a cultural bridge. Arthur Danto raised questions about the idea of 'most wanted,' highlighting how polling often reflects commissioned interests rather than true public sentiment.
Key facts
- Vitaly Komar and Alexander Melamid published 'Painting by Numbers: Komar and Melamid's Scientific Guide to Art' in 1997 through Farrar, Strauss, Giroux in New York
- The artists conducted scientific polls of artistic tastes across multiple countries including the United States, Russia, Kenya, and China
- The 'most wanted' painting globally was a blue landscape with realistic elements, preferred regardless of race, class, or gender
- The 'least wanted' painting universally was geometric abstraction
- Komar noted that American polls revealed conformity despite the society's reputation for individual expression
- Editor Jo Ann Wypijewski described the project as a 'happening of continuous embarrassment'
- The artists used Domenichino's ideal landscapes as templates for their blue landscape paintings
- Arthur Danto contributed an essay questioning whether something can be 'most wanted' if nobody actually wants it
Entities
Artists
- Vitaly Komar
- Alexander Melamid
- Svetlana Boym
- El Lissitzky
- Kazimir Malevich
- Vassily Kandinsky
- Eugene Delacroix
- Manet
- Domenichino
- Arthur Danto
- Caravaggio
- Stalin
- Ilya Kabakov
- George Washington
- Jesus Christ
Institutions
- Farrar, Strauss, Giroux
- New York Times
- ARTMargins Online
Locations
- New York
- United States
- Russia
- Kenya
- China
- France
- Cambridge, MA
- Bayonne, New Jersey
- Ithaca
- Normandy