Follow up part 1 of 3

This image is called Icons Collide by Manuel Ortega.

I missed this picture the first time I went to the art walk. It is worth 150 dollars and it reminds me of the film Super Size Me. This documentary was about a guy who ate nothing, but McDonalds for a few months. He nearly died. Anyway, in one scene, they showed children a picture of McDonald and Jesus. The children had no idea who Jesus was, but then instantly recognize a picture of Ronald McDonald. Keeping that in mind, I’m sure if you showed kids a picture of Mickey and Jesus; they would know Mickey over Jesus. I suppose in a way Mickey has become the childhood savior for all little children. Disney must be proud. So, in way I suppose Mickey has merged or replaced Jesus, hence the name, Icons Collide. I never liked Mickey though, he annoyed me.

With this piece in particular I decided to ask someone who was around to interpret it for me. The person I talked to said that it is Mickey on the cross, the color is dull and bland. There was nothing to like about it, except that kids might enjoy seeing Mickey. Then the person walked away.

There was some agreement. We both agreed that the color did not help the portrait. In fact, it might have been better black and white. The color was also really boring. Beyond that, there was no agreement here and there doesn’t seem to be any general criteria for why we like or dislike the painting. My interpretation of the portrait comes from the background knowledge of what the picture may represent and knowledge of the symbols found in the portrait. If we were going to base our appreciation solely on criteria found explicitly (color, shading, lines, contours etc) in the portrait, the portrait wouldn’t be that great. The portrait would have an overgrown mouse on a cross, which would have no meaning what so ever. I am also unsure if Rosenberg would agree with using background knowledge the appreciate art. He seems to be stuck with what we explicitly see in the portrait. At the very best, it seems the color could give the painting a little more flare, but that would be all. To Part 2