Someone Please Buy This
by habituallychic
07 . 20 . 08
I did a little shopping in Soho after work on Friday while someone else was doing a little golfing. (Hmmm…wonder who that was.) Anyway, one of the places I stopped into was Lobel Modern. They have the most fabulous furniture but it was the art that caught my eye. One piece that would be perfect for above the sofa in the Bachelor Pad and then there was the “Monumental Abstract Pastel Drawing” by George Vihos from 1972 that was the showstopper. It’s huge at 7 feet high by 9 feet long and beautifully encassed in acrylic and framed in chrome. It’s also quite a bargain at $15,000 for a work that large and well done by a listed artist. I hope someone buys this and gives it a good home. I know I would if I had the money and the space. Oh, they offer a designer discount if that helps! 
19 Comments
give you one for half price by my five year old niece for 8000 bucks no tax, delivered to the bachelor pad by me.
I saw this piece on 1st dibs and had the same reaction! I can only imagine how stunning if must have been in person. Ah, if only…
if anyone is interested, my 4 year old son could recreate that in about 5 minutes. we’ll give you an amazing deal!
Franklin, I understand the to each his own but it’s a shame you choose to make fun of art instead of learning about it.
Smitty, I’m glad someone enjoys great art. It was very stunning in person. I loved it.
dear habitually chic,
i love your blog and didn’t mean to offend you.
but this piece isn’t really the greatest thing to put up. it is sort of a watered down joan mitchell, at least that was my impression. i work in the art world, so am familiar with many of these sorts of second or third tier works of artists working in the same genre/typology. the price tag is not that high, not that low, for an amateur collector, but most probably one can do better (after many tries) at the thrift stores or second hand market outside of new york city.
it’s so interesting to me that you would refuse to put up my comment about my 4 year old son. i was serious when i offered. that is NOT intelligent art. you should know better!
Anonymous, I thought your comment was rude and boorish and didn’t deserve to be posted. Why is it that you probably would have swooned if I had said it was by Cy Twombley but instead you scoff because it’s by an artist you have never heard of. There is a lot of art out there that looks like your child could have done it but actually is well thought out and beautifully drawn or painted. I bet you hate Jackson Pollock too.
I happened to have immediately loved it the moment I saw it and it’s my blog and I choose to post what I love everyday and I stand by this work of art.
i quite like it, and the size and the lovely framing really do make the painting something of a bargain (just to have the framing replicated would be 3000-4000, easy).
and take it from someone who is in thrift shops and second hand markets religiously- a decent work that large, and with comparable framing, is just not to be found- period. something similar, say around 4-5 feet wide- probably, if you look long and hard enough. but that size? ain’t gonna happen.
This post has raised an interesting question: by what criteria do we/should we judge art? If one has an instant, strong, and lingering reaction to a work, why does its “intelligence,” or lack thereof, matter? Also, what distinguishes an “intelligent” piece from one that is “not intelligent?”
That is definitely true what maison21 said in regard to the sizing of artworks available on the second hand market. Often the ones in New York are long picked through before they are shown to the public, a long known unfortunate situation abetted by familiarity and under the table cash.
Franklin Legge may or may not make a point, but at the end of the day, art is probably in the eye of the beholder, he or she who wants it must like it for one reason or another and let us perhaps leave it at that.
Personally, I’m not a fan of the piece. But I can appreciate the qualities you like about it. I’m surprised how quickly others dismiss/mock a style that doesn’t exactly match their own. And then, to make a point, belittles the piece (and by extension, YOU) to ensure they feel superior. A tactic that, in my opinion, is not an intelligent way to argue a position.
It’s surprisingly difficult to draw or paint “like a child.”
Loving the way you only post comments that are favorable to you. Very disappointing stance from what I consider to be a brilliant blog.
I guess I should be glad that this post has sparked such a spirited debate about what is “intelligent” or even well done art.
Art is subjective but I didn’t appreciate being personally villified because I chose to post something that I found beautiful. I bet if I had left the price out, no one would have cared.
I also didn’t post the one comment because it didn’t serve a purpose. It was juvenille and not serious. Art is something that is very important to me and I thought that particular comment was just plain rude. There are a lot of people who post that has nothing “intelligent” to add to a conversation.
When studying art in school, I found it most interesting that Picasso mastered drawing at such a young age that for the rest of his life he tried to draw or paint like a child. It is very hard. And just because something looks easy to replicate or that a child could have done it doesn’t mean they could.
If habitually chic posted every single blog comment, I am positive it will be inundated with not only random rude comments and profanity but also with advertisements for viagra etc.!
I like the painting.
I wish you’d maintained a sense of humor in your responses to the nay-sayers. Your blog would be stronger.
May be a little late for me to post comment but I love the fresh hand and size of this piece. I come from a family of artists of all types. Excuse the blatant plug but my brother is an amazing artist that does abstract works even the most “boorish” viewer cannot resist. They look like supernovas or nebula or cloud formations. Everyone sees something different. They are also very reasonably priced. If you visit the blog site, you’ll understand my reckless abandon in promoting him to you. http://toddcrockett.blogspot.com/
habitually chic
hi, I like your way to talk about the painting…like a person…I hope someone buys this and gives it a good home…. I´m an architect and a painter and I undertund you.
I love your blog.
regards from Buenos Aires