5 Pieces of Weird Art That Fixed My Broken Brain

My Love Letter to Peculiarity

When I was 10 years old, my parents decided it was time I saw Europe for the first time. What they failed to consider was that 10-year-old me had no interest in seeing any cultural landmarks at all—particularly whatever was inside a museum. I thought art was stupid, especially the modern kind, and dragged my feet around the galleries of Spain and France mumbling, “I could’ve done that,” as I posed for snapchat selfies on my blue iPhone 5c in teal Claire’s sunglasses and a t-shirt from Forever 21.

But then my brain broke—or I suppose all of ours did. Spending some of my most formative years in a committed relationship with my laptop, during days when none of us could leave the house for real social contact, broke my understanding of reality in a way I’ve never quite been able to grasp again. Art really felt like my only way out. I started to love things that explored the strange, the sublime, or even the dystopian nature of the reality we were living in—so much so that I’m even trying to make a career out of it. Every day feels like a postmodern novel, with fragmented moments that are too convoluted to be interconnected.

Now, my love of “avant-garde” is usually met with a groan—both from whoever I’m professing it to and from myself. I love things that force my mind to search for meaning in them at all. One may look at it as nonsense; I like to see it as something that makes you think. I love Monet as much as the next person, but really—what do the Water Lilies say about the destabilizing nature of our relationship to our phones?

So, this Thursday, I want to share with you some of my favorite weird artists, their work, and the thoughts they provoke. I still love you, Monet, Manet, Renoir, Degas, and that entire floor of the d’Orsay—but you lack the strangeness I crave

olympia will always be my exception