Descent Into Limbo

Descent Into Limbo

Art can sometimes play tricks on the mind thanks to optical illusions, although rarely does this kind of art put anyone in real danger. A man visiting the Museum of Contemporary Art in Portugal fell into the work of famed artist Anish Kapoor titled Descent Into Limbo — which features a hole in the ground made to look like a mere spot on the floor. The Italian man wanted to see if the void was indeed just that and subsequently fell about eight feet to the bottom of the installation. There were multiple caution signs set up around the piece as well as a guard tasked with keeping visitors away from the hole.

A modern artist finally got his painting into a prestigious gallery and was bragging to his friend about the great acceptance this portended for him. When they went to the gallery the friend was shocked to see that his masterpiece was hung upside down. He rushed to grab the artist and tell him of the error, but the artist explained, “Don’t say anything, the committee would not accept it the other way.”

Artist: “This picture it took eight years of work.” Frank: “That’s a long time to devote to one painting.” Artist: “Well, it took six days to paint it and the rest of the time to sell it.”

To study the impressionistic painters our class visited the Art Institute of Chicago. As we followed the guide toward the Vincent van Gogh’s famous self-portrait, two women cut in front of us for a closer view of the masterpiece. “Oh look, Madge,” one exclaimed, “Kirk Douglas.”

One morning at the Kendall school of design a student arrived quite upset. His apartment had been burglarized, thieves had taken his TV, stereo and other valuables and we tried to console him. “The worst part,” he cried, “is that they took everything, but my paintings.”