Modern Art vs. Modern Camera Lucida
Everyone likes to make fun of modern art. Sometimes that's out of ignorance—but let’s face it, sometimes the emperor has no clothes, and what gets passed off as "art" really isn’t. Still, as artists, it's not always our place to judge. But is it fair to call a banana taped to the wall "art" while questioning the use of a classically inspired tool like the LUCY? That's the question I ask in our latest video ad.
At first glance, it might look like just another funny online commercial. But I wrote, directed, and edited this one myself because I think it’s important not just to grab attention and show people what the LUCY Drawing Tool can do—but also to have a little fun poking at the world of modern art.
You may have heard of the modern art piece Comedian by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan—a banana duct-taped to a wall. It made headlines when crypto billionaire Justin Sun bought one edition for a staggering $6.2 million and then ate it. Someone might say the act of eating the banana was part of the artwork itself—a statement about how true art is fleeting, and that its impermanence is what gives it meaning and value. Others say it was just an expensive joke. You decide.
Another modern art moment we referenced in this ad was the incident where someone left a pair of glasses on the gallery floor at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. People began taking pictures of it, assuming it was an art installation. It wasn’t. But the joke landed—because it said something real about how we perceive art.
Are these things art? Maybe. Maybe not. But they are undeniably cultural moments that get people thinking and talking. That’s exactly what we hope our new ad does, too.
Whether you find modern art fascinating, frustrating, or just funny, I hope you enjoy this lighthearted, self-aware commercial we put together to spread the word about the LUCY Drawing Tool. Let us know what you think. What’s your opinion on these modern art pieces? And what other examples from modern art might we poke fun at in future ads?
