book six: steve martin’s “an object of beauty”.

fin: 20 may 2011

yes, by THAT steve martin.

the book was an interesting story with a narrative of the current state of the art world, and only occasionally uneven.  by uneven, i mean that at times when i was reading i felt like i wasn’t quite getting something and not in an agatha-christie-what’s-the-mystery kind of way, but in a david-letterman-is-this-something? kind of way.  it definitely illuminated parts of the art world without being overly critical (just the right amount, i think) or too apart of it.

here’s my favorite excerpt of the book, wherein a character explains to a dinner party his defense (and explanation) of loving obscure art pieces in the midst of a whole slew of people who think it’s ridiculous:

“Let’s say you’re going to buy a puppy.  You’re going to buy a yellow Lab.  A cuddly yellow Lab.  So you read that you should go to a breeder, because you don’t want to get one that’s going to go sick on you.  No you get to the breeder and you find out there’s English Labs and American Labs.  American Labs are good for hunting because they’re kind of lithe.  But you don’t want to hunt hi, so you go for an English Lab, more stocky.  Then you’re told that the real prize of the Labrador breed is one with a big head.  So you wait and wait, and finally you get one with a big head.  Now you take it home and proudly show your big-headed puppy to a friend.  You’re thinking, I’ve got this great show dog, an English Lab with a big head, and your friend is thinking, What an ugly puppy.”