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October 23, 2026
Mid-Morning Art Thread
La condition humaine
René François Ghislain Magritte
Surrealism is a particularly obnoxious art movement, in part because some of its adherents have only the barest artistic skill, and partly because surrealism is an excuse to take the mundane and inject in it ridiculous extremes of thought. Sometimes a cigar really is just a cigar!
Thankfully Magritte had artistic skill...the dude could paint! And his subjects are often clever and interesting rather than just chosen to hide lack of technical skill. But the other part? Yes, the subject is interesting and clever, but it is a stretch to suggest that it speaks to the human condition. It may very well speak to Magritte's condition, but to universalize it is pompous and arrogant.