{"id":246,"date":"2009-05-08T10:51:39","date_gmt":"2009-05-08T15:51:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/auchtoon.2gtech.com\/blog\/2009\/05\/08\/artprize-i-dont-get-it\/"},"modified":"2009-05-08T10:51:39","modified_gmt":"2009-05-08T15:51:39","slug":"artprize-i-dont-get-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/auchtoon.com\/?p=246","title":{"rendered":"ArtPrize… I Don’t Get It…"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"GRBJ0705.jpg\"<\/p>\n

Originally published in the Grand Rapids Business Journal<\/em>, April 27, 2009<\/p>\n

ArtPrize<\/a> was all the buzz here in West Michigan at the end of last month. Click the name for details, but in quick summary: There was a teaser build-up to a secret announcement from the grandson of Amway co-founder Rick DeVos. Mr DeVos promised something new and big that would be a tremendous boost to both the prestige and economy of West Michigan. The media frothed over the possibilities: a new movie studio was the leading guess, but most were pretty scattered. (It\u2019s funny — up until a few years ago the universal guess in these parts would have been \u201cautomotive assembly plant.\u201d Times change quickly.)<\/p>\n

Turns out it will be an art competition to be held within the center of Grand Rapids in various public venues for a significant amount of money — top prize, $250,000. The reaction from many was what you might expect for something new and different — I don\u2019t get it. And to be perfectly honest, I don\u2019t entirely get it myself. But that\u2019s are large part of the appeal — I\u2019m looking forward to seeing what happens, participating in public voting, and hanging out downtown a bit more this summer and fall.<\/p>\n

So for the comic, I grabbed various examples of art-ish stuff that had suffered similar initially dismissive reactions:<\/p>\n