April Fool's Day: 5 Silly Paintings

Welcome back to Musings of an Arthritic Artist!

Today is April Fool's Day, which warrants a fun post. I will be talking about paintings that I personally find funny for whatever reason, whether the proportioning is off, something involving the subject is amusing, or any other thing I'm amused by.

Disclaimer: I am not trying to attack these artists or offend anyone. This is just fun and I don't think these works are artistically bad. I was just amused by some of the aspects in them.

Let's get into the paintings!

The French Comedians

Antoine Watteau (French)

1720

Watteau, Antoine. The French Comedians.
1720, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
themetmuseum.org

At first glance, this painting is well-executed, especially considering the time period it was created. However, the more I look at it, the more I notice the small legs and feet compared to the rest of the bodies, particularly regarding the principal figure in the center.

The Grandchildren of Sir William Heathcote, 3rd Baronet

William Owen (British)

1769-1825

Owen, William. The Grandchildren of Sir William Heathcote, 3rd Baronet.
1769-1825, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
themetmuseum.org

Similar to the last one, this painting is well-executed. The color palette is beautifully used, but every time I look at this painting, I can't help but notice the lack of neck on the figure on the right. Especially with the proportioning from the head to the chest. There's no problem with it, but it makes me smile.

Young Lady with a Rose

Attributed to Pieter Vanderlyn

1732

Attributed to Vanderlyn, Pieter. Young Lady with a Rose.
1732, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
themetmuseum.org

There isn't much of anything silly about this painting, except I can't help but notice the really peculiar looking rose in the subject's right hand. To me, it looks as if it's part daisy, part jelly danish. It doesn't look like a rose to me. It kind of reminds me of a flower that would be in Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. Another thing is that somehow the right hand looks larger than the left, though that may just be my perception. Who knows. I've been researching for this post for days. Maybe my eyes are just playing tricks on me.

Portrait of a Lady

Eliza Goodridge (American)

1829

Goodridge, Eliza. Portrait of a Lady.
1829, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
themetmuseum.org

When I initially saw this painting, I was confused by the anatomy of the shoulder. Did the artist draw the subject disproportionally or is that just the shawl? Either way, it doesn't look quite right. Everything else in regards to proportion looks right to me, but the shoulders and neck area is incredibly confusing. Because of the shawl, she looks as if she has thin arms, though she most likely doesn't. In regards to the rest of the piece, I'm not the hugest fan of black and white portraits in painting, but that's just a personal gripe and has nothing to do with the execution of the painting itself.

Julie Le Brun (1780-1819) Looking in a Mirror

Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun (French)

1787

Le Brun, Elizabeth Louise Vigée. Julie Le Brun (1780-1819) Looking in a Mirror.
1787, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
themetmuseum.org

Personally, I love the color palette in this painting. I like the use of green and creams, along with the smoothness of the paint strokes. However, the perspective is (for me) impossible to ignore. I have a feeling that Le Brun did this on purpose, but that doesn't mean it doesn't confuse me. Her daughter's face wouldn't fully show in a mirror. Due to this, I initially thought the girl was looking at a picture of herself, but then I saw the year and realized that photos as we know them didn't exist in the 18th century.

That's the end of this post! 

I hope you enjoyed it! 

See you next post,

Lexi K🖌