This is too cool. And if you don’t think it qualifies as art, tell us about it in the comments…
And regardless of your answer, from a marketing standpoint this concept is experiencing its “tipping point” today, likely thanks to BoingBoing and Seth.
Great story!
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It absolutely qualifies as art and really reminds me of the 2000Bricks project, which is also starting to take off.
Living here in Savannah, the home of Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD to everyone here) I’ve come to realize that even though I don’t get most art, that doesn’t make it any less art.
As much as it bugs me (mostly for not thinking of something so brilliantly simple) I have to agree with Brian. It is art.
Besides, really smart people are paying him because they believe it’s art. (Or at least they think it is worth money.)
Shoulda bought 42.
Aaron, why 42?
42 is the ultimate answer to the question of life, the universe, and everything.
Doesn’t everyone know that?
That’s true, but this site says the number is actually 43 (and they linked to me).
In Brian’s defense – 42 was already sold. I can’t believe how tempted I am to buy a number. Why is that???? I keep watching them go – faster, and faster, and faster and it’s sooooooo tempting!
In the time it took for me to type that comment they sold 6 more!
Yes, this project has been going since February. Yesterday he was at 105 paintings sold. The sales rate today has been huge, and I think it’s accelerating (thanks mainly to Seth Godin’s link, I think).
This, my friends, is an example of “the tipping point” in real time.
Buy one Ann… think about what happens to the value of the early paintings sold when the “factory” price goes up by design. Then again when all 1000 are gone and the hype is huge.
I plan to keep mine (sorry, Ebay). An early 39th birthday present to myself (do the math).
I bought 150.
I ran some numbers (I know, very punny) and figure that he could clear over $500,000 from this. Talk about BRILLIANT!
Let’s see…
paper – check
toner, blue – check
web site – check
Not a bad return on his investment, eh?
Yeah 42 is God…
The 43 best blogs wiki is a cool idea but this numbers thing has the juice over the past week or so.
(But Brian’s right – the right number is 43 – although when I put him on the list his number was – I think 9. So Brian, you should have been out there buying 9.)
I was going to 1000 paintings is an idea I wish I’d had, but I think somehow I’d rather have someone find me for a different reason than a novel idea. . . Then of course the money issue makes me rethink that.
So you guys come up with the marketing gimick, I’ll do the art, and we’ll all go to the bank happy.
Love it.
Seriously clever, fiendishly tempting.
Call me simple-minded, but I’m just not getting the appeal.
Brian – buy 6 – that’s the game that Dallas goes down
maybe you’re not as simpleminded as you thing to be not getting the appeal;)
what’s cool about this is, it’s an excellent case study about the relationship between, art, marketing, and people/timing.
It is tempting ..
1.for it’s show off value.
2.for it’s historic value
3.it says something about the buyer
(it says we know the web and we blog)
and the kind of people we want to impress know about the painting
4.outsiders don’t get it, this makes a buyer feel even more of an insider, and recieves all the benifits accociated with art, prestiege,sophistication,class,etc.
5.it’s limited
6.the price is right,
7.it’s easy to buy, (too bad number 30 is taken…)
i know, because i’m an artist
Brian – by the way – I beat seth and boing to this on my blog – where is the love. I told people to buy it asap. Oh yeah – i have no readers.
It’s art for anyone who agrees it’s art. Same as any other ‘art’. Clever guy.
I guess It is art. But then brian how is it related to copywriting?
This reminded me of the million dollar homepage – which means we can expect a whole raft of copyists shortly who’ll not sell anything…
On that note, I’m stacking my claim on 0 to -999. I have some blue paint, some webspace, etc…
Howard, sorry I missed that you mentioned it. My bad!
Shabda, it’s a viral concept that uses a blog to sell painted numbers to the tune of $500,000. That’s right up my alley!
Plus, it’s just a very cool thing to be a part of and observe.
As an artist – living in a land of artists of birds, barns and boats – who does not do birds, barns and boats (or numbers), I have always tried to be open minded about art. After all, a post elsewhere today tells me that Duchamp (urinals) is UK’s #1 artists among art students.
I do not “get” Pollack or Duchamp or a lot of other “art.” It does not speak to me: I cannot have an ongoing conversation in the space that it creates between itself and me; my soul is not richer for living with it daily.
I also do not get this number thing. I would call it high marketing, not high art. I remain amazed at the quirks of the human psyhe that let it get caught up in this oh! they have it! It must be worth something! I must have it! What if I miss out! process.
For me: not art.
Tammy Vitale, http://www.TammyVitale.com
Isn’t “42 green” the answer to the meaning of life? Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. Maybe I’m a bit off.
It’s too easy to say this isn’t art. But it isn’t. The art is in the ability of someone to find enough suckers to buy this bulldada. No, worse than bulldada. But since there’s “a sucker born every minute”, shouldn’t these things have been sold by now?
I’ll stick with my Velvet Elvis and Dogs Playing Poker, thank you.
Ahhh, Raj. I expected better of you!
Please read this, it will save you a lot of money.
Yes Steven, the stock market (and all markets actually) are created by that same “madness.”
By that logic, we should all sit at home and tend our gardens. Sounds nice some days, but I doubt it will catch on.
No, that is not what that logic (or the book) says at all.
Brian, the difference is that the stock market has, and will, appreciate. There is real value in that market, and it creates wealth.
This creates nothing but an interesting story about how to fleece people with their permission.
Hey, you want to spend your money on crap, be my guest. But don’t compare it to the stock market. Different beastie entirely.
>>>Brian, the difference is that the stock market has, and will, appreciate. There is real value in that market, and it creates wealth.
HA!
Let’s say I’ve got a Picasso original from his Cubism period. Real value that creates wealth if I sell it, or no?
Just because you do not participate in a market does not make it invalid or fraudulent.
What makes this genius as did the CMGI and other incubators is that he is not catching an age old trend and not being greedy. The fact that there is a finite amount to this is what creates value. YES – if he sneaks aroound and makes thousands of Brian’s number 67, Brian is likely screwed. That is what happens in the stock market where CMGI led to 500 other internet incubators.
Steven – Japan has been underwater for 20 years and may never reach 40,000 again so your logic is flawed.
67 is a good number as dallas will fall in game 6 or 7. Not bad.
To Brian and Howard
I think the person you need to ask for some clarity about the stockmarket and art is Anthony White. He used to be a stockbroker. He left stockbroking to focus on his own artwork that he calls The Money Series. You can see it at http://www.anthonywhite.net
Sala’s work is definately art.
I hope this helps.
Jeff
I don’t believe it!
First, there was the Milliondollarhomepage and now this? Fiendishly simple and virally attractive.
If I weren’t down with the flue, I think I would have definitely been struck by this virus…
67? 42? Why would someone want to buy a small number? If you’re willing to invest some time and money, here’s a brilliant idea:
*Throws the idea*
Why not make them six-digit or eight digit paintings and proce them at a $1 each?
That way you could buy off your birthdate, your girlfriend/wife’s birthdate, and so on…
And at $1 apiece, it couldn’t be any cheaper. Well, if it’s too cheap for art, let’s make it $10 then…
What say?
Regards,
Shri.
PS: That offer was supposed to be a joke. But now that I seriously begin to think of it, the possibilities of what could happen…
I don’t know if it’s necessairly a ‘tipping point’ it’s simply an increase in traffic granted by a few select sites. That’s like saying a site that got Slashdotted has hit their tipping point. The concept is more about social change and all this demonstrates is a quick burst of popularity or ‘faddism’…
Devin, hidsight is 20/20, and that looks to be correct (since sales have now stalled). The Million Dollar Home Page went through a couple of bursts before it was inevitable that all pixels would be sold, so it just remains to be seen if Sala will get another big flurry of press.
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