Some people say that art isn't for them, but the thing is, art is such a broad category that there's some form of art out there that each person can enjoy. Maybe you always thought of art as consisting of boring old portraits, or just a lot of repetitive, blandly illustrated Biblical stories. But art can be exciting! Here are some of my favorites that might also appeal to other people who don't have much knowledge about art.
1. Theodore Gericault's "Raft of Medusa"
The story behind this is actually pretty horrifying, as you may guess, and involved lots of starvation and cannibalism post-shipwreck (yes, this happened in real life). But even just looking at the painting with no knowledge about it whatsoever, it's still intriguing.
2. Gustave Courbet's "Desperate Man (Self Portrait)"
This is pretty much me before orgo tests as I look deep into my own eyes and regret the amount that I have studied. The frantic desperation in Courbet's face is captivating and makes you wonder what he's so desperate about.
3. Jacques-Louis David's "Death of Marat"
Another exciting history story! Basically, some stuff went down in the French Revolution, and Charlotte Corday, who was pissed off by the September Massacre, decided to murder a Reign of Terror leader, Marat. In the bathtub.
4. Pieter Bruegel the Elder's "The Hunters in the Snow"
To be honest, this one is just very pleasant to look at. The idyllic little town with its ice skaters and itty bity bridge and homes just look really cozy.
5. Hieronymus Bosch's "The Garden of Earthly Delights"
In this one, you really have to look for the small details. Because Bosch wasn't talking about a bunch of sissy earthly delights, like riding your bike, sitting in the sun or lame stuff like that. No, he was talking about things such as whatever the hell is happening here:
Come for the throne birds eating humans, stay for the flowers directly in the butthole.
6. J.M.W. Turner's "The Slave Ship"
Sadly, here's another story based in history: a slave ship threw 133 slaves overboard just for the sake of collecting insurance on them. History aside, the painting is very interesting to look at, especially since it utilizes the art technique of luminescence, also used in Van Gogh's "Starry Night" to make it appear as if the sky was glowing (just like the sun seems to be glowing in this painting).
7. Salvador Dali's "The Crucifixion"
A different take on your typical medieval crucifixion painting, and one of Dali's slightly less well-known pieces.
8. Kiki Smith's "Lilith" (sculpture)
This is perched in one of the stairways of the Met, and it's hella creepy although definitely unique. Lilith has glass eyes that just stare directly into your soul. Here they are:
Creepy af. Don't mess with Lilith.
9. Paul Guigou's "Washerwomen on the Banks of Durance"
This is another just pleasant painting to look at, especially since it's such a wide shot of the scene. The colors add a lot to the mood.
10. Henry Fuseli's "The Nightmare"
Another creepy one. The demon sitting on the woman's chest represents "bad dreams," long story short. The horse also represents nightmares, since it's a "mare" (get it? Night-"mares"? Ba dum tss).
11. Pretty much anything by Banksy
Banksy's work is relevant, and focuses on scathing social commentary on the environment, guns, war, death, consumerism, and pretty much anything you can think of. His work is clever and thought-provoking and isn't locked away in a museum or sold for money -- his intent is to truly spread a message through art.
There's even a Banksy version of Gericault's "Raft of Medusa" (No. 1 on this list) which highlights the failure to help refugees.
