Summary of Get the Picture by Bianca Bosker: A Mind-Bending Journey among the Inspired Artists and Obsessive Art Fiends Who Taught Me How to See

By Justin Reese

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This book does not in any capacity mean to replace the original book but to serve as a vast summary of the original book.

Summary of Get the Picture by Bianca Bosker: A Mind-Bending Journey among the Inspired Artists and Obsessive Art Fiends Who Taught Me How to See

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Get the Picture is a gripping and often hilarious investigation into the art world by award-winning journalist Bianca Bosker. Bosker's obsession with art led her to explore the inner workings of the art-canonization machine and the way artists live for it. The book explores topics such as cave paintings, Instagram, and the science of sight, as well as the importance of beauty. Bosker's journey into the art world and the people who live for it reveals a more expansive way of living and the inner workings of the art-canonization machine.

• Language: English
• Publisher: jUSTIN REESE
• Release date: Feb 6, 2024
• ISBN: 9798224079056

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This is an unofficial summary & analysis of Bianca Bosker’s Get the Picture: A Mind-Bending Journey among the Inspired Artists and Obsessive Art Fiends Who Taught Me How to Se designed to enrich your reading experience.

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Copyright 2024. All rights reserved.

The Heads

An Introduction

The author, a journalist, was initially warned about infiltrating the art world to understand why art matters and its potential to transform our existence. However, they were not afraid to stick their nose where it didn't belong, as they believed it would make them powerful enemies. The author's grandmother's carrots played a significant role in their decision to explore the art scene.

The author's upbringing in Oregon led them to paint obsessively, show art in local shows, and flirt with applying to art school. However, moving to New York and seeing art regularly left the author feeling out of place and overwhelmed by the people, periods, and -isms. As time passed, their visits to art shows became dutiful, and they became estranged from the art world.

One day, while purging their mom's basement, the author discovered her grandmother's dancing carrots. The author's grandmother, who had been a Jew during WWII, taught art to the kids in Austria and Illinois before retiring. She had a treasured watercolor made of three skipping carrots that hung above her kitchen table until she died.

The author remembered their shared love for Seurat and the art classes she had taught in the camp. The author never asked her why she felt a pull toward art, but the way she held forth on the carrots showed that art was not optional or a luxury but a necessary part of life. The author felt a sharp stab of regret that they didn't know the feeling behind their curiosity about the art world.

The author returns to New York and finds themselves drawn to art, feeling a sense of missing something in their life. They wonder if art could help break the walls from closing in and inject beauty into their routine. However, they find that much of the art they see is barely recognizable as art. They stalk artists on Instagram, scoured art blogs, subscribed to newsletters, and made small talk with strangers at art openings. They attend art talks, shows, museums, and galleries, but the art refuses to speak to them.

The author encourages themselves to try simpler hobbies like baking bread or pickling, but they cannot stop thinking they are missing out on something major. The art they see inspires extreme devotion from both viewers and artists themselves. They witness artists who skip meals, sleep, surgeries, having kids, seeing dying parents, and putting a roof over their heads to pour every last drop of themselves into making their work. Most artists are working at least two jobs, and their art rarely gets seen. They had to do mental math to decide if they could afford a bagel, and the advice they got was to give up now. Yet, they keep giving everything they have to make objects that were supposed to show something, communicate something, or do something.

Despite their long relationship with art and expensive education, the author can't clearly discern what that is.

Art is a fundamental aspect of human life, as it is one of our oldest creations, means of communication, and universal urges. Scientists agree that art is fundamental to being human, as it has been present in our lives since practically forever. The earliest known painting dates back to a cave in Indonesia around 45,500 years ago, where artists completed the portrait of a warty pig.

Art connoisseurs have a unique aura and have seen things that would blow your mind, often arguing that the search for beauty is pitifully off base. They also have different ideas about what is a valuable way to spend one's time, with some practicing at home by examining garbage. This fascination with art can make one feel drained of color and efficient, while others see it as expansive and accessible.

Art connoisseurs argue that people lack visual literacy, which they believe is dangerous in a world saturated with pictures. They worship the idea of an eye that allows them to see things that don't meet the eye, such as the next Picasso or the transcendent aspects of a middle-aged man climbing a ladder to lecture about burnt pubes.

The author reads various sources to understand the importance of art, but they didn't learn why. They found that art doesn't have to appeal to everyone, and the problem with art is not that it's too elitist but that it's not elitist enough.

The author, who is a seasoned art critic, was baffled by contemporary art, which is made by artists living right now. She felt that someone needed to ask fundamental questions about how art works and explain it to the rest of us. She reached out to various individuals, including artists, gallerists, curators, and collectors, to learn more about the Heads who control the nerve center of fine art. These fine-art fiends play a significant role in determining which artworks go from obscurity to the pantheon of illustrious cultural artifacts.

The author found the fear, reticence, and cageyness pervading the art world bizarre and tantalizing. Artists broke out in hives if asked to explain their work, galleries hid prices, and curators turned a sickly green when discussing the word general public. The author wondered what secrets lurked behind the gleaming white walls and whether these gatekeepers were trying to protect the sanctity of a singular spiritual oasis or hiding the fact that these culture peddlers were carrying out the world's most audacious con.

The author developed a pushy, you-can't-be-serious plan to get inside the art world, offering her own warnings and disowning her normal life. She attached herself to brush nerds, color lovers, Eyes, Heads, and artist groupies, learning what