The Van Gogh Project
How do you define the value of art?
When Davidson College philosophy professor and art-lover Paul Studmann moved into his new house, he decided he needed some art for his walls. But he didn't want just any art. He wanted a Van Gogh.
Remember that story (I think it was in the 80s) of the guy with the red paperclip that traded up for a house? Well...that guy was Paul's inspiration for what he began refering to as "The Van Gogh Project," in which he started with a child's drawing, and set out to make incremental trades for pieces or greater and greater value...and did not plan to quit until he got his Van Gogh. Paul started a blog to keep track of his journey, which you can visit here: http://thevangoghproject.blogspot.com
After about ten trades, something happened that changed the entire course of the project.
This particular trade was for a piece by Charlie Spear called "Falling Down Man." The painting, as you can see below, depicts a marionette crumpling, with a cityscape in the background. Spear says that the painting is a commentary on homelessness, and how it can happen to anyone. When the painting arrived in Davidson, Paul went to the post office to pick it up, where the post office clerk handed him a mangled box and shrugged his shoulders saying "I didn't do it." Paul pulled the painting out of the packaging and found that it was severly warped, and that the damage was irreparable. Paul couldn't believe it...he'd made this far and his journey was completely derailed by a random accident.
Paul called Charlie on the way home from the post office to let him know what had happened. Although he was distraught at first, it did not take long before Charlie told Paul that he believed that the painting was only now complete, and in fact, better than it had been before it was damaged. He believed that this random act of negligence on the part of the USPS helped to illustrate the content of the painting more fully, and that the painting was now MORE VALUABLE than it had previously been. At this point, Paul became exceedingly interested in how people define art's value. He spoke to an art appraiser, who assured him that the painting was worthless. But somehow, he agreed with Charlie, that this painting was much more meaningful, valuable, and complete in its mangled state.
As Paul continued to wrestle with these questions of value, and tried to understand how to continue The Van Gogh Project from this point, he came up with an idea: he would hold an auction and allow people (many of whom were readers of his blog) to weigh in on this question of the piece's value by inviting them to make bids. While this idea was precipitating in his mind, Paul met my husband Brian through a mutual friend. While they were talking, Paul shared about the Van Gogh Project, and about his current predicament. At that point, Brian shared with him about ArtWorks 945 and about how we use the therapeutic process of art-making to connect with individuals who struggle with homelessness...
Paul was incredibly excited by our mission, and at that moment decided that he would hold this auction for "Falling Down Man" and donate the proceeds to ArtWorks 945. After that day, Paul has visited us here at the studio multiple times, and has gotten to know some of out artists.
After careful consideraton, Paul has decided to do a "cumulative auction" for the piece. This means that he has a particular monetary goal in mind, and has invited people to make donations, however small or large, to hopefully reach that goal.
If you are interested in participating in the auction, here's what you can do:
1) Visit the UMC website at www.urbanministrycenter.org
2) Click on the "Donate Online" button in the top right corner of the website
3) Fill in your information and choose how much you'd like to donate. Enter that amount in the "other" amount box.
4) In the comment box at the bottom be sure to type "Art donation, Van Gogh Project"
You will receive an email confirmation of your donation.
Many thanks for taking the time to read this story. Please visit Paul's blog, and if you feel so inclined, make a donation!
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