Category: The World of the Prank

The artist as social provocateur and activist incorporates humor, satire, irony, political commentary and/or direct action to provoke critical thinking. Pranks challenge convention and the status quo and expose prejudices and biases.

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The George and Helen Spelvin Folk Art Collection

Helen and George Spelvin

Visiting George and Helen Spelvin”s modest house in Lenoir City, Tennessee, is like making a pilgrimage to a sacred temple of American Folk Art. While their neighbors purchased bass boats, home entertainment systems, recreational vehicles, and patio furniture, the Spelvins were quietly amassing a significant collection of contemporary folk art.

The Spelvins seldom purchased work through art galleries. Instead, they believed it was important to establish relationships with the artists whose work they acquired. As an agent for State Farm Insurance, George Spelvin loved to meet people and had a way of making the artists they encountered feel at ease. However, it was actually Helen Spelvin who was the driving force behind their collecting habits. Continue reading “The George and Helen Spelvin Folk Art Collection”

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Don’t Doubt the Dance

123 Party! specializes in impromptu dances and they hit the jackpot recently when they were tipped off that a local Fox News team was doing a story on dumpster diving. The dancers staked out the news team and what ensues proves that, indeed, Fox News has no sense of humor.

123 Party! promises to strike anytime and anywhere with fierce, dorky dancing and the rallying cry, “Don’t doubt the dance!” Other videos listed on the page prove just that.

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The Guy Who Sent a Midget Up to Bat

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Bill Veeck knew he would go down in baseball history as the Guy Who Sent a Midget Up to Bat. But that didn”t stop him from pulling off the greatest publicity stunt in the history of the game.

According to Veeck in his autobiography, Rhymes with Wreck, sending 3″ 7″ Eddie Gaedel to the plate for his lowly St. Louis Browns was the ultimate punchline in day filled with entertainment and just plain weirdness. Continue reading “The Guy Who Sent a Midget Up to Bat”

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All the news that’s fit to print?

Did someone tell you recently that Winona Ryder had killed herself with prescription drugs, or that someone with your name had started a porn site? Don’t panic! These “news stories” come to you courtesy of FakeAWish.com, a site that takes the name of your choice and turns it into a juicy piece of tabloid gossip. It’s amazing how easy it is to make such things believable with a BREAKING NEWS graphic and a sober grey header.

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Jouet en plastique jaune pour de vrai (Post is in French)

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Samuel Bester’s 4:40 video clip, 140 Pop Method, produced in 2004, uses found footage to explore the intrusion of the unknown in our media. Here, is his description of this piece in French:

Cette vidéo est un exemple de contre-culture: elle représente le goà»t pour l’insolite et la spontanéité. Elle veut échapper au poids de l’histoire et du conditionnement socio-économique. Elle existe grâce à notre société industrielle qui engendre une forme irrésistible de pollution médiatique qui a donné naissance à une génération d’image-junkies qui mixent, copient et détournent les médias tout en en créant des nouveaux. Il s’agit dans cette vidéo de montrer avec insistance ce que l’habitude nous fait oublier: la banalité, la nullité, la stupidité en la forme d’un jouet en plastique. C’est l’irruption inopinée de l’étrange dans un flot d’image identifiées. Car comme le disait si bien Aragon: “il y a plus de prodiges dans un moulin à café que dans tous les séraphins du ciel” Cette incursion dans les médias n’évoque rien, ne parle de rien ne symbolise rien car comment se faire comprendre d’une biche quand on n’est pas sà»r d’àªtre un cheval!

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