What makes something WTF? What’s it take to generate that reaction in a viewer?
On it’s surface WTF seems like a fairly easy subject to investigate. Everyone know’s what it is, but how does one define it more specifically? This has proven much more difficult than I had anticipated. When I first began this series of paintings I began paying more attention to what elements were generally found in WTF imagery. These are a few things I’ve deduced so far.
WTF is an emotion. It manifests itself physically as well as mentally.
It almost always begins with uncertainty, which can be followed by a period of inquisitiveness, and many times ends with laughter.
It can be something unexpected in an otherwise banal environment.
It can be contrived, or taken from reality.
It can be intentional, or unintentional.
It is New, but maybe older than we think. The surrealists, Dadaists, and Freud exploring dreams were mostly interested in finding connections between two disparate characters or objects.
It is very easy to feel, but difficult to define.
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