Militia Company of District II under the Command of Captain Frans Banninck Cocq

The Night Watch. The video is titled Rembrandt's Masterpiece, seen on American Digest.

Paintings like this are discussed sensibly because what the artist did is concrete, what he did can be talked about and appreciated. His looseness is tangible, his attitude of not caring about the inflated self regard of his patrons is palpable combined with mastery of technique such that standing in front of the painting and looking at it you feel you can put your fingers right into the lace of collar, clearly lace, yet upon close inspection it's all flicks of a #1 paintbrush and graduations of white. It's also why he died poor. Patrons lost patience with Rembrandt not taking them seriously as they take themselves.

And that's why we love him so. He gave us who they really are. Not what they'd have him give us. 

Years ago, fine, decades ago, a new friend was graduating from D.U. art school. Upon graduating the school uses its resources and contacts to host a gallery showing for its students, so the whole place is loaded with student artwork and notables of the Denver art scene are invited with the idea of the students getting set to work. The school helps the students find work by introducing them. 

My friend's work was crap.

And I mean it.

Almost everything else was more interesting, but still, all of it student-level work. All of it was crap. Nothing stuck out. 

But, Good Lord, you should have heard the people talking about it; the airy-fairiest inconsequential conceptualizations of light and color and tone, volume, value, and mass and movement and contrast and peace and conflict and emotion that is not present in squares and dots and blobs and extreme ugliness and meaninglessness and insensibility. The frame is better art. Yet they went on an on and on ridiculously. They made a mockery of themselves.

And there was my new friend in the middle of it. 

"So what did you think of the art show?"

"Fine." 

And that's the last time I ever struck up a conversation with anyone at the Eagle's Nest.  ← Joke. 

Joke ↓. 

"It's line and color is curiously counterpointed by the redundant vestiges of its function." Screech screech whomp ...  "X-kvisit. Absolutely x-kvisit."  It's a police call box. 

Now, that shit is funny. That's art! The television show doesn't take itself too seriously.