# Favorite Visual Artists - Top 20? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 26, 2007, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689 "2007-04-26T03:35:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![fessie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@fessie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fessie)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/1 "2007-04-26T03:35:57Z")
**Leaving out** the Big Guns (Michelangelo, da Vinci, Rubens, Rembrandt, Caravaggio, David, Monet, [yes, I know I skipped a bunch of years there, I’m just trying to get away from Pretty Much Universally Known And Loved], Manet, Cezanne, Van Gogh, Renoir, Picasso, and Norman Rockwell. Also no Thomas Kinkade, I’m sick of discussing him. Who rocks your world? Some of my favorites (no particular order): [Chuck Close](http://www.moma.org/exhibitions/1998/close/index.html) [Wayne Thiebaud](http://www.artchive.com/artchive/T/thiebaud/thiebaud_around.jpg.html) (may have pop-ups) [Francis Bacon](http://www.bacon.nl/site_engels/index_site.html) [Gustave Caillebotte](http://www.allposters.com/-sp/The-Floor-Scrapers-Posters_i382882_.htm) ([this work is better known](http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/eurptg/citi/object?ID=20684&CollCatID=10) ) [Mary Cassatt](http://www.allposters.com/-sp/The-Bath-Posters_i1000033_.htm) [Richard Diebenkorn](http://www.artnet.com/artwork/424529015/976/richard-diebenkorn-ochre.html)[(ooh, like this one even better)](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Cityscape_I_360.jpg) [John Singer Sargent](http://jssgallery.org/Paintings/Daughters_of_Edward_Darley_Boit.htm) ---
**Author:** ![capybara](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/capybara/32/202_2.png) [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/2 "2007-04-26T05:17:59Z")
Damn old things: Praxitelles, Exekias Brilliant Flemings: [Rogier v d Weyden](http://www.kfki.hu/~/arthp/html/w/weyden/rogier/index.html) Gerard David Italians! [Antonello da Messina](http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/a/antonell/index.html) Giorgione and Titian (the big names of my list, I guess), of course. Fra Angelico. Lorenzo Lotto. How do I keep this to 20? Ok, first things that come to mind, most random list evar. . . Sesshu. Whistler. Hercules Seghers. Herri met de Bles. Max Ernst. Joseph Beuys. Hokusai. Carel Fabritius. Jan Lievens. Cornelis Ghijsbrechts. Sigmar Polke. Greco. And, um. . . Charles Meryon. Sorry, too lazy for links tonight. The list of things I hate is much easier because it’s so much shorter and intensely felt. ---
**Author:** ![RTA](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b4bc9f/32.png) [@RTA](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTA)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/3 "2007-04-26T12:48:53Z")
Robert Arneson The Art Guys - [theartguys.com/](http://theartguys.com/) James Rosenquist Howard Finster - [finster.com/](http://finster.com/) Bob Rauschenberg Kehinde Wiley - [kehindewiley.com/](http://kehindewiley.com/) William Wegman Ben Shahn Cindy Sherman Francis Cape - [franciscape.com/](http://franciscape.com/) Keith Edmier Lisa Yuskavage Rachel Whiteread Jim Campbell John Currin Ryan Mcginness - [ryanmcginness.com/](http://ryanmcginness.com/) Gerhard Richter Gunter Wirth R. Crumb Ernesto Neto - [Search: ernestoneto | Flickr](http://flickr.com/photos/nearnearfuture/tags/ernestoneto/) ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/4 "2007-04-26T13:40:03Z")
My 2 favorite visual artists are Hieronymous Bosch and Goya, but I assume that they violate the spirit, if not the letter, of the OP since they are certainly “Big Names”. But my favorite piece of visual art ever is [Republic](http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&token=&sql=10:jbfwxq9gldke), by New Order. Not just the cover – the inside art to the CD continues to tell the story of the American “Republic”, a world where everyone puts on a happy, brave face, but in the end, are alone in themselves. But for all the ultimate loneliness, the vast expanses of America make for limitless possibilities and a sense of hope. The amazing thing is most of it was taken from stock photos. ---
**Author:** ![fessie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@fessie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fessie)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/5 "2007-04-26T14:10:14Z")
For old stuff, I adore [“Winged Victory” (Nike of Samothrace)](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winged_victory_of_samothrace) . New, there’s [Dale Chihuly](http://www.chihuly.com/) “Big Man” by [Ron Mueck](http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/artslife/story.html?id=cb6c5805-6c98-4cbc-be87-4d78dd57ab37) gets me. [Maurice Prendergast](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_Prendergast) [Klimt](http://www.uh.edu/~cnathen/Klimt_the_kiss_1907_8.gif) Whistler O’Keefe Pollock Ansel Adams Hopper In general, I adore contemporary Haitian paintings.[this kind of thing](http://www.indigoarts.com/gallery_haiti_s.pierre.html) ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/6 "2007-04-26T14:46:49Z")
[Gil Bruvel](http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=Gil%20Bruvel&btnG=Google+Search&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&um=1&sa=N&tab=wi) [Jacek Yerka](http://images.google.com/images?svnum=10&um=1&hl=en&safe=off&q=Jacek+Yerka&btnG=Search+Images) [Hirofumi Nakamura](http://216.128.6.227/images/hirofumi01.jpg) [Shouta Kikuchi](http://216.128.6.227/images/kikuchi01.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![DianaG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ab992/32.png) [@DianaG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DianaG)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/7 "2007-04-26T15:02:07Z")
[Scott Prior](http://scottpriorart.com/). I could stare at almost any painting of his for hours. A bit of trivia - he’s [Kurt Vonnegut’s](http://scottpriorart.com/view_image.php?page=paintings&image_id=40) son-in-law. Also, my favorite [Caillebotte](http://cgfa.sunsite.dk/c/p-cailleb4.htm). Nothing special onscreen or in a print, but in person? It’ll take your breath away. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/8 "2007-04-26T15:32:06Z")
I’ve always liked Ivan Albright [Discover Art & Artists | The Art Institute of Chicago](http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/highlight_search?acc=1977.34&page=1&Keyword=Albright) I’m also fond of one of Chicago’s own, Ed Paschke [http://www.edpaschke.com/home.html](http://www.edpaschke.com/home.html) Georgia O’Keeffe, of course. But I think we’ve been oversaturated with her work in the last couple decades, so I won’t bother to link. I’ve also loved Diane Arbus since forever. [Diane Arbus](http://www.dianearbus.net/images.htm) ---
**Author:** ![kelly5078](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6f9a4e/32.png) [@kelly5078](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kelly5078)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/9 "2007-04-26T15:37:15Z")
Kees van Dongen Edward Hopper Joseph Cornell Edvard Munch Diane Arbus Gustave Caillebotte M.C. Escher ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/10 "2007-04-26T15:46:39Z")
[QUOTE=Ludovic] My 2 favorite visual artists are Hieronymous Bosch and Goya, but I assume that they violate the spirit, if not the letter, of the OP since they are certainly “Big Names”. [/QUOTE] I like Bosch, too. ---
**Author:** ![fessie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@fessie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fessie)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/11 "2007-04-26T15:49:50Z")
oooooh, yeah - speaking of famous relatives - [Lucian Freud](http://homepages.pavilion.co.uk/lincreasey/reflection.jpg) Interesting to see other Caillebotte fans (is he pronounced “ki-bot” with a long I and short O?) ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/12 "2007-04-26T15:51:51Z")
[QUOTE=fessie] For old stuff, I adore [“Winged Victory” (Nike of Samothrace)](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winged_victory_of_samothrace) . New, there’s [Dale Chihuly](http://www.chihuly.com/) “Big Man” by [Ron Mueck](http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/artslife/story.html?id=cb6c5805-6c98-4cbc-be87-4d78dd57ab37) gets me. [Maurice Prendergast](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_Prendergast) [Klimt](http://www.uh.edu/~cnathen/Klimt_the_kiss_1907_8.gif) Whistler O’Keefe Pollock Ansel Adams Hopper In general, I adore contemporary Haitian paintings.[this kind of thing](http://www.indigoarts.com/gallery_haiti_s.pierre.html) [/QUOTE] Oh…I love Chihuly. He has transformed glass into something…otherworldly. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/13 "2007-04-26T16:25:34Z")
[QUOTE=Kalhoun] Oh…I love Chihuly. He has transformed glass into something…otherworldly. [/QUOTE] Yeah, though it was rather annoying going to the Bellagio in Las Vegas and seeing all the Chihuly flowers packed together all across the roof. Done right, I suppose that it could have had a abstract art thing going for it. But whoever ordered them just wanted quantity. [It looks like suck.](http://www.holstengalleries.com/gifs/art/chihuly/installations/205_fiori_di_como_bellagio.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![yanceylebeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yanceylebeef/32/12290_2.png) [@yanceylebeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yanceylebeef)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/14 "2007-04-26T16:54:29Z")
Two favorites right off the top of my head… [Mark Ryden](http://www.markryden.com/) and [Shag](http://www.shag.com/). Ryden takes Disney and Margaret Keane like images and gives them a not so subtle twist. Shag is just Shag, man. Like, if I have to explain it, you wouldn’t understand. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/15 "2007-04-26T17:24:27Z")
[This](http://www.salon.com/opinion/blumenthal/2007/04/26/torture_policy/) is an interesting article that argues that Bush’s policies and his taste in art dovetail in unsurprising ways. ---
**Author:** ![fessie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@fessie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fessie)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/16 "2007-04-26T18:16:39Z")
[QUOTE=Sage Rat] Yeah, though it was rather annoying going to the Bellagio in Las Vegas and seeing all the Chihuly flowers packed together all across the roof. Done right, I suppose that it could have had a abstract art thing going for it. But whoever ordered them just wanted quantity. [It looks like suck.](http://www.holstengalleries.com/gifs/art/chihuly/installations/205_fiori_di_como_bellagio.jpg) [/QUOTE] Sucked, and spat, and left to curdle. I saw his show in Minneapolis several years back, at the Walker Art Center. A series of small rooms, with different kinds of installations. I liked the overhead one best there, but it was small and intimate. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/17 "2007-04-26T19:10:58Z")
[QUOTE=fessie] Sucked, and spat, and left to curdle. I saw his show in Minneapolis several years back, at the Walker Art Center. A series of small rooms, with different kinds of installations. I liked the overhead one best there, but it was small and intimate. [/QUOTE] Hit the exhibition overview at the Chicago Garfield Park Conservatory Chihuly installation [http://www.chihuly.com/installations/garfield/index.html](http://www.chihuly.com/installations/garfield/index.html) Less is definitely more. I adore this exhibit. ---
**Author:** ![fessie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@fessie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fessie)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/18 "2007-04-26T19:20:20Z")
Yep, saw it. I agree, absolutely fabulous! ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/19 "2007-04-26T20:53:20Z")
Just because I don’t want to see this thread die, I’ll put up a nifty link to other glass art. [http://www.glassartistsgallery.com/sum-wall-art-1-mirrors-1-0-catalog--.htm](http://www.glassartistsgallery.com/sum-wall-art-1-mirrors-1-0-catalog--.htm) I’m positively mesmerised by this medium. One of these days I’m gonna grab my 'nads off the shelf, dust 'em off, and commence with the mosaic. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2007, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689/20 "2007-04-26T21:11:42Z")
Wassily Kandinsky would head my list. Also, in no particular order (and with no regard to whether it’s “fine” or “commercial” art, not that those are necessarily exclusive): Saul Bass (graphic designer) James Nachtwey (photojournalist) Sebastiao Salgado (photojournalist) Joan Miro (painter) Zuzana Licko (font designer) Vincent van Gogh Gerhard Richter (painter) Michel Gondry (music video/film) Walter Iooss (sports photographer/photojournalist) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/favorite-visual-artists-top-20/401689.md?page=2)