# What's the second most \*famous\* painting? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 30, 2018, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822 "2018-07-30T18:09:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/101 "2018-08-01T13:13:34Z")
[Moderating] I’ll allow that as an example of a reference to the painting, but any further discussion of that work would be too political for CS. ---
**Author:** ![MarvinKitFox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ba0ec/32.png) [@MarvinKitFox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MarvinKitFox)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/102 "2018-08-01T13:46:14Z")
> [@HubZilla](#): > > … Mona Lisa … noting it wasn’t much bigger than a postage stamp That would be on 31-inch by 21-inch postage stamp. That is one hell of a postage stamp!!! (77cm x 53cm, excluding the frame) ---
**Author:** ![MarvinKitFox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ba0ec/32.png) [@MarvinKitFox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MarvinKitFox)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/103 "2018-08-01T13:57:02Z")
If you want the second most famous painting that people will be able to NAME, it has to be “The Scream” If the criteria is “I’ve see than before!”, then either Michelangelo’s “Creation of Adam” ( Creazione di Adamo ) or Hokusai’s “The Great Wave off Kanagawa” (but i guarantee damn few know it by the correct name of 神奈川沖浪裏, by 葛飾 北斎) ---
**Author:** ![Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/marvin_the_martian/32/2898_2.png) [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvin_the_Martian)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/104 "2018-08-01T16:00:28Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > I’ve first seen “American Gothic” in the _Rocky Horror Picture Show_ and didn’t even understand then that the picture they were parodying was an important piece of art. I only learned that much later. Same here, except it was the credits for _Green Acres_… ---
**Author:** ![Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/marvin_the_martian/32/2898_2.png) [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvin_the_Martian)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/105 "2018-08-01T16:08:20Z")
> [@MarvinKitFox](#): > > That would be on 31-inch by 21-inch postage stamp. That is one hell of a postage stamp!!! > > (77cm x 53cm, excluding the frame) _Mona Lisa_ is a mural compared to Dali’s _The Persistence of Memory_. I was searching for it at MoMA, expecting a large painting and large crowd and was disappointed to find the tiny (9-inch by 13-inch) painting hanging on a side wall with a bunch of other paintings (compared to _The Starry Night_, which in addition to being alone on a central wall in its gallery is larger than I expected). My expectations were set by the posters I bought for my freshman dorm room - identically sized prints of each painting. I subconsciously must have been expecting the two paintings to be similarly sized when I finally saw them in person almost 40 years later… ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/106 "2018-08-01T17:05:36Z")
> [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](#): > > _Mona Lisa_ is a mural compared to Dali’s _The Persistence of Memory_. I was searching for it at MoMA, expecting a large painting and large crowd and was disappointed to find the tiny (9-inch by 13-inch) painting hanging on a side wall with a bunch of other paintings (compared to _The Starry Night_, which in addition to being alone on a central wall in its gallery is larger than I expected). > > My expectations were set by the posters I bought for my freshman dorm room - identically sized prints of each painting. I subconsciously must have been expecting the two paintings to be similarly sized when I finally saw them in person almost 40 years later… A lot of paintings are surprisingly small when you see them in person. One that springs to mind, mentioned in this thread, is _The Great Wave off Kanagawa_. It’s only 10 inches by 15 inches. I was surprised when I saw _American Gothic_ in person, I’d expected it to be quite large, but it’s about 25x30, which isn’t tiny, but I’d expected something far grander. By contrast, Whistler’s _Symphony in White, no. 1: The White Girl_, probably known to only a few, overwhelms you with the sheer enormity of it, at 84x42. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/107 "2018-08-01T17:16:11Z")
Hmm, one way we could do this is count the number of entries in their wiki page under “Influence” or "in popular culture\> The Wave has 11 entries, the Scream 17. However, The Starry Night has no such category. American Gothic lists only the half dozen of so well known parodies. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/108 "2018-08-01T20:59:43Z")
> [@Max\_Torque](#): > > A lot of paintings are surprisingly small when you see them in person. Except Pollocks. Those are fucking _huge_. And all the neoclassic stuff by David, and the like. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/109 "2018-08-01T22:50:51Z")
> [@Max\_Torque](#): > > By contrast, Whistler’s _Symphony in White, no. 1: The White Girl_, probably known to only a few, overwhelms you with the sheer enormity of it, at 84x42. Although if he used a white canvas, the paint didn’t cost much. ---
**Author:** ![Discordian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@Discordian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Discordian)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/110 "2018-08-02T00:17:14Z")
I’m not entirely sure on #2, but I know what I think the most unappreciated painting is that should be more famous: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The\_Triumph\_of\_Death](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Triumph_of_Death) It’s basically a painting of an amazing D&D campaign from mid-1500’s. Seeing it in person is on my bucket list. ---
**Author:** ![Discordian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@Discordian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Discordian)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/111 "2018-08-02T00:27:38Z")
> [@Max\_Torque](#): > > A lot of paintings are surprisingly small when you see them in person. Some are surprisingly huge. For example, [Washington Crossing the Delaware](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Crossing_the_Delaware) is roughly 12 ft. by 20 ft. [Oath of the Horatii](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oath_of_the_Horatii): about 10’ x 14’ ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/112 "2018-08-02T01:59:02Z")
Monet’s [Water Lilies](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_Lilies_(Monet_series)) series are all enormous, they take up entire walls. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/113 "2018-08-02T02:29:43Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Monet’s [Water Lilies](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_Lilies_(Monet_series)) series are all enormous, they take up entire walls. Around 250 paintings, and not all of them are wall-sized. Regarding OP, I’d go with the Last Supper, but I wonder if that’s because I’m (1) interested in art (2) religious and (3) have read too much Mad Magazine. It probably wouldn’t be so well known in China or India. Regarding the USA, I’m surprised no one has mentioned Willard’s “Spirit of '76”. Sure, you’ve never seen the painting, but surely you know that the pictures are based on a painting? Regarding Aus, I’d say “the Ned Kelly picture”, except that’s not a painting: it’s an image from a series of paintings. Which leaves me with McCubbin’s [“The Pioneer”](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pioneer_%28painting%29) ---
**Author:** ![eunoia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eunoia/32/97_2.png) [@eunoia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eunoia)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/114 "2018-08-03T02:43:56Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Hmm, one way we could do this is count the number of entries in their wiki page under “Influence” or "in popular culture\> > > The Wave has 11 entries, the Scream 17. The Wave is still a print and thus disqualified. [It is likely that the original woodblocks printed around 5,000 copies.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Wave_off_Kanagawa) > [@DrDeth](#): > > Hmm, one way we could do this is count the number of entries in their wiki page under “Influence” or "in popular culture\> Take a look at that section for Hopper’s _Nighthawks._ Kinda why I mentioned it, seconding **MrDibble**. Very surprised it isn’t a frontrunner on a U.S. message board. Just north of you it could be [Barnett Newman’s Voice of Fire (1967)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_of_Fire) This once again to point out that “fame” varies with locale, and in the case of Voice of Fire, how “fame” is manipulated by the players in the “art game” like the National Gallery of Canada who took a work “not worth $1.8 million” to “in excess of $40 million” in 28 years, and “fame” from pretty much zero to sixty. ---
**Author:** ![eunoia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eunoia/32/97_2.png) [@eunoia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eunoia)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/115 "2018-08-03T02:47:30Z")
Somewhat tangentially, but I’m also surprised this Youtube video is not more famous. [Art + Taxes = The Dirty Truth - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZz2PhTQJCA) ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 11:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/116 "2018-08-03T11:15:21Z")
In looking up a Simpsons _Nighthawks_ reference (the [Wiki article](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nighthawks#In_popular_culture) only has one screencap, but it wasn’t the one I remembered), I found[this article](https://www.complex.com/style/2012/01/the-complete-history-of-art-references-in-the-simpsons/24)on their art references. Makes for quite a list. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/117 "2018-08-03T18:35:09Z")
> [@eunoia](#): > > The Wave is still a print and thus disqualified. [It is likely that the original woodblocks printed around 5,000 copies.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_Wave_off_Kanagawa) > > Take a look at that section for Hopper’s _Nighthawks._ Kinda why I mentioned it, seconding **MrDibble**. Very surprised it isn’t a frontrunner on a U.S. message board. > . Well, that’s just your opinion, the Op hasnt weighed in on other art forms that the casual viewer would call a “painting”. But yes, Nighthawks is used a LOT in the USA. Google it’s images. ---
**Author:** ![CelticKnot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/celticknot/32/3392_2.png) [@CelticKnot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CelticKnot)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/118 "2018-08-03T19:27:34Z")
> [@Max\_Torque](#): > > A lot of paintings are surprisingly small when you see them in person. One that springs to mind, mentioned in this thread, is _The Great Wave off Kanagawa_. It’s only 10 inches by 15 inches. I was surprised when I saw _American Gothic_ in person, I’d expected it to be quite large, but it’s about 25x30, which isn’t tiny, but I’d expected something far grander. By contrast, Whistler’s _Symphony in White, no. 1: The White Girl_, probably known to only a few, overwhelms you with the sheer enormity of it, at 84x42. Georgia O’Keeffe’s paintings of flowers seem surprisingly small when you see them in person. The flowers take up the entire canvas, and seem huge, but are on rather small canvases. I can’t name an individual painting that would be on this list, but her entire body of work is so distinctive that many people could easily recognize it. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/119 "2018-08-03T19:37:03Z")
> [@eunoia](#): > > Take a look at that section for Hopper’s _Nighthawks._ Kinda why I mentioned it, seconding **MrDibble**. Very surprised it isn’t a frontrunner on a U.S. message board. Nighthawks is very famous, and one of my favorite paintings. But I wouldn’t cast a vote for it being the second most famous painting. The top choices for that have already been mentioned. ---
**Author:** ![Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/marvin_the_martian/32/2898_2.png) [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvin_the_Martian)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2018, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822/120 "2018-08-03T23:29:51Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Monet’s [Water Lilies](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_Lilies_(Monet_series)) series are all enormous, they take up entire walls. The ones at l’Orangerie and MoMA are huge, but there are about 250 Monet water lily paintings. Musee Marmatton alone has 17. Most of these are _not_ the big murals (although none of them are particularly small, either). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-second-most-famous-painting/818822.md?page=7)