Painting by Numbers: Komar and Melamid's Scientific Guide to Art

In 1993, Komar and Melamid, two Russian emigre artists, began a comprehensive survey of Americans to determine what they wanted to see in art. Eventually, their polls encompassed close to two billion subjects in ten countries. What they found is that the public wants to see what the art world does not: a landscape in a realistic style (in blue, please, as this is the favorite color of 44% of respondents). And it needs simply be pretty--only 19% felt that painting should serve a higher purpose such as challenging pre-conceived notions. Using these responses, Komar and Melamid then painted 48 paintings that represented what was ""wanted"" and ""unwanted"" in various countries. With wry good humor, they stuck very close to the aggregate statistical script, so, for example, one of America's ""wanted"" paintings includes both autumn foliage and spring foliage, in precise reflection of the statistical response. Although the text contains too much of Komar and Melamid's rambling conversation, the book, overall, has an invigorating feel. Nothing is sacred, no one is left out and no ""art"" event--even the manufacturer of a blue M&M--goes unremarked. Most enjoyable are the remarks on color by Wypijewski, The Nation's managing editor, whose meditation comes alive with solid writing and references to thinkers such as Goethe and Kandinsky. But the woman whose comment places the entire project in perspective is the receptionist in Ithaca, N.Y., who, when asked by Melamid whether she'd like to know an artist, replied, ""Well, would you like to know about what I do in my life?"" Sharp, irreverent remarks like that give this book a broad appeal. (Nov.)