Art Fight!

We've been following brand-spankin'-new art blog That Ain't Art, a collaboration between Kirsten Anderson and Celeste Fuechsel of Roq La Rue, Damion Hayes of BLVD, and Larry Reid of the Fantagraphics store.

With that lineup, it's no surprise that That Ain't Art's focuses on lowbrow and pop surrealism -- "the alternative art scene in the Northwest," as their about section says. In their first couple of weeks, they've talked up artists and exhibitions, noted with wry humor the new Gallery condos coming to Belltown, and given advice to up-and-coming artists. They're on their way to becoming a local version of BoingBoing.

Yesterday, however, they passed an obligatory Seattle blogging milestone: Larry Reid took a swipe at The Stranger. Specifically, Abigail Guay's review of Steve Davis' Captured Youth at the James Harris Gallery:

I was reminded of this sorry state of affairs recently when I opened the pages of our leading “alternative” newspaper to find a breathless endorsement of yet another predictably inane exhibition at the James Harris Gallery in Pioneer Square. I mean, really. Has anybody ever seen a living human being in that space? Aside from the dealer, that is. But then, given his somnambulant presence, I’m not convinced he qualifies. Opening receptions in Pioneer Square galleries have all the festive ambience of a funeral service. For good reason. Shouldn’t art be fun? At least on some level? Not here. Not now. And certainly not in establishment art circles.

Of course, it's all part of a cycle: The Stranger's been taking swipes at the Weekly so long that the habit has altered their DNA, Lamarckian-style, so that they still can't resist kicking at the former leading alternative weekly's eVViscerated corpse.

The Stranger hasn't responded yet -- and who knows if they will? We know we still get a secret thrill when Slog picks up on one of our stories, and we're pretty sure most of the other local blogs feel the same way. We don't deliberately write Slog-bait, but, well, sometimes it's tempting.

In this one, though? We're unabashed fans of Roq La Rue and Fantagraphics, and we can personally attest that we've never been to the James Harris Gallery, and we may not be real art critics but we definitely want some fun out of art. Art minus fun equals chore. (Though we're sure Guay actually enjoys the Davis show and isn't just posing.)

So nice crie de coeur, That Ain't Art, and we hope to hear more out of you. And also to see more pictures of fun, zany stuff like glass spaceships.