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8-29-08bird.jpgYesterday we spotted this art and wondered if you, the readers of AT, would be able to identify where we saw it. Any guesses? The answer is after the jump!

 
 

It's Starbucks. We wonder if it'd look good if we took it out of the chain coffee store and put it somewhere else. Like against an exposed brick wall in a loft. What do you think?

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artwork, starbucks

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Comments (20)

i guessed starbucks or whole foods. shiver.

posted by kdkaboom on August 29th 2008 at 12:20pm
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these have been up at starbucks for years

posted by mfpants on August 29th 2008 at 12:21pm
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i like the concept behind some of starbucks' art but the fact that it's always a digital image somewhat cheaply printed takes away all of the texture that would make it interesting. i do think this one in particular could be cool as an original though.

posted by akostalas on August 29th 2008 at 12:23pm
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I thought it looked like a Starbucks piece. That's totally their style.

Definitely not mine.

posted by Mrs.Mack on August 29th 2008 at 12:24pm
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I'm sorry, but it just looks like art you might buy at a furniture store. Very generic. Even a student art show or community art fair should yield something reasonably priced and more original.

posted by sypage on August 29th 2008 at 12:30pm
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KNEW it was starbucks immediately. Boo.

posted by spiralcma on August 29th 2008 at 12:30pm
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cheap

posted by Emily Booth on August 29th 2008 at 12:39pm
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Could tell you that was Starbucks from a mile away. They've been using this style for ages. I think the original would be lovely, but I wouldn't put up the reproduction in my house . I like them at Starbucks though.

posted by MayaB on August 29th 2008 at 12:46pm
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There's no hiding Starbucks bad art.

That proves how many of us go there.

posted by JacksonMarie on August 29th 2008 at 12:52pm
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i knew it was starbucks right away. nothing like massproduced plastic canvas. they're up in the one on campus at fredonia. oh, and paris, and london.

great.

posted by indiasoup on August 29th 2008 at 1:03pm
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Of course it's Starbucks...... BUT you've gotta give a nod to the illustrator, it's tough to have your style reproduced over and over again to the point of public boredom.

posted by darkblue on August 29th 2008 at 1:17pm
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i thought it was leigh wells
same lamola doodleness
then again i never go to starbucks

posted by paulinet on August 29th 2008 at 1:37pm
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It's nice. But I've always liked Starbucks' style.

posted by Lilli K. on August 29th 2008 at 2:21pm
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When I worked at starbucks and these first started appearing in stores, I originally liked them. But because they were chosen for a generic purpose, they are just that -- generic. But the generic quality is exactly why my bedroom walls are still blank, waiting for me to find something better than generic starbucks art or ikea art or anything of the like. I just want something generic that no one else has put in their bedroom. As much as I see that "keep calm, carry on" poster, it shows that everyone wants the same generic pieces.

posted by serao on August 29th 2008 at 2:44pm
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If I see one more mixed media bird painting I'm going to hurl. That counts for deer as well...

posted by lizanne on August 29th 2008 at 3:45pm
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It is nice to remember that art is subjective to everyone's tastes and experiences. That being said, the Starbucks "art" can still be valuable or useful, even if it is mass-produced (Andy Warhol soup cans and Velvet Underground album covers, anyone?). Work that is seemingly generic can also become provocative when put in another context. This brings up the original question if it would look good if taken out Starbucks and put in a rougher environment. I think to make it look "good," you would have to juxtapose it with something else (sculpture, photos, something dramatic) to bring out a witty or unexpected quality from it.

posted by jgphotomom on August 29th 2008 at 9:40pm
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dumb starbucks art!

posted by superrenee on August 30th 2008 at 1:37am
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It doesn't look good in Starbucks, it wouldn't look good outside of Starbucks either.

posted by HongKonger on August 30th 2008 at 2:11am
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I've never seen it before (or not noticed it maybe) and it's not all that horrible. I think people have a reaction to associations moreso than to the art/picture they're looking at. I wasn't going to give it as much credit as a furniture store, but more like Bed, Bath, and Beyond or stores like that that sell framed prints to fit your decor, you know, derivative and popularly pleasing. My guess was that you found it in Anthropologie because everything tries too hard there to evoke some money out of you, but since everyone has already recognized it from Starbucks, it makes more sense. I'm not a frequent patron of either store, but it's not quite Anthropologie.

posted by K T G on August 30th 2008 at 11:23am
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Hahahah I used to work at sbux. When I saw this painting again it totally brought me back. Yikes!

posted by Claire K on September 4th 2008 at 2:26pm
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