June 27th, 2011
03:20 PM ET
James Franco isn't profiting from his invisible artJames Franco’s venture into the invisible art business appears to be taking off, but he's not getting any money from it. The star with an unreal number of titles has teamed up with artistic duo Praxis to open the Museum of Non-Visible Art (MONA), an institution “composed entirely of ideas.” On its website, MONA describes itself as “an extravaganza of imagination, a museum that reminds us that we live in two worlds: the physical world of sight and the non-visible world of thought," which "redefines the concept of what is real." The museum goes on to add that "Although the artworks themselves are not visible, the descriptions open our eyes to a parallel world built of images and words. This world is not visible, but it is real, perhaps more real, in many ways, than the world of matter, and it is also for sale.
A variety of invisible pieces are available via Kickstarter, where $20 will yield an invisible sculpture by Praxis, and $50 will find a 19th century garment from James Franco’s imaginary film “Red Leaves” on your doorstep. Or rather, a card describing the 19th century garment from Franco’s film since the costume itself can be seen only in one's imagination. “You will not receive a painting or a film or a photograph in your mailbox. What you will receive is something even more fascinating: The opportunity to collaborate in an act of artistic creation,” says MONA’s Kickstarter page. “You will receive a title card with a description of a piece of art, as well as a letter of authentication.” Presumably these invisible pieces aren’t purchased with invisible money, and while Franco’s rep confirmed to CNN that the actor did agree to contribute some non-visible art, he hasn't seen any money from the project, which so far has garnered $12,577 through Kickstarter. The other items from Franco that are up for grabs are the imagined short film “Red Leaves” and a full-scale steamboat from the movie. The film is in the $25 and up category and also comes with a PDF copy of the museum's catalog, while the steamboat is in the $100 and up category, which in addition to the title and description card comes with an invitation to a November 2011 after-party.
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Any publicity is good publicity!
I can never tell the difference between James Franco and James Marsden. You never hear about James Marsden so he must be a more normal person.
Tell me again....what did he do to deserve the word 'talented' to be used in a sentece with his name???
In the 'invisible art business,' I am 25 years old forever, the CEO of a multi-billion dollar enterprise, parent to children who are always respectful and productive, and a movie star in my spare time.
Sooo, ummm, do I have to pay for shipping?
I have some invisible money right here in my invisible wallet, wait, it was just here, HEY, have you seen my invisible wallet? I was just going to buy some intangible art. Oh well, I'll wait a few weeks and find the Art on Ebay, I'll use PayPal...
omfg! How I wish Lady Gag Me.Just a Beaver.Mliey Cyrus.Neil buttcrack Harris.ECT.Would all get Invisable!!!!!!
Money for art i cant see? i want in on this scam! just so happens i have an invisible life size statue of king kong for sale.
So.. its a library kinda?
I think that is great because a lot of people don't kno how to use there imagination on art but they do in other thinkg that are mor stupid and sometimes become hurt fool its true in this would we do live in imagination but are lifes are set by one man n its GOD but there are so many cose minded peole in the world keep up the good work franco because my kid has a super imagination of her self GOD BLESS U
So, if I order the $20 invisible sculpture, how do I know if they send me the right item? I certainly wouldn't want to get ripped off.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AsslGw0YF4
I would love to see Peaces invisible art! I bet it is THE BEST!
Sounds like to me he is a true artist. A CON artist! IMHO. That is all.
When I was an art there was a student who didn´t do a thing all year, and the professor who was a pretty way out guy gave her a big __ (nothing, blank) for the year. She came to class the last day all bent of shape demanding to know what her grade was. He asked her where her work was. She said it was in her head, she was conceptual artist. The professor that her grade was in his head as well.:-)
People devote their lives to an imaginary "god" who lives in am imaginary place. They give "it" billions of dollars collectively every year . Who's the fool, exactly?
OMG, you're right. That lousy mother Teresa...never did anything for nobody...
This whole story made me feel like a few digits of my IQ just went down for reading it. A venture in invisible art, James put down the bong you can't handle your sh!t. From one recreational chronic smoker to another, I really mean this.
People are so shocked like it's the first time anyone thought of this concept.... Look at Beuys or go way back to Magritte's "ceci n'est pas une pipe". Open your chakras, people and let your mind take flight....
Is it possible for human beings to be more foolish ? i'm embarassed !
I think Franco's last hope is that Stevie Wonder or former Governor Patterson see something worthwhile in his "art." Pun intended.
That wasn't a pun.
Next!
In fact, CJ, it is. I win.
Oh, no. Cant stop... How do they know if its been stolen? How do they describe it in the pawn shops? How do they know when its dirty, and how do they clean it? How can they tell when it is clean? If it is breakable, how do they properly package it for shipping or transport? How do they weigh it for proper postage if it wont fit in a flat rate box. I think my head is gonna explode! Hahahaha! If one of us thought this up, we would be locked up for fraud or thrown in a rubber room, right?
Ok. Before i jump in my invisible rolls royce on the way to my invisible launch pad and take off to my invisible mansion in space in my invisible rocket, i gotta know one thing: is the invisible art insured?
this is sooo stupid, i wish they would wake up invisible next morning. Shameful!!!
I don't have a problem with James Franco, I have a problem with the moronic, idiotic, pathetic, ridiculously ignorant dunces who would waste their time and money on such nonsense. One of the reasons that I live in NYC is to take advantage of all that the world of art has to offer in it's myriad of museums and galleries and I have to say that "MONA" is the most pretentious piece of fluff I've ever seen. In addition, I would hope that "MOMA", the Museum of Modern Art, sues "MONA", since the acronym was obviously created to somehow try to link the two organizations.
Invisible art? Seriously? Either James Franco is a fool, or he thinks everyone else is!
Get it? I don't see the art in not seeing the....nevermind
Uhhhhhhhhhhhh....I don't see the art.....
So let me get this straight...someone 'creative' writes down an idea they have, in detail, so someone else can read it and then imagine it for themselves....call me crazy but I could swear this has been done before, for a few hundred years actually. Its called a book...you can get hundreds of them for free at your local library.
GIVE ME AN ..I GIVE ME AND...L GIVE ME AN..O GIVE ME AN V GIVE ME AN E...Oh hell what i want to say is I LOVE SNAGGLEPUSS!!! That would be me 🙂
It's an exercise in imagination. For a nominal fee, paid through what really is an important new forum for creativity, a patron can imagine a set piece, dress, or other work of art themselves. It's brilliant.
Don't be so dull.
I have an air guitar he can buy. Cheap.
The art I envision would be mind-altering and a journey like never before. It would involve me first accepting a rectangular package from the UPS man, then opening it ever so delicately. Inside would be a treasure beyond one's wildest dreams, a piece of paper describing to me the retarded imaginary art that had spoken to me. After my soul had been touched, I would then crouch over the box and pee into it, then send it back, addressed to Mr. Franco. This is the art of my dreams, may my vision feed a million starving orphans.
Of course he's not seeing the cash. It's invisible too...
I hope the museum gets closed James Franco! i hope the money part falls out of the wallet part and lands in Austrailia!
I get their point but this kind of pursuit does the art world no favors.
Ignore them.
What a scam.
Anyone seen my paintings ? I could've sworn I laid them on the table....
You all call it dumb but its made nearly 13 grand and cost next to nothing. Seems pretty smart to me.
Ha! Invisible art that smells like eggs!
The world has had museums for invisible art (ideas) for milienia... Two kinds: libraries; & for people like Franco & any one who thinks like him: asylums. The later type does not get near enough utility in this day-in-age!
This man has too much time on his hands. Maybe if he worked @ perfecting his craft this foolishness would be left where it cant be seen. Oh thata right it is invisable. Silly me
I like Franco but this is just stupid to me and I'm a professional writer/journalist so, I can appreciate "imagination" but...erm...
_) _)
o o
__
Pookoo.
Wow, he must still be on that Pineapple Express...
Does anyone else feel like they are in the story "The Emperor's New Clothes". A thief tells the Emperor that he is the finest tailor, and tricks him into paying a fortune for new clothes. The thief tricks the Emperor and everyone in the kingdom by telling them that he is sewing clothing that only the wise can see, not wanting to admit they are not wise enough, everyone pretends to see the clothing that the Emperor really isn't wearing. Isn't that exactly what this is, real money for pretend art and the pretentious people will all pretend how clever the purchase was.
I just came out of a comma!!! Anybody out there? tee hee
James must be smoking some primo ganja, mon. Either that or this is a joke which will be devulged at a later date. Probably both! I get the feeling he's having a bit of fun at the audiences expence. And the only way he can redem himself is to donate to charity!!
This guy should run for president he got the only skill you need to become one offer invisible jobs,houses,food,money,bridge,roads,healthcare. You should see how great Philadelphia is when you close your eyes.
I just stole all of the invisible art. I also stole his invisible talent.
It borders on insanity that this pompous idiot thinks so highly of himself that even his whim should be paid for.
I will never again pay to watch ANY film with him in it.
I wonder if he will reveal it as a big prank on the shallow-minded idiots that took him seriously
I still wanna do him. i don't care how dumb he is
Ditto
Anyone that spends their hard earned money for one of these"invisible" artistic pieces, is an idiot. Yes I get what Franco is doing with this, but anyone that buys one is just plain stupid.
The chick that got him to do this must be really hot.
Riddiculous
I just imagined all those things and I didn't pay a cent! Take that, MONA!
please see my invisible comment below:
Hello all!!! I just came out of my coma. Have a good night now.
How much would an imaginary hot blond girlfriend that is also nice cost me? Im sure way more that I could ever afford. : )
I have some invisible art, do you want to "see" it! (Just kiddin'!)
Woooo ! I am invisible imaginary smart ! No kidding ! Maybe that is why no one thinks I am funny or look nice or smart. They just cant see it. But then I cant either : )
All this is, is a spin on "the emperors new clothes". What is really happening people are buying bits of ideas instead of the whole book. This happens all the time; famous person goes to a fund raiser and people pay 1000 a plate to see them for a few minutes. There is some novelty to this, but it is not going to rate up there with art, that is absolutely ridiculous.
Very interesting, especially if some real artists get involved.
Perhaps it is a think tank foundation. I mean ideas are art which is invisible.
This guy is a super creative, intelligent & brilliant human being.... Just please don't host the Oscars again...
http://www.thethrifters.net
This is just a fad, no talent involved so anyone can do it as well as the next person. tech mixed with talent is where good fine art is at, not this. picasso hes not.
Invisible art isn't necessarily invisible. It is a personal description of what the artist wants you to see. It is written in the eye of the artist in an attempt to invoke the same image for you, yet give you creative liberty to add your own imagination. It, indeed, requires talent.
There's a sucker born every day!!!
This isnt art or an interesting concept, its just stupid. years from now people arent going to read about this in history books and think, wow, what a picasso! the prob with current art as opposed to modern art is that it is just a bunch of boobs pretending to be the real thing. technology has already started to overcome the art process...its almost impossible for fine artists to ignore the incredible capabilities we have now with our various tech. something like this is a funny, trivial concept, but no talent involved so it is gone before it came.
Y'all are a bunch of HIPPIES..!
Love the work and your ideas James. Are you doing that creative writing still at UH? Go Coogs and keep on keepin on man nice work
the stupid things people waste money on while there is still hunger in the world. why cant they be more like the rest of us americans who have so much and are contributing to the welfare of others via moral support.
What else would you expect from invisisble talent but to sell invisible art to those with invisible sense?
Yeah, I gotta say I'm not a big fan of my husband's invisible art either. It just doesn't work for me. I tell him to stop, but he just keeps on creatin'...*sigh* I guess I'm just not the artsey type...silly me...
SCAM! How can we trick the desperatly want to be cool but utterly stupid crowd? I know, let's sell tem something that doesn't exist and call it "invisible art"! To those people, I have beach front property on the moon I want to sell you!
...and not even a clever one at that. Anyone gullible enough to buy into this trick deserves to get rolled for their money.
And the emperor has no clothes....
Shouldn't this article be called, "James Franco officially goes crazy"?
You people who criticize him just don't seem to get the concept of what art is, at all.
idiots
Is this due packing with Elton, Tom Cruise, and Doogie Howser yet?
Well...actually the real original idea came from a "Alexander" from Judith Viorst's "Alexander and the book "Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day" where the kid draws an invisble castle.
I hope you sit on a tack James Franco...I hope the next time you buy a double decker ice cream cone that the ice cream part falls off the cone part and lands in China!
HA HA HA!!!!! Please dont tell me this is actually happening. What a fool.
I still cant believe he made it out of the canyon.
What a joke!!
This is fuking retarded.. Just like his movies.
Franco's rep is completely unreliable. Franco is releasing an EP, Franco's not releasing an EP. Franco will be teaching at Yale. Franco is not teaching at Yale. The current spin is just an attempt to try to not look like a complete jerk for appropriating this idea from fellow RISD students for a school project (check out the link):
http://leepatrickjohnson.wordpress.com/2011/06/21/james-franco-plagiarized-risd-collaborative-project-2/
Your right, he's not teaching at Yale. He's teaching at NYU in the fall.
He claimed he was going to be teaching at Yale for months...he even tried to claim the play he was going to "help with" (which never happened at Yale) was going to be a teaching gig. I'll believe it when I see it.
He makes me embarised to be a human being.
I think you might have some other reasons too.
Ha!
Thanks, Steve...made my day!
I make invisible art too. it sometimes smells like eggs
Haha awesome
Haha, I too am artist in that sense. Love it!
Omg! Too funny... Now box it up and ship it for a few grand!
Hee-hee-hee. Dutch oven.
@BOB, LMFAO, Ive been making the same type of art, are you trying to steal my thunder 🙂
This has to be the stupidest, sickest, most pretentious thing I've ever heard of being done or conceived of in my life. The fact that people, and I use that term extremely loosely, have spent over 12,000 dollars on NON-VISIBLE ART when there are people in this country starving on the streets is grating in a way that I find myself at a loss to explain. It's the absolute cultural void that people propagate out of the desire to outdo each other in the race to the bottom of the hipster barrel. I would like to donate the concept of sanity to the museum. You can't see that either, but everyone involved in this ridiculous project could certainly do with making better acquaintance with it.
Of all the frivolous things people waste money on instead of saving the world, from crotch-shot movies to nutrition-less fast food, I'd say something clever that invokes the imagination is pretty low on the indignation list.
It is his money! not yours! he spent on whatever he wants!
These brave souls are right. Why would anybody object to giving money to a hack celebrity who has brilliantly stolen the idea to promote imagination. That's a much more noble cause than those awful people who put out exceedingly bad films about poetry and that shamelessly try to market those films by featuring themselves in explicit crotch-movie-type scenes. Or...wait a second...
http://www.beingbenpeterson.com/?p=68
Maria, I will print out your comment and frame it and hang it alongside my piece of invisible art. I believe that your opinion is right on although you are simply misinterpreting your opinion due to a shallow mind. Yes, there are starving people in the world but maybe if more people "bought" ideas on how to cure world hunger we would be one step closer to solving world hunger. It is the closed, stubborn, shallow minds, such as yours that have not allowed possibly great ideas to actually manifest. Besides, what have you done to help end hunger? I just bought a piece of invisible art. Who is closer? Honestly?
Renee:
I just created my own invisible piece of artwork that solves world hunger. Keep the faith!
@telemander, Who still pays for crotch-shot movies in the 21st century?
ZERO: great! What is your idea?
What a concept – vapor art. PT Barnum was right, there is a sucker born every minute.
I HAS A BRIDGE IN BROOKLYN I WANT TO SELL YOU JAMES FRANK OR YOURE PARTNER
Im glad he finally got himself a boyfriend. Maybe they can get married in NewYork.
You're an absolute tool.
What a fool.
You are all missing the real meaning of what he is doing. It is a brilliant way to bring attention to the Kickstarter site, which if you would just open up your mind a bit you could actually see the reason behind this. I just left the site and am amazed at the opportunities that will exist for normal everyday people with creative minds that may not have any way or knowledge of bringing their ideas to life. Come on people, look beyond what you can see in front of you, and realize that there are ideas and dreams that could truly become reality............
kreAtivMnd is right...become a minor celebrity, attend a bunch of art graduate programs, steal as many ideas as possible from your fellow students, and swear you're doing it all to promote imagination...
FAIL!
http://leepatrickjohnson.wordpress.com/2011/06/21/james-franco-plagiarized-risd-collaborative-project-2/
Hey James!! I'm giving you the invisible middle finger, you idiot!! Get over yourself already..
You misspelled "Boba Fett" which makes you the fool.
Baloney. I admire Jmaes Franco as an actor, but I think he should rethink this one. As a writer, no as a thinking human being, I don't need someone to send me a card with the description on it to stimulate my imagination. It is at best a waste of money. At worse, a big scam on an impressionable public.
@KreativMind – If he were not so oversaturated in such a phony way in so many disciplines, I would take him more seriously but even this idea is college thesis at best. At this point, anything he does, including his films, I just roll my eyes at. I saw his ludicrous music video and it struck me, he truly is the epitome of Generation Me. Just because he does a lot does not mean he is doing any of it well.