RULE # 5: Be Flip

I just have to share this amazing piece I found in the OPINION section of The New York Times this morning. It's called Abstract City and it's by Christoph Neimann.

It comes with very witty flair pen graphics that look great and deliver visual tips for living life to the fullest in New York city.

The Yellow Note Pad Sketch is Neimann's MoMa experience tip: below, an exerpt:

"It's is always great to visit the Museum of Modern Art, but I have pretty strong likes and dislikes, especially when it comes to paintings from the 19th and 20th centuries. And I have a hard time enjoying a beloved painting while being irritated by another, less beloved piece of art. If you happen to share my preferences, I suggest the following:

In Room 1 on the fifth floor, stand exactly in between Gauguin’s “Seed of the Areoi” (1) and Braque’s “Landscape at La Ciotat” (2). Turn east, facing Room 5, and you will be able to enjoy two wonderful Klimts (“Hope II” and “The Park”) (3) without being annoyed by the pointless Kandinskys (4), to the left, and Chagall’s disturbing cow (5), to the right."

One of the things I love about this particular exerpt is it's daring. When talking about art, one is usually HIGHLY discouraged from dismissing anything canonized, or any full-on genre, or anything ethnic. Christoph Neimann boldly busts through this taboo, like a stripper jumping from a cake at a Bar Mitzvah.

Normally this would be a keen show move favored only by those who are recognized as accomplished or celebrity critics. If you have a name, it is not only okay to dismiss the No Dismissals rule, but it is strongly advisable. Being Flip is great for press and really great for coming off cool and untouchable.