I'm still trying to process what I just took in, but my immediate response is to feel confused, disillusioned, and completely unsurprised. It reminds me of a passage from Don DeLillo's novel, White Noise, in which the protagonist visits "The Most Photographed Barn in America." http://www.downwindproductions.com/barn.html It's part of the culture, now, to inflate the meanings of things by fashioning icons of them. And once people are convinced of a thing's iconic status, it forms its own metaphysical value completely out of nothing. If something seems important, it must be important. And this separate double identity self perpetuates until it obscures the actual thing, and we're no longer celebrating it for its merits but for its fabricated importance. Thanks for recommending the film; I really like it.
Then to discover that - holy shit - that stupid dude with the video camera is part of some bloody phenomenon that ends up on a Madonna cover... Part of my annoyance with the art world comes from the fact that they're consistently pricing shit way the hell out of my range. I decided in about 2002 that I wanted an Yves Klein (surprise surprise). I'd go with a print, but International Klein Blue is outside the gamut of most printing methods, so you need an original. At the time, you could get a Klein original for ~$4k for something small and non-noteworthy. The same thing I couldn't afford for $4k in 2002? Yeah, the very piece I didn't buy is now $400k. Don't get me started on Magritte. I almost bought a numbered edition in 2001 for $1800.
I reached a point in my life where the pretty pictures needed frames. Then I reached a point in my life where the pretty pictures needed mats and frames. Now we're talking $200 just to frame the stupid thing; might as well be worth something.