Work of Art is a Work of Art

Photo by Andrew Eccles

Last week Magical Elves, the geniuses behind Project Runway and Top Chef, joined up with Sarah Jessica Parker's production company Pretty Matches to give us another brilliant reality competition show—Work of Art: The Next Great Artist.

It's the same formula as the other shows, but this time painters, sculptors, performance artists, and photographers are competing for the grand prize. The model for those who don't know, put twelve artists in a room together, assign ridiculously difficult challenges that test their creativity and stamina, and see who rises to the top. The winner will get $100,000 and a private showing at the prestigious Brooklyn Museum.

They have a Tim Gunn-like mentor in art auctioneer Simon du Pury and a Heidi Klum-esque host in China Chow. Three judges—Bill Powers (a New York Gallery owner), Jerry Saltz (senior art critic for New York Magazine), and Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn (curator and owner of Salon94 gallery)—join Chow to critique the challenger's masterpieces and determine a winner and a loser at each week's gallery exhibit.

It certainly rivals the quality and imagination of Runway and Top Chef, and hopefully it will do for the art world what those shows have done for their respective professions—introduce people who ordinarily wouldn't even be aware of new artists to the up-and-coming line-up of next great creative visionaries.

If you like art, or even if you don't, check out Work of Art. You may just be inspired to pick up a brush... or at least go to a museum.

To see a slide show of contestants and their pieces visit Examiner.com.

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