But is it Art?

Dear Dr. Sadie,

My nephew is a bright and articulate young man, but he's had a rough go of it for a long time. He's always had a hard time fitting in with his family. They're all very academic and driven. His father's an actuary, and his mother's a doctor. Both of his sisters are engineers. My nephew's always been a little more artistic, and he suffered from their inability to understand the legitimacy of his desire to pursue art as a serious line of study and a potential career. He has always come to me, his favorite uncle (and a design architect) for compassion and understanding.

Needless to say his studies and professional life have had lots of bumps in the road over the years. Recently, however, he's been very, very excited about a new "creative opportunity" that he's found. He's said very little about it, but I agreed to invest a few thousand dollars to help him get his project off the ground. 

He just unveiled his "masterpiece," and it's very strange. As far as I can tell, he took lots of plastic toys (barbie dolls, army men, toy cars, etc) and used a magnifying glass and sunlight to burn holes in them. He then mounted them on miniature pedestals. He says that he wants me to have the "best piece in the lot," which is a doll in a toy stroller that's melted almost beyond recognition. He also wants me to pay for it, at the reduced family price of $900.

What should I do?

- Wants to be Supportive, but Really?

I don't think you should buy the art, because if you don't really want it, you shouldn't have it.

This might hurt your nephew's feelings. Maybe you should buy his art, but put in in your attic so you don't have to look at it.

Maybe you can get some coupons for your nephew. He could use the coupons to buy art that isn't so weird.