Work of Art The Next Great Artist (2010) s02e08 Episode Script
Sell Out
- I got a feeling that maybe sarah k.
Won.
- Sarah k.
Won.
I think michelle might have gone home.
Oh, I see a door.
Oh, yep.
- Yep.
Girls.
Who won? - Lady here.
- Congratulations.
- Yay! - Winning the fiat challenge, it's insane.
- Sara jimenez, you made a true work of art.
You will receive $25,000.
- I know I want to go to graduate school, And I'm on unemployment right now.
So I'm so grateful for it.
- I thought michelle was gonna be there at the end.
I really did.
- Yeah, me too.
- Michelle, your work of art Didn't work for us.
It's time for you to go.
- It just really sucks.
Another one of my friends has gone home.
- Are you okay, lola? - Yep.
- You're doing-- - I'm just-- - I've been on the bottom more than anyone else.
The judges say that I need to be more honest.
- I feel like she's gotten Less and less guarded since we've been here.
I need to put more of myself out there To show the judges a bit more of who I am.
- Good night, lola.
- Six artists remain to compete For a solo show at the world-famous brooklyn museum, A cover story in bluecanvas magazine, And $100,000, furnished by the 2012 fiat 500.
This is work of art: The next great artist.
[hair dryer whirring.]
- I don't want to frickin' make Another [bleep.]
piece of artwork.
- You're not gonna make-- - that was the worst.
The last challenge was my very first time being in the bottom.
And it was terrifying.
- I just don't want to have that happen again.
It's like the [bleep.]
phoenix.
You know, you, like, come out.
- Yeah, rise out of the ashes.
- All right.
Should we go? Find out what we're doing? - Sounds good.
Let's go.
- We leave the dillon, And we're on our way to tribeca park To find out what our challenge is gonna be.
[singsong voice.]
where are we going? What are we doing? Tribeca is kind of bougie, kind of hip, But I'm confused, Because tribeca doesn't have a lot of galleries.
- Hi.
I see china.
Come on.
I'm feeling really freaked out seeing these three cash boxes Sitting in these, like, little mini vendor stations.
That can't be good.
- Good morning, artists.
Welcome to the final six.
- Oh, my god.
- Throughout history, artists have always faced The struggle with art versus commerce.
- For your challenge, It's time to sell out.
- [gasps.]
what? - Oh, no.
- Oh, my god.
- These stations have been set up for you to display your work, Because today you're going to hustle your art on the street.
- Oh, man! - Oh, my god.
- Seriously? - Not only do we want to see Which artist does the best job at selling their work, We also want to see How well your work holds up in the gallery.
- Interesting.
- [bleep.]
.
The kind of work that I make in the gallery And the kind of things that I would think about On the street are two very different things.
I'm already overwhelmed.
- History proves that two heads can be better than one.
- Mm.
- In the spirit Of this artistic camaraderie, We want you to work in teams of two.
- [laughs.]
- [exhales.]
- Sara jimenez, you won last week's challenge.
You get to pick your partner first.
- Oh, my god.
- Who do you want to work with? - I want to work with young.
- Yay.
- Young and little miss sara j.
Seem like a dream team.
They're gonna be the ones to beat.
- The rest of you, go ahead And pick who you want to work with.
- All right.
[laughter.]
- That was fast.
- This is crazy.
- I'm not even looking-- I just grabbed dusty, Because working with lola would be insane.
I didn't give you a choice.
I'm sorry.
- That's all right.
- Each team will only get five hours to shop And create their pieces.
You will then have two hours To sell as much as you can.
- Oh, my goodness.
- What? - Each of you needs to create a physical piece of art To sell on the street, so that means no performance art.
- Yeah.
- The team that sells the most art here today Will win $30,000 - Oh, my god.
- And cannot be eliminated.
- What? - Wow.
- What? - Everything about this challenge Seems to be exaggerated.
The time is shortened.
The prize money's large.
It's gonna be very hectic.
- You have a lot to do and not a lot of time.
Good luck, artists.
- So what's your idea? - What's your idea? - Well, I'm a really, really fast drawer, And I paint watercolors really fast.
I'm not so worried about this challenge.
Part of me really feels comfortable with it.
I've made paintings the night before And sold them on the street.
I have quirky figures that I know How to make pretty fast, and they-- I've sold them before, and they're pretty successful.
- I was thinking of making, like, maybe t-shirts.
- Yeah, I would like to do that.
I could draw on those.
- I want to make little postcards, And on the back it says, "I supported an artist To follow their dreams today for just $3.
" And they can write a note to someone they love And send it to them-- - are you gonna be able To crank those out pretty fast? - I don't know.
The idea of having to sell out is kind of awful feeling.
So I am going to be treating this Almost like a fund-raiser, So, if someone donates, they'll get this item In return saying that they did their deed To help an artist reach their dreams.
- I just got some ideas for some t-shirts.
Just clever things that people will think is funny.
I started a t-shirt business a couple years ago Called dirt shirts.
So, when the challenge is announced, That's one of my first ideas.
I was thinking maybe just spraying-- - Oh, like make a stencil and spray it.
Okay.
- So what I was thinking about Was all sorts of different things made out of paper And maybe, like, paper feathers I'm planning on making These spray-painted feather headdresses.
Sort of hipster cool, native-american, kind of - I don't know what she's talking about.
- Sort of gluing them on, like, cool, but not hippie.
I'm really thinking about this challenge Like a craft fair.
I'm hoping people want something quirky and fun.
Oh, and t-shirts.
Sexy, but also playful.
- If we made a couple stencils, Then we could just sort of, like, Spray-paint the text on or something like that.
And then I was thinking about taking Some picture of myself naked That then, over it in the text, would say something Like, "I am moody and sometimes mean.
"I have a mustache which I occasionally have to tweeze, And I rarely wax my other area.
" I don't particularly want to get naked, But I would do almost anything to win the challenge.
You know, the old adage-- sex sells.
I'm interested also in trying to, like, You know, get more than things are worth Just by being manipulative.
- Oh, yeah, absolutely.
Right.
- I don't know if I have the most rigorous morals Of anyone here.
I'm down to sell out.
It's kind of strangely exhilarating.
- So american apparel first? How many t-shirts are we gonna buy there? - Where do you want to go first? - Should we go to american apparel first? - Yeah.
- We can talk in the car.
- Go ahead.
- If you give us $100, I'll take off my shirt.
- [laughs.]
- How much money do you think that we need at the craft store? - I don't know.
- Go, go, go.
- Young? - I'm in the underwear section.
- Thank you.
- Buy any three styles, get 15% off.
- We can shop in any store around the city, But every other team is at american apparel.
We're all thinking sort of this commercial route That we need to just make t-shirts to be able To make any money.
Yeah, I like these.
But in the back of our minds, We know that whatever we sell on the street, We have to translate into a successful gallery piece.
- One, two How much are these? - Three, four, five - Six, seven, eight, nine That's 100.
- We can just get matching shorts.
- They're a little bit skimpy and really brightly colored.
We're gonna wear these shorts just to get people's attention.
My boyfriend loves my butt.
It's very petite and round and, you know, pert.
I think that will definitely help us win.
Do they have leggings here as well? - Yeah.
- Thanks so much.
- We have four stops, and it's already 12:00.
You know everywhere takes, like, an hour.
- I know.
- We've decided, for time, All we want to do is just go to utrecht And then head right back to the studio.
- If we need something, one of us can always run to utrecht.
- Let's go, let's go, let's go.
Oh, there are stickers.
- Oh, good.
We're the first ones here.
- Yeah.
- Getting to the studio first is definitely an advantage.
- Here's a box for you.
- Perfect.
We're kind of raiding the studio.
I think when people get back, They might be a little bit annoyed, But I don't really care.
Let's decorate our area With streamers when we get there.
We just have more supplies and more time to make art, Which means more cash on the street.
- Perfect.
- Awesome.
- Where is it? - On the right.
- At utrecht, we're just grabbing stuff as fast As humanly possible.
- I don't want to waste any more time here, To be honest with you.
Are you done? - You better get some more than that.
- I immediately start Pumping out these drawings as fast as possible.
I feel confident that the ink and watercolor paintings Will be safe at the gallery, if nothing else.
But I know that I want to try and sell the most.
- It's like a sweatshop factory.
I'm making some sharpie drawings and paintings Which have a little bit of humor and edge in them.
I'm also planning to make some cute underwear That I could sell.
It'll be a little bit of a cheeky sort of product To have on the street.
- We got to get back to the studio.
- I know.
I know.
- She took all the streamers.
[bleep.]
.
We get back to the studio and go over to see What supplies I need, and a lot of things are missing.
Sara j.
And young-- I'm not mad at them Yet.
We have to leave by, like, no later than 3:30, Meaning right now it's two hours.
- Worrying about it and being pissed about it Is not gonna help.
- Oh.
- Kymia is freaking me out.
We got to get to the studio.
We're running out of time.
I don't know if I'm gonna be able to get much done.
At this point, I think we'll be lucky To have anything to sell.
- Coming up on work of art - You're a sexy, hot chick.
[camera shutter clicks.]
- You know, you sell out to make the money.
- This is kind of crazy.
It is ridiculous that we only have five hours To shop, make our pieces, two hours to sell them, And have that artwork look equally nice For the judges in the gallery space.
[groans.]
Open, for [bleep.]
sakes.
Young and I are gonna focus On making art that we can sell quickly on the street Since that is what is gonna guarantee us Immunity and the $30,000.
- It's 1:30.
We have two hours left.
- Oh, [bleep.]
.
- When we get back to the studio, We're definitely behind at this point.
This is ridiculous.
- Are you good to go? Are you setting up? - I don't know about good to go.
Everywhere I go around this city, I see signs that are making me aware That I'm being watched by surveillance cameras.
So I'm making this t-shirt That has an image of the outline of america in red And a security camera logo in the middle, Signifying that everybody in america is being watched.
My idea for the gallery piece is to make my image Into an actual road sign, which I'm gonna try to sell On the street too.
- I'm starting to create my postcards That are gonna say "support artists" on the front So that the person that donates this amount of money To us will have something to take away with them.
I have no idea how to handle this sort of delicate balance Of having something function on the street to be sold And something to be high art in the gallery space.
I'm stressed out by this challenge.
- Sarah? - What? - What are you doing? I am making stencils to now stencil On the already-colored paper.
I'm making these little feather headdresses, And I'm making t-shirts with boobs and penises.
I did still make the booby stencils.
- Oh, good.
I don't tell everyone to make all these penises.
Look what I just drew.
[laughter.]
I just open up people's sexual sides.
- And I made feathers, like, positive and negative And then, like, stripes of pattern.
People like silly stuff, And I think it'll sell on the street, But I don't know how it's gonna work in the gallery.
I'm hoping that I'll sell enough on the street That it might make the gallery irrelevant.
Lola, we're still taking a picture of you, right? - Yep.
- What are you working on, girly? - The text for the photo.
- Okay.
- I'm basically gonna make this photo-text piece Of myself and admit all these things I'm really embarrassed of.
- It's all right.
You're a sexy, hot chick.
When I was in the bottom during the last critique, Jerry said he felt he didn't really know Much about me.
- You look good.
I mean, the whole point is, Like, this is you in your natural state, right? - I'm a contradictory person.
So, if you say that you can't see me, Here I am.
Feel connected to me now, jerry? - Yeah.
- Feel like I'm giving it? - Ooh, big deal.
She's nude.
I am not surprised.
You know, you sell out to make the money.
- Ten minutes till we leave.
- I don't even know what I'm talking about.
Now that I'm sitting back and sort of really thinking About these postcards, I'm realizing They won't look good in the gallery.
Plan "b.
" So one day it'll be worth something.
- Right.
- Okay.
- In return, I'm gonna ask them to give me Their signature, and those are gonna be my pieces.
I am now changing my idea To selling my signature to the public, And then, in return, asking for their signature back That I will then exhibit in the gallery space tomorrow.
I have an announcement to make if anyone's okay Just with listening.
- What's going on? - I am selling my signature to the patron, And in exchange, I want their signature back.
I really feel like I should ask My peers for permission if I can use this idea, Because there's the gray area of whether or not Using people's signatures is considered performance art.
Is anyone here not okay with it? Just say, "yes," then I know I cannot use this idea.
- I'm not really okay with it.
- So - So does that mean That everyone is allowed to do things on the spot with people And then display it? - I wouldn't see why not.
I'm not surprised that lola has a problem With what I have planned.
She's a very competitive person, And she's looking out for herself.
- I guess so.
I feel like this whole thing Is so confusing, but I'm not really interested In sabotaging anyone.
I don't want anyone else to get special treatment Unless I get special treatment too.
Just do it.
Just do it.
- Do it? - Yeah, just do it.
I don't care.
I'm totally gonna use this to my advantage.
I see it as an opportunity to sell something personal And reveal something about me.
- Oh, my god.
This is a thong.
I did not realize.
Both: Aah! - We change into these semi-matching outfits With our designs on it.
I think it's a really good strategy To help us sell the most.
Do I have cellulite? - No.
- Right here, to catch people coming this way.
- Okay.
- I think if everyone who walks by wants to buy A customized t-shirt, plus they think, Like, lola's a sexy chick And they want a naked picture of her, Then we're in good shape.
- Get your t-shirts over here.
- [laughing.]
get a famous artist's signature over here.
- "I hate my mother's hair, "but I tell her I like it, Although probably not very convincingly.
" [laughing.]
I love that.
- I'm selling a photograph of myself in different sizes, And I'm also selling individualized secrets That I'm writing on my photographs.
$5, $10, $20.
The more money you pay, the more explicit the secrets get.
I don't really have set prices.
I prefer to just gauge How much I think someone might be willing to pay.
- How much is this? - This is $100.
- 100 bucks, huh? - I can sort of tell sometimes How much cash someone's got in their pocket.
If they've got a money clip full of hundreds, I'm gonna start with a much higher price.
- All right.
I'll give you $100 for it.
Is that a good negotiation? - That's a really good negotiation.
- [laughs.]
- I see that lola has a big spender, And I'm thinking in my mind, "we need to bring it.
" I think the ones we have up there came out the best In terms of the stenciling.
I'm feeling pretty confident about selling, Because I work for an art gallery, I've sold over $200,000 worth of art in the past two years.
You can hang them on the wall, You can wear them around the house.
You know, just make sure your blinds are pulled down.
- These would look great on me.
- For real? Young has definitely sold out today.
He is selling underwear With these cute little smiley faces spray-painted on them, While he's wearing super hoochie-mama shorts.
So I am wondering how this is gonna turn out To be a piece for the gallery space.
Is he gonna put this cute underwear up on the wall And call it high art-- like, really? That'll be $10.
We appreciate your support of our team.
- I am actually selling my signature In exchange for yours.
- These are true, right? Okay.
- Is this a cowboy saddle? - No.
It's a security camera.
- Thank you, and there's mine.
- I'm doing what I can to sell as many shirts as I can.
Kymia's piece is only selling for $5, And she's probably not accumulating As much money as I am.
I'm starting to feel the pressure for sure.
Help a brother out over here.
This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to buy A piece of art from a guy from arkansas in new york city.
- So you can get any kind of pattern that you want That I've got here on a t-shirt.
Do you want just the underneath, Or do you want the underneath and the nipples? This is not my usual style.
But you could kind of see it as a series of abstract images That might work in the gallery.
How much are you willing to buy it for? - Five cents.
- Oh, man.
I am not the greatest salesperson, But luckily lola knows How to communicate with the public.
- We can also sell hugs if you need those or You know, anything you want, really, Just tell me, and I can sell you.
- Got a naked picture over there.
That's playing dirty is what that is.
- Buy all my secrets.
- Coming up on work of art - I'm gonna head out for a second.
- Sarah k.
Is stealing everybody's customers.
It's not cool.
- You want to come to our booth first-- - No, no, no.
- Oh, my.
- The other teams are selling an array of things-- T-shirts, signatures, secrets, and feather headdresses.
Do you want this one? - Yeah.
- This one's a bit more innocent.
- I will take this one.
- Awesome.
So this one is $50.
- I think I'll take this one.
The big spender has come to our table.
My sales strategy is basically To just empty out his wallet.
Count this for me.
I'm really bad with my math.
- Okay.
- There could be $100 in there.
- We sell $220 worth of merchandise.
And I feel excited-- another part of me Is like, "oh, [bleep.]
, I have no more inventory.
" - If I give you a picture of my dog, Can you draw him? - Well, it won't be realistic.
So I thought to myself, "why don't I just make portraits on the street? That'll be a really quick, easy way to make money.
" - It's cute.
- Here's for the portraits.
- For those four? - Yeah, and this was for another one.
I'm really surprised at how popular The portraits are going.
There is this huge line of people.
It's nonstop.
I don't even have a chance to go to the bathroom.
- $10 portraits in the park today.
Cheap art over here.
- Hi, simon.
- Hello, kymia.
- Simon.
- So what are you doing? - Dusty's got some t-shirts going With these surveillance cameras on the United States of america.
- And what is the message? - That we're kind of all being watched wherever we go.
- How are you going to transform your work for the judges? - Well, I see this as being a road sign.
- Okay, and you think it's going to impress the judges.
- Hopefully it will.
- So where is your work? - Right here.
I'm selling my signature, simon, And when people come up, I sign something And give it to them for $5.
- Wow.
- Yeah.
You look really-- - And what are you going to do at the gallery? - I'm taking their signature in exchange, And I'm putting up this giant grid of the signatures I collected today.
They kind of look just like drawings, some of them, By themselves.
- And you think it's gonna be strong enough to stay In the competition? - I hope so! I don't know.
We didn't really have A lot of time to think about this.
- Well, listen, kymia, I hope for you That this will look okay and that you will manage to make A convincing presentation for the judges.
- Me too.
Simon tells me that he's worried about my idea all around.
- Thank you so much.
Hi, simon.
- Hey, young.
How are you doing? - We're doing very well, actually.
We're selling some t-shirts, some underwear, Drawings, and paintings.
That one is $75.
- The small format is how much? - Those are $30 each.
- Yes.
All right.
And your pants? - We're selling those For $7 each, and we've sold-- - What's the demand for those? We've sold about four of them so far.
Did you want to buy anything while you're here, simon? - Well, I think I can do without your pants, But I would definitely be very tempted To buy this one here.
- Okay.
- I think that's a great work.
It should be flying off the shelf.
- It should be.
- Well, good luck, young.
- All right.
Thanks, simon.
- And I'll see you tomorrow at the gallery.
- See you tomorrow at the gallery.
- Hey, sara, how are you doing? - Hi, simon.
Good.
How are you? - Would you rate yourself as a good saleswoman? - Definitely.
Young and I are wearing Our merchandise.
Did you see his outfit? - Whoa.
- We have our drawings here.
And then it says young and sara.
- Oh, my god.
It's getting better and better.
There seems to be A fairly unique way that you are doing art To connect with the public.
- It's so much fun.
I've done it before with just drawing, But never with watercolors.
But it's actually going really well.
- I don't want to interrupt.
You're a very patient young man Waiting for his masterwork to be delivered.
- I hope so.
- All the best.
- Thank you, simon.
Did you buy any artwork from anyone else yet? - No.
- Good.
- Hi, simon.
- Hey, lola.
How are you doing? - I'm fine.
Thanks.
Let me tell you, simon, I'm selling Individualized secrets.
You know, I write it specifically to each person.
Basically, you know, I'm just putting it all out there At this point.
- Clearly.
- What are the secrets On this one? - Well, basically, I've just kind of Admitted all these relatively horrible things About myself.
- You know, it's very difficult For me to focus on the text Because I'm a little sidetracked by the background.
The question is whether the judges would find it A little too obvious just to bare it all.
But you always are good for a surprise.
For the gallery show, Are you going to make a life-sized version of it? - Do you think that I should print it big for the show? - I think you should do it big.
- Do you like it? - I actually like it very much.
I think it's gorgeous and very attractive.
- Simon really likes what I've made, And for the first time, He just doesn't look at me quizzically With raised eyebrows.
- Hey, sarah, what did you decide to do? - So I've decided to do customizable t-shirts And these kind of paper feather headbands.
- And how are you doing sales-wise? - I'm actually doing pretty well.
I sold maybe five or six t-shirts, which is pretty good.
So what do you think? - I'm not kind of blown away by your idea.
- Okay.
- I hope that you will be able To do a version that impresses the judges.
- Mm-hmm.
- I wish you only the very, very best.
- Okay, thank you.
Thank you, simon.
All right.
Hi.
- Artists, good luck with your sales.
Sell, sell, sell! - Thanks, simon.
- Oh! - Oh, yeah.
- Thank you so much.
- I'm gonna head out for a second.
Simon said that my piece would not look good In the gallery, so I need To do everything in my power To make the most money, since the winning team Will both get 30 grand and not be eliminated.
- You want to come to our booth first since-- - No, no, no.
- Oh, my.
- I mean, what's better than a secret, right? - Dirty.
- Sarah k.
Has come Out of her element.
She's, like, stealing everybody's customers, And it's not cool.
Don't let 'em hustle you, now.
- Sarah looks like a crack addict.
- Change.
Whatever change you got.
There is no such thing as playing dirty.
This is not a respectable gallery show.
I think whoever's the better salesperson Is really gonna win.
- Don't buy anything From any of my competitors.
- $5 t-shirts.
- This isn't exactly how I had in mind proving I was A wonderful fine artist, you know? - $5! $5 t-shirts! - Put some clothes on, young.
I'll sell you a t-shirt.
- I'll buy a t-shirt if you guys buy a painting.
- Oh, come on! - Anywhere from, like, $50 to $100.
- He kind of looks a little pissed off.
[laughter.]
- that would make sense.
- He's serious.
I get a little worried Because lola is selling her big photographs For $100, but I also feel Young and I have done so well-- A lot better than I thought we would.
- That's cool.
- Yeah.
Really cool.
- You guys, we have ten more minutes! All of a sudden, there's this craziest rush Of people interested in buying dusty's t-shirts.
We might not be totally out of the running.
- There we go, man.
- Thank you so much.
- Trying to sell this sign, too, if you want that.
- Okay, the secret that I've got to tell you Is that The very last customer I had Was a three-year-old little girl.
I sold her a secret for 25 cents.
- [crying.]
- I told her a really good secret.
[girl screaming.]
- It's yours to enjoy.
So, at the end of the day, I'm really worried About how the pieces are going to translate in the gallery, 'cause we only have one hour to work in the studio.
I think we have at least $450 in sales.
- Really? - I think.
- That's pretty good.
- I think it's pretty good.
- So what do you have to re-create for yours? - Penises made out of feathers-- you know, the usual.
Our piece has to be pretty much The same as what we were actually selling on the street.
I'm remaking the stencils so that I can remake A couple of the paper crowns.
My plan is to make a female and a male figure On the wall based on my t-shirts.
I'm completely nervous, Because I was so focused on making the most money, And now that I'm making a slightly different version Of what I already have, I don't know If it will look good in the gallery.
What do you think of these boobs? Good? - They're pretty even, actually.
- Yeah, I know.
It's remarkable.
Way more even than mine.
- I'm basically gonna show one of my unsold paintings And I'm also creating paper versions of the underwear pieces That I sold in the park, because I'm not so sure How well the actual underwear will translate in the gallery.
This is the winner outfit.
- That's the outfit? - Whoever wins has to wear this.
- I am [bleep.]
because this is really stupid.
- You guys might have sold the most.
Then you'd be safe.
- I'm making fine-tuned adjustments to my road sign.
I don't think it's gonna be my best piece, But we'll see what happens.
It's been a very stressful day.
I have time to make a phone call to my wife, Kind of check in.
How you doing? - Hey, good.
- How's baby doing? - She's doing good, doing really good.
She got a new present today.
- [voice breaking.]
being a dad, she needs me to survive.
That makes me feel bad, because I'm here, And I'm not-- I'm not there To give her, you know, what she needs right now.
It's important for me to give my best effort.
As much as I want to see my daughter, I'm not ready to go home yet.
I love you too.
- Bye.
Good night.
- Good night.
Bye.
- So I have a grid of my signatures-- 15 of them and then 15 of their signatures Side by side.
My gallery piece was created today When I got the signatures in exchange For my signature.
The calligraphy of the signatures Is beautiful and visually interesting.
It might not have sold the most, But at least this piece is a piece of work That I could be proud of.
- We had amazing reactions From women that I was so not expecting.
I think my piece looks stronger than some other work That I see--certainly better than sarah and kymia's piece.
The first thing that I thought of when we got the challenge Was like, "tell every bad thing you can think of "in five minutes about yourself And show it all.
" I think I made the best piece, And I think it's gonna look really good in the gallery.
- Lola, I can see your ill-nana over there.
- Really? I wasn't aware of that.
That's shocking.
Tomorrow is gonna be huge.
There's a lot at stake for this gallery show.
Obviously, it's one step closer to the finale.
- Oh, what a crazy day.
- Coming up on work of art - What the hell is that thing? - Well, she must have made the most money.
- I wasn't happy with the one or two that I had available.
- I think I know why-- because it's awful.
- [sobbing.]
- Everyone's an emotional roller coaster.
- It's really intense here.
- It's up, it's down.
It's up, it's down.
- [sobbing.]
- ugh.
I'm just frustrated.
- I know.
It's really hard to be positive.
- One of them starts, and then it's a chain reaction.
[all crying.]
- It makes me a little soft-- big deal.
- You're a beautiful person, and I love you.
- Good evening, everyone.
All: Good evening.
- Please welcome back your judges-- Critic jerry saltz - Hi.
- Gallery owner bill powers - Hey, guys.
- And your guest judge this week Art advisor and curator jeanne greenberg rohatyn.
- Hi, jeanne.
I was in the bottom last time jeanne was our judge, So I'm kind of nervous to have her as a judge again.
- This week we asked you to create work That would sell to the public That you could also present in the gallery.
The team that earned the most amount of money From their sales will win $30,000 And cannot be eliminated tonight.
Let's open up the gallery and see how you did.
- Autographs by people on the street? - My piece is 100% the same as it was on the street As it is in the gallery.
I sold on the street, and you can see the remnants Of the people that bought the work.
I feel like it 110% Fits the criteria of this challenge.
- One of the most personal things That people do is sign their name.
- Sightseeing.
A mailbox and what else? I'm a little surprised that some people don't recognize The surveillance camera.
- What the hell is that thing? - Looks like a xerox.
- Like a printer cartridge or something.
- Maybe it was easier to see it on a t-shirt.
- People really need to know That there are people out there that are looking at you.
- Yeah.
- But he pulls you in right away.
- I went into this challenge with the strategy to sell, So my gallery show might not be The strongest in this competition.
Hopefully sara and I sold the most.
- It does look like this idea of the five-minute portrait.
- I definitely feel like people on the streets Really liked my portraits and watercolors.
It's not the best work I've ever made, But our booth was so popular at the park.
- Well, she must have made the most money.
- I feel really vulnerable, but I do believe In my piece, and I hope the judges See that I have a willingness to take risks.
- "will you stop being so gentle? It's making me nauseous.
" - It's like a thanksgiving playdate or something.
- Instead of hanging a t-shirt, I actually spray-paint the image Of a female figure on the wall And a male figure on the wall.
And I have a couple more of the headdresses.
- But I can't imagine you can charge anybody More than 25 cents for it.
- I'm curious to hear the totals.
- Yeah, me too.
- Thanks so much.
Nice to meet you too.
- Tonight we would like to speak to all of you In the crit.
Young and sara, let's start with your team.
- I basically had two different sets of things That I was selling to the public.
I had a series of these sort of ghost, Or spirit, drawings that were done with sharpie.
I bought a colorful range of men's underwear And stenciled these sort of super-cute faces onto them.
- Excuse me.
That's men's underwear? - It represents basically what I had at the park.
- I felt as if you were making something for us And something for the public.
Is this your assumption? That we're so limited That we can only see a painting as a work of art? - I agree that it would have been much more edgy To have actual underwear hanging on the wall.
- That was the challenge-- To be in public and then inside a gallery.
You stumbled right there.
- Young, your total sales yesterday were $129.
Thank you very much, young.
- Thank you.
- Sara jimenez, let's start your crit.
- I use ink and watercolor a lot, And I make pictures really, really quickly From my imagination or from life.
Most of the time, I was doing five-minute portraits.
I didn't have any time to do anything else.
It was really crazy.
- I think it was a great idea to include portraits, And I would have loved to have gotten one If I were in the park.
- I would have liked to have seen A whole wall of portraits.
- Yeah.
- I think that To go with a tried-and-true profession Of the street portrait is the right way to go.
- I imagine there was probably a voyeuristic quality, In that people huddle around and want to see The magic of how this thing is made.
- It was a lot of fun.
- Sara, you made $320.
- Wow.
[applause.]
- That means, young and sara, your team's total Is $449.
- Awesome.
- Not bad.
- Good job.
- You too.
- Dusty and kymia, let's move on to you.
- Good job.
- As you all know, I'm not from the city, right? So [laughter.]
- Really? [laughter.]
- I've been noticing these signs With the surveillance cameras everywhere.
It's kind of where I came up with this idea For this road-sign image that we're all being watched Wherever we go.
And I sold t-shirts with the image on the t-shirt.
- Sell many t-shirts? - I sold quite a few t-shirts-- probably around 20 or so.
- Did you sell any signs? - I didn't sell any signs.
- Why didn't they buy the sign? - I don't know why it didn't happen.
- I think I know why.
- Why's that? - Because it's awful.
- All right.
- Jeanne and I thought that was a toner cartridge.
If it's about surveillance culture And I can't tell if it's a camera or a toner cartridge, You have a big problem.
- Obviously.
- This work feels like it's very you, dusty.
You've used a map before, and you've also used An everyday object and brought it into the gallery.
- I realize it's not my most successful piece, And I knew I was treading water with the map situation.
- Dusty, you made $185 selling your t-shirts.
- Okay.
- Kymia, let's start your crit.
- I sold my signature for $5 a pop, But I asked for them to also give me Their signature in return.
I really wanted to move product, But also have a very meaningful thing For me to come out in the end with, For both on the street and in the gallery.
- That's really cool that what you sold Is what you're showing, And there's no disconnect - No, this is it.
- Between the product and the artwork.
- I also like this idea of you Peddling your own signature.
It's absurd, And that's where the art comes into it.
- Well, thank you, jeanne.
- I was left flat and let down Until - Oh.
- That all of our signatures Are incredibly personal things to us.
You did bring the art world To the streets, which we all love.
- Thank you, guys, very much.
- Kymia, you made a total of $96.
That brings your team total to $281.
- Sorry, dusty.
- Unfortunately, dusty and kymia, That means you are not the winning team, And both of you are up for elimination tonight.
- Okay.
- The final team we'd like To speak to is lola and sarah.
Sarah, we'll speak to you first.
Let's start your crit.
- One of the things that I was thinking about Was making little feather hats and things like that.
The other thing lola and I had talked about Was a little bit of, like, the sex sells kind of idea.
And so I custom-made t-shirts.
- People bought the t-shirts? - People bought the t-shirts.
- What we're seeing in the gallery may not be art, Because it comes off like a - Halloween costume.
- You guys were thinking, as a team, "let's do something where sex sells.
" And I just don't see - The sexiness of it.
- Well, I just don't see where you really developed That idea at all here.
- Yeah, I know.
- Sarah You made $95 selling your art to the public yesterday.
We have one crit left, and we don't know how much lola made.
So, lola, let's talk to you.
- Okay.
I sold these prints in various sizes And then I was selling, on the spot, secrets, Which turned out to be kind of the biggest seller.
- Lola, what I like about this Is you added these secrets, And they don't come off as cynical, shammy.
They actually came off as real.
- The nudity was what you attracted the public with, And then when they sat down with you, You gave them something even better.
- Unless you're doing something that's potentially embarrassing, You're not really pushing yourself as an artist, And to that degree, you have succeeded.
[laughing.]
- Lola, if you made more than $354, Your team will be the winner of this challenge And will win the $30,000 and cannot be eliminated tonight.
The total amount of money that you earned yesterday was $217.
That makes your total $312.
Congratulations, young and sara.
You will split $30,000, Furnished by bluecanvas magazine, And cannot be eliminated tonight.
- Thank you so much.
Sara and I didn't have The most provocative or challenging artwork, But we did what we could to win in terms of sales.
- Thank you.
- Young must be so happy that I picked him, Because I sold the most out of all the teams.
I'm ecstatic.
- If it had been about who made the best piece In the gallery, I think I would have won, So it's pretty frustrating.
Hooray for them.
That means that, lola, sarah, dusty, and kymia, One of you is going home.
You can all head up to the studio, And we will call you back shortly.
- Like, they came after me so hard.
- They hated mine as well, sarah.
I'm not in any safe boat over here.
- It's not about the sales anymore.
Now it's about the art.
We have two teams up for elimination, But even though lola and kymia were on losing teams, Only dusty and sarah failed with their art.
- Absolutely.
- I was really surprised by sarah.
She used construction paper, But there was no fun involved with it.
There was no play.
There was nothing extraordinary about it.
And that surprised me.
- She's spray-painting stencils, And yet, in the finished project that we see, There's no evidence of that.
And then it's got genitals And nothing happens with that idea.
- It was utterly disposable.
Dusty's sculpture and t-shirt Was a placeholder for a broader discussion Of surveillance in america.
- It just was kind of here's a map with a camera on it.
- He's depicting rather than bringing it to the next level.
- And then he falls back on using a map again.
And the thing just kind of ends up as signage.
- We've made our decision.
- Yeah.
- Let's bring them back in.
- The four of you are here because you failed To outsell your competition.
Two of you had works that failed in the gallery.
Lola, kymia You're safe.
We enjoyed your work.
Dusty, sarah The only rule in art is what works, And neither of your pieces did.
- Dusty, your ideas about surveillance in america Came off as simplistic and unexamined.
- Sarah, your take on gender roles Was barely worthy of a t-shirt, let alone a gallery wall, Because it was so safe and stereotypical.
- Dusty, sarah One of you will be leaving us tonight.
Dusty You're safe.
- [exhales deeply.]
- That means, sarah, your work of art didn't work for us.
It's time for you to go.
- Thank you, again, for this opportunity.
I really appreciate it.
- Thank you, sarah.
- I just cannot believe that I made such a horrible piece.
I'm really, really disappointed in myself.
It's tough.
[voice breaking.]
I really came here because my father Really encouraged me to take a chance.
Well, I really liked getting to know you guys so much.
And, you know, I, like, thank god I did.
Because, you know, by taking that chance, I got to have this amazing experience That is completely unique.
My father--I'm sure that he would have been proud of me.
- Next on work of art - You have train tickets here to go to - This challenge will determine which three artists Make it into the finale.
- At double elimination, my heart stops a little bit.
- I need to go find some people to talk to.
- Can I take a picture of you? - No, sorry.
- How would you feel about someone Making a portrait of you? - Oh, no, no.
No, no.
- The stakes are higher than ever.
- That's gonna suck worse than this.
- Dusty keeps going back and forth between ideas.
I don't think he's gonna make it.
- It's really brave, really bold.
- I don't know that I would get that this was a portrait.
- I'm throwing up inside.
- And I don't want to come off like a total bitch.
- Go to bravotv.
Com/work-of-art for info on how to own a print From your favorite artist.
- Matches, pretty matches.
Won.
- Sarah k.
Won.
I think michelle might have gone home.
Oh, I see a door.
Oh, yep.
- Yep.
Girls.
Who won? - Lady here.
- Congratulations.
- Yay! - Winning the fiat challenge, it's insane.
- Sara jimenez, you made a true work of art.
You will receive $25,000.
- I know I want to go to graduate school, And I'm on unemployment right now.
So I'm so grateful for it.
- I thought michelle was gonna be there at the end.
I really did.
- Yeah, me too.
- Michelle, your work of art Didn't work for us.
It's time for you to go.
- It just really sucks.
Another one of my friends has gone home.
- Are you okay, lola? - Yep.
- You're doing-- - I'm just-- - I've been on the bottom more than anyone else.
The judges say that I need to be more honest.
- I feel like she's gotten Less and less guarded since we've been here.
I need to put more of myself out there To show the judges a bit more of who I am.
- Good night, lola.
- Six artists remain to compete For a solo show at the world-famous brooklyn museum, A cover story in bluecanvas magazine, And $100,000, furnished by the 2012 fiat 500.
This is work of art: The next great artist.
[hair dryer whirring.]
- I don't want to frickin' make Another [bleep.]
piece of artwork.
- You're not gonna make-- - that was the worst.
The last challenge was my very first time being in the bottom.
And it was terrifying.
- I just don't want to have that happen again.
It's like the [bleep.]
phoenix.
You know, you, like, come out.
- Yeah, rise out of the ashes.
- All right.
Should we go? Find out what we're doing? - Sounds good.
Let's go.
- We leave the dillon, And we're on our way to tribeca park To find out what our challenge is gonna be.
[singsong voice.]
where are we going? What are we doing? Tribeca is kind of bougie, kind of hip, But I'm confused, Because tribeca doesn't have a lot of galleries.
- Hi.
I see china.
Come on.
I'm feeling really freaked out seeing these three cash boxes Sitting in these, like, little mini vendor stations.
That can't be good.
- Good morning, artists.
Welcome to the final six.
- Oh, my god.
- Throughout history, artists have always faced The struggle with art versus commerce.
- For your challenge, It's time to sell out.
- [gasps.]
what? - Oh, no.
- Oh, my god.
- These stations have been set up for you to display your work, Because today you're going to hustle your art on the street.
- Oh, man! - Oh, my god.
- Seriously? - Not only do we want to see Which artist does the best job at selling their work, We also want to see How well your work holds up in the gallery.
- Interesting.
- [bleep.]
.
The kind of work that I make in the gallery And the kind of things that I would think about On the street are two very different things.
I'm already overwhelmed.
- History proves that two heads can be better than one.
- Mm.
- In the spirit Of this artistic camaraderie, We want you to work in teams of two.
- [laughs.]
- [exhales.]
- Sara jimenez, you won last week's challenge.
You get to pick your partner first.
- Oh, my god.
- Who do you want to work with? - I want to work with young.
- Yay.
- Young and little miss sara j.
Seem like a dream team.
They're gonna be the ones to beat.
- The rest of you, go ahead And pick who you want to work with.
- All right.
[laughter.]
- That was fast.
- This is crazy.
- I'm not even looking-- I just grabbed dusty, Because working with lola would be insane.
I didn't give you a choice.
I'm sorry.
- That's all right.
- Each team will only get five hours to shop And create their pieces.
You will then have two hours To sell as much as you can.
- Oh, my goodness.
- What? - Each of you needs to create a physical piece of art To sell on the street, so that means no performance art.
- Yeah.
- The team that sells the most art here today Will win $30,000 - Oh, my god.
- And cannot be eliminated.
- What? - Wow.
- What? - Everything about this challenge Seems to be exaggerated.
The time is shortened.
The prize money's large.
It's gonna be very hectic.
- You have a lot to do and not a lot of time.
Good luck, artists.
- So what's your idea? - What's your idea? - Well, I'm a really, really fast drawer, And I paint watercolors really fast.
I'm not so worried about this challenge.
Part of me really feels comfortable with it.
I've made paintings the night before And sold them on the street.
I have quirky figures that I know How to make pretty fast, and they-- I've sold them before, and they're pretty successful.
- I was thinking of making, like, maybe t-shirts.
- Yeah, I would like to do that.
I could draw on those.
- I want to make little postcards, And on the back it says, "I supported an artist To follow their dreams today for just $3.
" And they can write a note to someone they love And send it to them-- - are you gonna be able To crank those out pretty fast? - I don't know.
The idea of having to sell out is kind of awful feeling.
So I am going to be treating this Almost like a fund-raiser, So, if someone donates, they'll get this item In return saying that they did their deed To help an artist reach their dreams.
- I just got some ideas for some t-shirts.
Just clever things that people will think is funny.
I started a t-shirt business a couple years ago Called dirt shirts.
So, when the challenge is announced, That's one of my first ideas.
I was thinking maybe just spraying-- - Oh, like make a stencil and spray it.
Okay.
- So what I was thinking about Was all sorts of different things made out of paper And maybe, like, paper feathers I'm planning on making These spray-painted feather headdresses.
Sort of hipster cool, native-american, kind of - I don't know what she's talking about.
- Sort of gluing them on, like, cool, but not hippie.
I'm really thinking about this challenge Like a craft fair.
I'm hoping people want something quirky and fun.
Oh, and t-shirts.
Sexy, but also playful.
- If we made a couple stencils, Then we could just sort of, like, Spray-paint the text on or something like that.
And then I was thinking about taking Some picture of myself naked That then, over it in the text, would say something Like, "I am moody and sometimes mean.
"I have a mustache which I occasionally have to tweeze, And I rarely wax my other area.
" I don't particularly want to get naked, But I would do almost anything to win the challenge.
You know, the old adage-- sex sells.
I'm interested also in trying to, like, You know, get more than things are worth Just by being manipulative.
- Oh, yeah, absolutely.
Right.
- I don't know if I have the most rigorous morals Of anyone here.
I'm down to sell out.
It's kind of strangely exhilarating.
- So american apparel first? How many t-shirts are we gonna buy there? - Where do you want to go first? - Should we go to american apparel first? - Yeah.
- We can talk in the car.
- Go ahead.
- If you give us $100, I'll take off my shirt.
- [laughs.]
- How much money do you think that we need at the craft store? - I don't know.
- Go, go, go.
- Young? - I'm in the underwear section.
- Thank you.
- Buy any three styles, get 15% off.
- We can shop in any store around the city, But every other team is at american apparel.
We're all thinking sort of this commercial route That we need to just make t-shirts to be able To make any money.
Yeah, I like these.
But in the back of our minds, We know that whatever we sell on the street, We have to translate into a successful gallery piece.
- One, two How much are these? - Three, four, five - Six, seven, eight, nine That's 100.
- We can just get matching shorts.
- They're a little bit skimpy and really brightly colored.
We're gonna wear these shorts just to get people's attention.
My boyfriend loves my butt.
It's very petite and round and, you know, pert.
I think that will definitely help us win.
Do they have leggings here as well? - Yeah.
- Thanks so much.
- We have four stops, and it's already 12:00.
You know everywhere takes, like, an hour.
- I know.
- We've decided, for time, All we want to do is just go to utrecht And then head right back to the studio.
- If we need something, one of us can always run to utrecht.
- Let's go, let's go, let's go.
Oh, there are stickers.
- Oh, good.
We're the first ones here.
- Yeah.
- Getting to the studio first is definitely an advantage.
- Here's a box for you.
- Perfect.
We're kind of raiding the studio.
I think when people get back, They might be a little bit annoyed, But I don't really care.
Let's decorate our area With streamers when we get there.
We just have more supplies and more time to make art, Which means more cash on the street.
- Perfect.
- Awesome.
- Where is it? - On the right.
- At utrecht, we're just grabbing stuff as fast As humanly possible.
- I don't want to waste any more time here, To be honest with you.
Are you done? - You better get some more than that.
- I immediately start Pumping out these drawings as fast as possible.
I feel confident that the ink and watercolor paintings Will be safe at the gallery, if nothing else.
But I know that I want to try and sell the most.
- It's like a sweatshop factory.
I'm making some sharpie drawings and paintings Which have a little bit of humor and edge in them.
I'm also planning to make some cute underwear That I could sell.
It'll be a little bit of a cheeky sort of product To have on the street.
- We got to get back to the studio.
- I know.
I know.
- She took all the streamers.
[bleep.]
.
We get back to the studio and go over to see What supplies I need, and a lot of things are missing.
Sara j.
And young-- I'm not mad at them Yet.
We have to leave by, like, no later than 3:30, Meaning right now it's two hours.
- Worrying about it and being pissed about it Is not gonna help.
- Oh.
- Kymia is freaking me out.
We got to get to the studio.
We're running out of time.
I don't know if I'm gonna be able to get much done.
At this point, I think we'll be lucky To have anything to sell.
- Coming up on work of art - You're a sexy, hot chick.
[camera shutter clicks.]
- You know, you sell out to make the money.
- This is kind of crazy.
It is ridiculous that we only have five hours To shop, make our pieces, two hours to sell them, And have that artwork look equally nice For the judges in the gallery space.
[groans.]
Open, for [bleep.]
sakes.
Young and I are gonna focus On making art that we can sell quickly on the street Since that is what is gonna guarantee us Immunity and the $30,000.
- It's 1:30.
We have two hours left.
- Oh, [bleep.]
.
- When we get back to the studio, We're definitely behind at this point.
This is ridiculous.
- Are you good to go? Are you setting up? - I don't know about good to go.
Everywhere I go around this city, I see signs that are making me aware That I'm being watched by surveillance cameras.
So I'm making this t-shirt That has an image of the outline of america in red And a security camera logo in the middle, Signifying that everybody in america is being watched.
My idea for the gallery piece is to make my image Into an actual road sign, which I'm gonna try to sell On the street too.
- I'm starting to create my postcards That are gonna say "support artists" on the front So that the person that donates this amount of money To us will have something to take away with them.
I have no idea how to handle this sort of delicate balance Of having something function on the street to be sold And something to be high art in the gallery space.
I'm stressed out by this challenge.
- Sarah? - What? - What are you doing? I am making stencils to now stencil On the already-colored paper.
I'm making these little feather headdresses, And I'm making t-shirts with boobs and penises.
I did still make the booby stencils.
- Oh, good.
I don't tell everyone to make all these penises.
Look what I just drew.
[laughter.]
I just open up people's sexual sides.
- And I made feathers, like, positive and negative And then, like, stripes of pattern.
People like silly stuff, And I think it'll sell on the street, But I don't know how it's gonna work in the gallery.
I'm hoping that I'll sell enough on the street That it might make the gallery irrelevant.
Lola, we're still taking a picture of you, right? - Yep.
- What are you working on, girly? - The text for the photo.
- Okay.
- I'm basically gonna make this photo-text piece Of myself and admit all these things I'm really embarrassed of.
- It's all right.
You're a sexy, hot chick.
When I was in the bottom during the last critique, Jerry said he felt he didn't really know Much about me.
- You look good.
I mean, the whole point is, Like, this is you in your natural state, right? - I'm a contradictory person.
So, if you say that you can't see me, Here I am.
Feel connected to me now, jerry? - Yeah.
- Feel like I'm giving it? - Ooh, big deal.
She's nude.
I am not surprised.
You know, you sell out to make the money.
- Ten minutes till we leave.
- I don't even know what I'm talking about.
Now that I'm sitting back and sort of really thinking About these postcards, I'm realizing They won't look good in the gallery.
Plan "b.
" So one day it'll be worth something.
- Right.
- Okay.
- In return, I'm gonna ask them to give me Their signature, and those are gonna be my pieces.
I am now changing my idea To selling my signature to the public, And then, in return, asking for their signature back That I will then exhibit in the gallery space tomorrow.
I have an announcement to make if anyone's okay Just with listening.
- What's going on? - I am selling my signature to the patron, And in exchange, I want their signature back.
I really feel like I should ask My peers for permission if I can use this idea, Because there's the gray area of whether or not Using people's signatures is considered performance art.
Is anyone here not okay with it? Just say, "yes," then I know I cannot use this idea.
- I'm not really okay with it.
- So - So does that mean That everyone is allowed to do things on the spot with people And then display it? - I wouldn't see why not.
I'm not surprised that lola has a problem With what I have planned.
She's a very competitive person, And she's looking out for herself.
- I guess so.
I feel like this whole thing Is so confusing, but I'm not really interested In sabotaging anyone.
I don't want anyone else to get special treatment Unless I get special treatment too.
Just do it.
Just do it.
- Do it? - Yeah, just do it.
I don't care.
I'm totally gonna use this to my advantage.
I see it as an opportunity to sell something personal And reveal something about me.
- Oh, my god.
This is a thong.
I did not realize.
Both: Aah! - We change into these semi-matching outfits With our designs on it.
I think it's a really good strategy To help us sell the most.
Do I have cellulite? - No.
- Right here, to catch people coming this way.
- Okay.
- I think if everyone who walks by wants to buy A customized t-shirt, plus they think, Like, lola's a sexy chick And they want a naked picture of her, Then we're in good shape.
- Get your t-shirts over here.
- [laughing.]
get a famous artist's signature over here.
- "I hate my mother's hair, "but I tell her I like it, Although probably not very convincingly.
" [laughing.]
I love that.
- I'm selling a photograph of myself in different sizes, And I'm also selling individualized secrets That I'm writing on my photographs.
$5, $10, $20.
The more money you pay, the more explicit the secrets get.
I don't really have set prices.
I prefer to just gauge How much I think someone might be willing to pay.
- How much is this? - This is $100.
- 100 bucks, huh? - I can sort of tell sometimes How much cash someone's got in their pocket.
If they've got a money clip full of hundreds, I'm gonna start with a much higher price.
- All right.
I'll give you $100 for it.
Is that a good negotiation? - That's a really good negotiation.
- [laughs.]
- I see that lola has a big spender, And I'm thinking in my mind, "we need to bring it.
" I think the ones we have up there came out the best In terms of the stenciling.
I'm feeling pretty confident about selling, Because I work for an art gallery, I've sold over $200,000 worth of art in the past two years.
You can hang them on the wall, You can wear them around the house.
You know, just make sure your blinds are pulled down.
- These would look great on me.
- For real? Young has definitely sold out today.
He is selling underwear With these cute little smiley faces spray-painted on them, While he's wearing super hoochie-mama shorts.
So I am wondering how this is gonna turn out To be a piece for the gallery space.
Is he gonna put this cute underwear up on the wall And call it high art-- like, really? That'll be $10.
We appreciate your support of our team.
- I am actually selling my signature In exchange for yours.
- These are true, right? Okay.
- Is this a cowboy saddle? - No.
It's a security camera.
- Thank you, and there's mine.
- I'm doing what I can to sell as many shirts as I can.
Kymia's piece is only selling for $5, And she's probably not accumulating As much money as I am.
I'm starting to feel the pressure for sure.
Help a brother out over here.
This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to buy A piece of art from a guy from arkansas in new york city.
- So you can get any kind of pattern that you want That I've got here on a t-shirt.
Do you want just the underneath, Or do you want the underneath and the nipples? This is not my usual style.
But you could kind of see it as a series of abstract images That might work in the gallery.
How much are you willing to buy it for? - Five cents.
- Oh, man.
I am not the greatest salesperson, But luckily lola knows How to communicate with the public.
- We can also sell hugs if you need those or You know, anything you want, really, Just tell me, and I can sell you.
- Got a naked picture over there.
That's playing dirty is what that is.
- Buy all my secrets.
- Coming up on work of art - I'm gonna head out for a second.
- Sarah k.
Is stealing everybody's customers.
It's not cool.
- You want to come to our booth first-- - No, no, no.
- Oh, my.
- The other teams are selling an array of things-- T-shirts, signatures, secrets, and feather headdresses.
Do you want this one? - Yeah.
- This one's a bit more innocent.
- I will take this one.
- Awesome.
So this one is $50.
- I think I'll take this one.
The big spender has come to our table.
My sales strategy is basically To just empty out his wallet.
Count this for me.
I'm really bad with my math.
- Okay.
- There could be $100 in there.
- We sell $220 worth of merchandise.
And I feel excited-- another part of me Is like, "oh, [bleep.]
, I have no more inventory.
" - If I give you a picture of my dog, Can you draw him? - Well, it won't be realistic.
So I thought to myself, "why don't I just make portraits on the street? That'll be a really quick, easy way to make money.
" - It's cute.
- Here's for the portraits.
- For those four? - Yeah, and this was for another one.
I'm really surprised at how popular The portraits are going.
There is this huge line of people.
It's nonstop.
I don't even have a chance to go to the bathroom.
- $10 portraits in the park today.
Cheap art over here.
- Hi, simon.
- Hello, kymia.
- Simon.
- So what are you doing? - Dusty's got some t-shirts going With these surveillance cameras on the United States of america.
- And what is the message? - That we're kind of all being watched wherever we go.
- How are you going to transform your work for the judges? - Well, I see this as being a road sign.
- Okay, and you think it's going to impress the judges.
- Hopefully it will.
- So where is your work? - Right here.
I'm selling my signature, simon, And when people come up, I sign something And give it to them for $5.
- Wow.
- Yeah.
You look really-- - And what are you going to do at the gallery? - I'm taking their signature in exchange, And I'm putting up this giant grid of the signatures I collected today.
They kind of look just like drawings, some of them, By themselves.
- And you think it's gonna be strong enough to stay In the competition? - I hope so! I don't know.
We didn't really have A lot of time to think about this.
- Well, listen, kymia, I hope for you That this will look okay and that you will manage to make A convincing presentation for the judges.
- Me too.
Simon tells me that he's worried about my idea all around.
- Thank you so much.
Hi, simon.
- Hey, young.
How are you doing? - We're doing very well, actually.
We're selling some t-shirts, some underwear, Drawings, and paintings.
That one is $75.
- The small format is how much? - Those are $30 each.
- Yes.
All right.
And your pants? - We're selling those For $7 each, and we've sold-- - What's the demand for those? We've sold about four of them so far.
Did you want to buy anything while you're here, simon? - Well, I think I can do without your pants, But I would definitely be very tempted To buy this one here.
- Okay.
- I think that's a great work.
It should be flying off the shelf.
- It should be.
- Well, good luck, young.
- All right.
Thanks, simon.
- And I'll see you tomorrow at the gallery.
- See you tomorrow at the gallery.
- Hey, sara, how are you doing? - Hi, simon.
Good.
How are you? - Would you rate yourself as a good saleswoman? - Definitely.
Young and I are wearing Our merchandise.
Did you see his outfit? - Whoa.
- We have our drawings here.
And then it says young and sara.
- Oh, my god.
It's getting better and better.
There seems to be A fairly unique way that you are doing art To connect with the public.
- It's so much fun.
I've done it before with just drawing, But never with watercolors.
But it's actually going really well.
- I don't want to interrupt.
You're a very patient young man Waiting for his masterwork to be delivered.
- I hope so.
- All the best.
- Thank you, simon.
Did you buy any artwork from anyone else yet? - No.
- Good.
- Hi, simon.
- Hey, lola.
How are you doing? - I'm fine.
Thanks.
Let me tell you, simon, I'm selling Individualized secrets.
You know, I write it specifically to each person.
Basically, you know, I'm just putting it all out there At this point.
- Clearly.
- What are the secrets On this one? - Well, basically, I've just kind of Admitted all these relatively horrible things About myself.
- You know, it's very difficult For me to focus on the text Because I'm a little sidetracked by the background.
The question is whether the judges would find it A little too obvious just to bare it all.
But you always are good for a surprise.
For the gallery show, Are you going to make a life-sized version of it? - Do you think that I should print it big for the show? - I think you should do it big.
- Do you like it? - I actually like it very much.
I think it's gorgeous and very attractive.
- Simon really likes what I've made, And for the first time, He just doesn't look at me quizzically With raised eyebrows.
- Hey, sarah, what did you decide to do? - So I've decided to do customizable t-shirts And these kind of paper feather headbands.
- And how are you doing sales-wise? - I'm actually doing pretty well.
I sold maybe five or six t-shirts, which is pretty good.
So what do you think? - I'm not kind of blown away by your idea.
- Okay.
- I hope that you will be able To do a version that impresses the judges.
- Mm-hmm.
- I wish you only the very, very best.
- Okay, thank you.
Thank you, simon.
All right.
Hi.
- Artists, good luck with your sales.
Sell, sell, sell! - Thanks, simon.
- Oh! - Oh, yeah.
- Thank you so much.
- I'm gonna head out for a second.
Simon said that my piece would not look good In the gallery, so I need To do everything in my power To make the most money, since the winning team Will both get 30 grand and not be eliminated.
- You want to come to our booth first since-- - No, no, no.
- Oh, my.
- I mean, what's better than a secret, right? - Dirty.
- Sarah k.
Has come Out of her element.
She's, like, stealing everybody's customers, And it's not cool.
Don't let 'em hustle you, now.
- Sarah looks like a crack addict.
- Change.
Whatever change you got.
There is no such thing as playing dirty.
This is not a respectable gallery show.
I think whoever's the better salesperson Is really gonna win.
- Don't buy anything From any of my competitors.
- $5 t-shirts.
- This isn't exactly how I had in mind proving I was A wonderful fine artist, you know? - $5! $5 t-shirts! - Put some clothes on, young.
I'll sell you a t-shirt.
- I'll buy a t-shirt if you guys buy a painting.
- Oh, come on! - Anywhere from, like, $50 to $100.
- He kind of looks a little pissed off.
[laughter.]
- that would make sense.
- He's serious.
I get a little worried Because lola is selling her big photographs For $100, but I also feel Young and I have done so well-- A lot better than I thought we would.
- That's cool.
- Yeah.
Really cool.
- You guys, we have ten more minutes! All of a sudden, there's this craziest rush Of people interested in buying dusty's t-shirts.
We might not be totally out of the running.
- There we go, man.
- Thank you so much.
- Trying to sell this sign, too, if you want that.
- Okay, the secret that I've got to tell you Is that The very last customer I had Was a three-year-old little girl.
I sold her a secret for 25 cents.
- [crying.]
- I told her a really good secret.
[girl screaming.]
- It's yours to enjoy.
So, at the end of the day, I'm really worried About how the pieces are going to translate in the gallery, 'cause we only have one hour to work in the studio.
I think we have at least $450 in sales.
- Really? - I think.
- That's pretty good.
- I think it's pretty good.
- So what do you have to re-create for yours? - Penises made out of feathers-- you know, the usual.
Our piece has to be pretty much The same as what we were actually selling on the street.
I'm remaking the stencils so that I can remake A couple of the paper crowns.
My plan is to make a female and a male figure On the wall based on my t-shirts.
I'm completely nervous, Because I was so focused on making the most money, And now that I'm making a slightly different version Of what I already have, I don't know If it will look good in the gallery.
What do you think of these boobs? Good? - They're pretty even, actually.
- Yeah, I know.
It's remarkable.
Way more even than mine.
- I'm basically gonna show one of my unsold paintings And I'm also creating paper versions of the underwear pieces That I sold in the park, because I'm not so sure How well the actual underwear will translate in the gallery.
This is the winner outfit.
- That's the outfit? - Whoever wins has to wear this.
- I am [bleep.]
because this is really stupid.
- You guys might have sold the most.
Then you'd be safe.
- I'm making fine-tuned adjustments to my road sign.
I don't think it's gonna be my best piece, But we'll see what happens.
It's been a very stressful day.
I have time to make a phone call to my wife, Kind of check in.
How you doing? - Hey, good.
- How's baby doing? - She's doing good, doing really good.
She got a new present today.
- [voice breaking.]
being a dad, she needs me to survive.
That makes me feel bad, because I'm here, And I'm not-- I'm not there To give her, you know, what she needs right now.
It's important for me to give my best effort.
As much as I want to see my daughter, I'm not ready to go home yet.
I love you too.
- Bye.
Good night.
- Good night.
Bye.
- So I have a grid of my signatures-- 15 of them and then 15 of their signatures Side by side.
My gallery piece was created today When I got the signatures in exchange For my signature.
The calligraphy of the signatures Is beautiful and visually interesting.
It might not have sold the most, But at least this piece is a piece of work That I could be proud of.
- We had amazing reactions From women that I was so not expecting.
I think my piece looks stronger than some other work That I see--certainly better than sarah and kymia's piece.
The first thing that I thought of when we got the challenge Was like, "tell every bad thing you can think of "in five minutes about yourself And show it all.
" I think I made the best piece, And I think it's gonna look really good in the gallery.
- Lola, I can see your ill-nana over there.
- Really? I wasn't aware of that.
That's shocking.
Tomorrow is gonna be huge.
There's a lot at stake for this gallery show.
Obviously, it's one step closer to the finale.
- Oh, what a crazy day.
- Coming up on work of art - What the hell is that thing? - Well, she must have made the most money.
- I wasn't happy with the one or two that I had available.
- I think I know why-- because it's awful.
- [sobbing.]
- Everyone's an emotional roller coaster.
- It's really intense here.
- It's up, it's down.
It's up, it's down.
- [sobbing.]
- ugh.
I'm just frustrated.
- I know.
It's really hard to be positive.
- One of them starts, and then it's a chain reaction.
[all crying.]
- It makes me a little soft-- big deal.
- You're a beautiful person, and I love you.
- Good evening, everyone.
All: Good evening.
- Please welcome back your judges-- Critic jerry saltz - Hi.
- Gallery owner bill powers - Hey, guys.
- And your guest judge this week Art advisor and curator jeanne greenberg rohatyn.
- Hi, jeanne.
I was in the bottom last time jeanne was our judge, So I'm kind of nervous to have her as a judge again.
- This week we asked you to create work That would sell to the public That you could also present in the gallery.
The team that earned the most amount of money From their sales will win $30,000 And cannot be eliminated tonight.
Let's open up the gallery and see how you did.
- Autographs by people on the street? - My piece is 100% the same as it was on the street As it is in the gallery.
I sold on the street, and you can see the remnants Of the people that bought the work.
I feel like it 110% Fits the criteria of this challenge.
- One of the most personal things That people do is sign their name.
- Sightseeing.
A mailbox and what else? I'm a little surprised that some people don't recognize The surveillance camera.
- What the hell is that thing? - Looks like a xerox.
- Like a printer cartridge or something.
- Maybe it was easier to see it on a t-shirt.
- People really need to know That there are people out there that are looking at you.
- Yeah.
- But he pulls you in right away.
- I went into this challenge with the strategy to sell, So my gallery show might not be The strongest in this competition.
Hopefully sara and I sold the most.
- It does look like this idea of the five-minute portrait.
- I definitely feel like people on the streets Really liked my portraits and watercolors.
It's not the best work I've ever made, But our booth was so popular at the park.
- Well, she must have made the most money.
- I feel really vulnerable, but I do believe In my piece, and I hope the judges See that I have a willingness to take risks.
- "will you stop being so gentle? It's making me nauseous.
" - It's like a thanksgiving playdate or something.
- Instead of hanging a t-shirt, I actually spray-paint the image Of a female figure on the wall And a male figure on the wall.
And I have a couple more of the headdresses.
- But I can't imagine you can charge anybody More than 25 cents for it.
- I'm curious to hear the totals.
- Yeah, me too.
- Thanks so much.
Nice to meet you too.
- Tonight we would like to speak to all of you In the crit.
Young and sara, let's start with your team.
- I basically had two different sets of things That I was selling to the public.
I had a series of these sort of ghost, Or spirit, drawings that were done with sharpie.
I bought a colorful range of men's underwear And stenciled these sort of super-cute faces onto them.
- Excuse me.
That's men's underwear? - It represents basically what I had at the park.
- I felt as if you were making something for us And something for the public.
Is this your assumption? That we're so limited That we can only see a painting as a work of art? - I agree that it would have been much more edgy To have actual underwear hanging on the wall.
- That was the challenge-- To be in public and then inside a gallery.
You stumbled right there.
- Young, your total sales yesterday were $129.
Thank you very much, young.
- Thank you.
- Sara jimenez, let's start your crit.
- I use ink and watercolor a lot, And I make pictures really, really quickly From my imagination or from life.
Most of the time, I was doing five-minute portraits.
I didn't have any time to do anything else.
It was really crazy.
- I think it was a great idea to include portraits, And I would have loved to have gotten one If I were in the park.
- I would have liked to have seen A whole wall of portraits.
- Yeah.
- I think that To go with a tried-and-true profession Of the street portrait is the right way to go.
- I imagine there was probably a voyeuristic quality, In that people huddle around and want to see The magic of how this thing is made.
- It was a lot of fun.
- Sara, you made $320.
- Wow.
[applause.]
- That means, young and sara, your team's total Is $449.
- Awesome.
- Not bad.
- Good job.
- You too.
- Dusty and kymia, let's move on to you.
- Good job.
- As you all know, I'm not from the city, right? So [laughter.]
- Really? [laughter.]
- I've been noticing these signs With the surveillance cameras everywhere.
It's kind of where I came up with this idea For this road-sign image that we're all being watched Wherever we go.
And I sold t-shirts with the image on the t-shirt.
- Sell many t-shirts? - I sold quite a few t-shirts-- probably around 20 or so.
- Did you sell any signs? - I didn't sell any signs.
- Why didn't they buy the sign? - I don't know why it didn't happen.
- I think I know why.
- Why's that? - Because it's awful.
- All right.
- Jeanne and I thought that was a toner cartridge.
If it's about surveillance culture And I can't tell if it's a camera or a toner cartridge, You have a big problem.
- Obviously.
- This work feels like it's very you, dusty.
You've used a map before, and you've also used An everyday object and brought it into the gallery.
- I realize it's not my most successful piece, And I knew I was treading water with the map situation.
- Dusty, you made $185 selling your t-shirts.
- Okay.
- Kymia, let's start your crit.
- I sold my signature for $5 a pop, But I asked for them to also give me Their signature in return.
I really wanted to move product, But also have a very meaningful thing For me to come out in the end with, For both on the street and in the gallery.
- That's really cool that what you sold Is what you're showing, And there's no disconnect - No, this is it.
- Between the product and the artwork.
- I also like this idea of you Peddling your own signature.
It's absurd, And that's where the art comes into it.
- Well, thank you, jeanne.
- I was left flat and let down Until - Oh.
- That all of our signatures Are incredibly personal things to us.
You did bring the art world To the streets, which we all love.
- Thank you, guys, very much.
- Kymia, you made a total of $96.
That brings your team total to $281.
- Sorry, dusty.
- Unfortunately, dusty and kymia, That means you are not the winning team, And both of you are up for elimination tonight.
- Okay.
- The final team we'd like To speak to is lola and sarah.
Sarah, we'll speak to you first.
Let's start your crit.
- One of the things that I was thinking about Was making little feather hats and things like that.
The other thing lola and I had talked about Was a little bit of, like, the sex sells kind of idea.
And so I custom-made t-shirts.
- People bought the t-shirts? - People bought the t-shirts.
- What we're seeing in the gallery may not be art, Because it comes off like a - Halloween costume.
- You guys were thinking, as a team, "let's do something where sex sells.
" And I just don't see - The sexiness of it.
- Well, I just don't see where you really developed That idea at all here.
- Yeah, I know.
- Sarah You made $95 selling your art to the public yesterday.
We have one crit left, and we don't know how much lola made.
So, lola, let's talk to you.
- Okay.
I sold these prints in various sizes And then I was selling, on the spot, secrets, Which turned out to be kind of the biggest seller.
- Lola, what I like about this Is you added these secrets, And they don't come off as cynical, shammy.
They actually came off as real.
- The nudity was what you attracted the public with, And then when they sat down with you, You gave them something even better.
- Unless you're doing something that's potentially embarrassing, You're not really pushing yourself as an artist, And to that degree, you have succeeded.
[laughing.]
- Lola, if you made more than $354, Your team will be the winner of this challenge And will win the $30,000 and cannot be eliminated tonight.
The total amount of money that you earned yesterday was $217.
That makes your total $312.
Congratulations, young and sara.
You will split $30,000, Furnished by bluecanvas magazine, And cannot be eliminated tonight.
- Thank you so much.
Sara and I didn't have The most provocative or challenging artwork, But we did what we could to win in terms of sales.
- Thank you.
- Young must be so happy that I picked him, Because I sold the most out of all the teams.
I'm ecstatic.
- If it had been about who made the best piece In the gallery, I think I would have won, So it's pretty frustrating.
Hooray for them.
That means that, lola, sarah, dusty, and kymia, One of you is going home.
You can all head up to the studio, And we will call you back shortly.
- Like, they came after me so hard.
- They hated mine as well, sarah.
I'm not in any safe boat over here.
- It's not about the sales anymore.
Now it's about the art.
We have two teams up for elimination, But even though lola and kymia were on losing teams, Only dusty and sarah failed with their art.
- Absolutely.
- I was really surprised by sarah.
She used construction paper, But there was no fun involved with it.
There was no play.
There was nothing extraordinary about it.
And that surprised me.
- She's spray-painting stencils, And yet, in the finished project that we see, There's no evidence of that.
And then it's got genitals And nothing happens with that idea.
- It was utterly disposable.
Dusty's sculpture and t-shirt Was a placeholder for a broader discussion Of surveillance in america.
- It just was kind of here's a map with a camera on it.
- He's depicting rather than bringing it to the next level.
- And then he falls back on using a map again.
And the thing just kind of ends up as signage.
- We've made our decision.
- Yeah.
- Let's bring them back in.
- The four of you are here because you failed To outsell your competition.
Two of you had works that failed in the gallery.
Lola, kymia You're safe.
We enjoyed your work.
Dusty, sarah The only rule in art is what works, And neither of your pieces did.
- Dusty, your ideas about surveillance in america Came off as simplistic and unexamined.
- Sarah, your take on gender roles Was barely worthy of a t-shirt, let alone a gallery wall, Because it was so safe and stereotypical.
- Dusty, sarah One of you will be leaving us tonight.
Dusty You're safe.
- [exhales deeply.]
- That means, sarah, your work of art didn't work for us.
It's time for you to go.
- Thank you, again, for this opportunity.
I really appreciate it.
- Thank you, sarah.
- I just cannot believe that I made such a horrible piece.
I'm really, really disappointed in myself.
It's tough.
[voice breaking.]
I really came here because my father Really encouraged me to take a chance.
Well, I really liked getting to know you guys so much.
And, you know, I, like, thank god I did.
Because, you know, by taking that chance, I got to have this amazing experience That is completely unique.
My father--I'm sure that he would have been proud of me.
- Next on work of art - You have train tickets here to go to - This challenge will determine which three artists Make it into the finale.
- At double elimination, my heart stops a little bit.
- I need to go find some people to talk to.
- Can I take a picture of you? - No, sorry.
- How would you feel about someone Making a portrait of you? - Oh, no, no.
No, no.
- The stakes are higher than ever.
- That's gonna suck worse than this.
- Dusty keeps going back and forth between ideas.
I don't think he's gonna make it.
- It's really brave, really bold.
- I don't know that I would get that this was a portrait.
- I'm throwing up inside.
- And I don't want to come off like a total bitch.
- Go to bravotv.
Com/work-of-art for info on how to own a print From your favorite artist.
- Matches, pretty matches.