Review of My Kid Could Paint That (2007) by Cli O — 12 Dec 2008

A great documentary which probes into the modern art world in order to ask "Couldn't a child paint that?" I loved how the film was left open-ended so that you could decide for yourself whether or not the child really was the mastermind behind the artworks.

Personally, I was left with a feeling that the little girl did not create the paintings, or was at least heavily guided by her father. A scene in which the girl (Marla) is shown painting a relatively craptastic piece of "art" in her backyard in front of the cameras really casts a HUGE shadow of doubt.

Some of her cute little gibberish talk to the cameramen and her parents also suggests she isn't really the one doing the paintings. But in the end, it's not the child people are truly worried about, it's more of the slap in the face this causes to those in the art world (artists and collectors alike).

For if I child is really just scribbling these artworks together with her parents help, doesn't this cast the whole modern art world in a bad light? It's also interesting to see how Marla is marketed.

.. because in reality, it's not the paintings that are creating a stir, it's the fact that SHE, a 4 year old girl with no notions of art whatsoever, paints these works. And I think that is what fetches the big money in the end.