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Miguel Cornejo
Mr. Watson
Is It Art?
12 October 2015
The term art the making of such artwork is viewed by the human eyes and resemble the
creation of something astonishing. We then argue what qualifies to be art and what does not.
Easily some creations are more compelling than others when we lay our eyes on several artwork.
Well in my point of view in order for a creation by an artist to be considered as art, the art must
be resemble of the real world, the image or object must be express some sort of knowledge, and
if the art is displayed in a museum then yes it is considered art.
The Corporate Kiss by Llyn Foulkes (b.1934 in Yakima, Washington) created in 2001, a
retrospective exhibition of Foulkess art newly opened at the UCLA Hammer Museum. In the art,
a self-portrait depicts Lyn Foulkess nemesis, a Mickey Mouse, stands on the mans shoulder and
plants a kiss onto the cheek. The painting was constructed with oil, acrylic and mixed media on
panel. At first, one may only see a man and a popular cartoon character when viewing the image,
however; one may not realize the essence of the Mickey Mouse character.
According to Plato he would argue The Corporate Kiss is considered art due to the fact he
believe artifacts like sculptures, paintings, pottery, and architecture, and art being an Imitation
and form of Beauty (Freeland). The relations between Platos believes of art being mere
imitations of things in our world, the art by Llyn Foulkes has taken on the corruption of the
American Culture. Since art was a way for artists to address social and political issues, clearly
Foulkes use of Mickey Mouse in this painting was a way for him to voice his opinion on the
negative ways cartoons affected the American youth. Foulkes developed a lifelong skepticism

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and distrust towards the Disney corporation. He concluded Disney was attempting to brainwash
his children, so he took it personally to connect the relations between his children to children in
America. Clearly, Foulkes had source of an education message in his creation.
One may question, well what was the purpose of Foulkess creation like The Corporate
Kiss? Well according to John Dewey he would argue with his theory of art that every experience
begins as in impulsion and something can be a source of knowledge. Understanding art was like
trying to understand another person. Art requires knowledge and context in order to full filly
understand its meaning (Leddy). Well Foulkes expressive intentions for his creation was an
expressive quality he felt the negativity of a corporation like Disney was directed towards
children in America. The face expression he presented in his art The Corporate Kiss necessarily
expresses his emotion. Not only did the Mickey Mouse (Disney) actions made Foulkes feel
uncomfortable, but since the early sixties he has taken the corruption of American culture as a
personal burden. At first one may view Foulkes expression in the art, but one must go deeper and
truly understand the context of his message in this creation.
Furthermore, where can people go visit and look at fascinating artwork? Well the answer
is simple, in museums. If art is displayed at a museum then it is art. According to Arthur Danto
prompted towards George Dickies institutional theory of art some artwork can be considered
art if it is presented in museums. However, nothing is artwork without an interpretation of a
meaning. Clearly The Corporate Kiss is held at the UCLA Hammer Museum. Danto argued an
artist creates something that an audience can grasp on even if a specific art is not extraordinary in
the eyes of a human being. The artwork is a self-portrait of himself and a Mickey Mouse
character. So what? Not only is this artwork the symbolization of something that is corrupted, but

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for an audience to understand the context meaning of this painting which is presented in a
museum.
Overall, The Corporate Kiss created by Llyn Foulkes has the components of being an
imitation of something in the real world. The use of a Mickey Mouse and a self-portrait were two
representations that dealt with the corruption of Disney and himself in order to voice his opinion.
Also, at first glance his artwork seemed nothing else than two objects in a portrait, but one must
have understand the context of what the man felt based on his face expression and the relations
with the Mickey Mouse character. Lastly, a simple self-portrait of Llyn Foulkes is considered art
knowing it is in a museum which is the first component, but one must also identify the meanings
that lay behind the creation in order to fully understand the importance of this artwork. Since this
artwork follows the ideas of three theorists: Plato, John Dewey, and Arthur Plato which then
leads me to believe The Corporate Kiss by Llyn Foulkes is art.

Works Cited
Freeland, Cynthia A. But Is It Art: An Introduction to Art Theory. Oxford: Oxford University
Press, 2001. Print. 09 October 2015.

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Leddy, Tom, "Dewey's Aesthetics", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2015
Edition), Edward N. Zalta, 2015. 9 October 2015.