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Altered Thrift Art

Online I came across a photo of one of those cheap-o crap prints from the 60’s and 70’s that you always see undusted in thrift stores. The kind that features a drab landscape or a couple of tots picking daisies. Something like that, you’ve seen them before.

In this tree filled valley with mountain view and ‘picturesque’ cabin, there is an unusual addition. An AT-AT, from Star Wars, making its way from the forest.

It hooked me immediately!

ATST at a Fox Hunt

It’s a thing. There are slews of thrift store paintings bought for pennies and altered to include Star Wars characters. Or monsters; monsters are popular subjects. I’m not even a huge fan of ‘monsters’ exactly but add one to a crummy painting and it is an instant interest.

T-rex at picnic

This painting of two daisy-chaining children is infinitely better with the charging Tyrannosaurus Rex. I chuckle every time I see it. The dinosaur looks so hungry, and those kids are just so ‘ho-hum’.

I am forced to wonder what the heck might be going on in their little heads. They see this thing coming at them and make no move towards safety.

The meaning of the painting, once so crappy and boring has been completely changed.

It looks way better this way!

The Sleeping Beauty with Aliens

This thrift store painting isn’t ‘crappy’. In fact, it is the famous “The Sleeping Beauty” by Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones; which I love.

Look at the face of the recumbent ‘sleeper’.

That is simultaneously hilarious aaaaaaand a little creepy, in a fun way.

See it?

It completely changes the meaning of the painting, doesn’t it? Kudos goes to Megan Stringfellow for coming up with it (her husband loves the Alien franchise).

A woman in the garden with the Tardis

She also did this fun image. Adding the TARDIS, which works for me so well. Not only because the TARDIS could belong in that timeframe, but it’s just painted in there so nicely.

It’s like it belongs in the painting!

And the addition of K9 is so cute!

He looks like a lil’ lap dog, I almost didn’t notice that he was not from the original painting. Suh-weet.

Tigger and Pooh

I’m including this last one, painted by Robert Brandenburg, for my husband and my son.

They have both just discovered the joy of Winnie the Pooh. It is nice for them but annoying for me. This is why I find this ‘Tigger and Pooh’ painting so cathartic.

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