I've been thinking a lot about this prompt which is why I didn't do it right away. Now maybe that's cheating on the whole concept of my blog, but oh well, I make the rules anyways so I guess I get to decide when I break them.
As many know, Hitler, at one point in his life, wanted to be an artist, but couldn't make it as one (I can't remember if he got rejected from art school or was kicked out to be honest). So it seems pretty logical to wonder, what would have happened if this part of his life was different?
The answer that in many ways in the most pleasant to say is that the horrific atrocities that he spearheaded would not have happened. There would be no concentration camps, no gas chambers, no yellow stars. Millions would have lived to have families and pass on their religion and culture. And then, on a smaller scale, perhaps paintings of Hitler's would hang in art museums and be discussed by art critics. While this wouldn't end all of the world's problems by a long shot, it does seem like there would be a certain amount of additional peace in the world.
Sadly, I don't think the answer is that simple. While, yes, Hitler was the leader of the crimes against humanity, he was far from alone. Who's to say that someone else would not have been the leader? Who's to say that Hitler, the successful artist, would not have then joined in that person's ranks? He may even have just become one of the artists producing propaganda that would be used so cruelly. Or perhaps he would not have gotten involved at all, but the atrocities, in some form or another, would still have happened. The world could be little different, except that the name we all know as an example of evil among us would not be Hitler.
Perhaps an inflated ego regarding his art would have propelled him more into wanting a rise to power. After all, he could believe he was even more talented and brilliant in this alternate reality than in the one where he failed as an artist. In this universe, I imagine his work still ending up in museums. But not in art ones where people judge the work purely for its vision, but in crime ones or history ones where it is heavily contextualized. After all, the work of serial killer John Wayne Gacy is highly prized among some people and does hang in some museums. Hitler killed far many more people than Gacy and I believe that if there is a market for serial killer art, surely there would be a market for murderous dictator art. There would also certainly be a market among the nazis who still exist. Hitler and his crimes are still revered by some, as terrible as that is, and I bet they would pay top dollar for an original Hitler.
I guess what I'm getting at is that it's hard to know how one thing will change history. Yes, maybe Hitler being a successful artist would have changed history for the better, but perhaps it would not have changed the big picture at all and there's even a possibility that it could have been worse. Who truly knows? Until we can mess with the timeline, I suppose no one does.
(Prompt by Maria Nicolaisen)
Image from Crime Museum
As many know, Hitler, at one point in his life, wanted to be an artist, but couldn't make it as one (I can't remember if he got rejected from art school or was kicked out to be honest). So it seems pretty logical to wonder, what would have happened if this part of his life was different?
The answer that in many ways in the most pleasant to say is that the horrific atrocities that he spearheaded would not have happened. There would be no concentration camps, no gas chambers, no yellow stars. Millions would have lived to have families and pass on their religion and culture. And then, on a smaller scale, perhaps paintings of Hitler's would hang in art museums and be discussed by art critics. While this wouldn't end all of the world's problems by a long shot, it does seem like there would be a certain amount of additional peace in the world.
Sadly, I don't think the answer is that simple. While, yes, Hitler was the leader of the crimes against humanity, he was far from alone. Who's to say that someone else would not have been the leader? Who's to say that Hitler, the successful artist, would not have then joined in that person's ranks? He may even have just become one of the artists producing propaganda that would be used so cruelly. Or perhaps he would not have gotten involved at all, but the atrocities, in some form or another, would still have happened. The world could be little different, except that the name we all know as an example of evil among us would not be Hitler.
Perhaps an inflated ego regarding his art would have propelled him more into wanting a rise to power. After all, he could believe he was even more talented and brilliant in this alternate reality than in the one where he failed as an artist. In this universe, I imagine his work still ending up in museums. But not in art ones where people judge the work purely for its vision, but in crime ones or history ones where it is heavily contextualized. After all, the work of serial killer John Wayne Gacy is highly prized among some people and does hang in some museums. Hitler killed far many more people than Gacy and I believe that if there is a market for serial killer art, surely there would be a market for murderous dictator art. There would also certainly be a market among the nazis who still exist. Hitler and his crimes are still revered by some, as terrible as that is, and I bet they would pay top dollar for an original Hitler.
I guess what I'm getting at is that it's hard to know how one thing will change history. Yes, maybe Hitler being a successful artist would have changed history for the better, but perhaps it would not have changed the big picture at all and there's even a possibility that it could have been worse. Who truly knows? Until we can mess with the timeline, I suppose no one does.
(Prompt by Maria Nicolaisen)
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