Art Lovers Are Going Bananas Over Capuchin Monkey's Paintings

While appreciation of art is subjective as a whole, that of abstract art is even more so. What appears to be a useless bunch of squiggly lines to some, may be worth hundreds or even millions of dollars to others. That certainly seems to be the case with emerging artist Pockets Warhol, and the fact that he is not a human, but a Capuchin monkey does not seem to have fazed his fans.

Named after the famous painter Andy Warhol because of his unruly white hair, Pockets Warhol's artistic prowess was discovered quite accidentally. In an attempt to keep the 18-year old monkey occupied, Charmaine Quin, a volunteer at Story Book Farm, a private sanctuary for monkeys in Sunderland, Ontario, gave him a white canvas and some non-toxic finger paints.

To her surprise, using his fingers, toes, tail and even butt, the monkey created a masterpiece! And, there has been no looking back since. The monkey, whose talent is being compared to masters like Jackson Pollock and Joan Mitchell, has been selling his paintings for, as much as, $400 USD each. In fact, Pockets Warhol has become so popular that he is now holding his first exhibition featuring 40 original works at Sadie's Diner and Juice Bar in Toronto.

The primate's fame and money raising ability comes at an opportune time for Story Book Farm that is home to 24 rescued monkeys. That's because the sanctuary has outgrown its current space and needs to build new structures to accommodate the animals. We sure hope the exhibition is a success and that this talented Capuchin monkey can help raise some of the $100,000 USD the center needs, to complete the re-building project.

Resources: Huffingtonpost.com, dailymail.co.uk