116 Of The Most Hilarious Classical Art Memes, As Shared On The ‘Trippin Through Time’ Online Group

by admin May 30, 2022

Art and history Pandas, you’re in for a treat today! Comedy lovers, get in here, too. We’re featuring some of the best new classical art and art history memes from the wildly popular r/trippinthroughtime subreddit.

Home to nearly 4.2 million art meme fans, the online community has shown that old artwork paired with modern captions can result in explosively hilarious combinations. Not to mention the spot-on social commentary you can do while proving that pretty much nothing has fundamentally changed over hundreds of years. We’re all plagued by the very same worries as our forefathers, and old paintings are full of incredibly expressive people who mirror our own feelings with eerie accuracy.

Upvote your fave art history memes and be sure to tell us which ones you loved the most and why, dear Pandas. You probably realized that we absolutely love art history memes. How much, you ask? Well, we’ve got three previous articles about r/trippinthroughtime waiting for you when you’re done enjoying this newest list: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. Unlike most galleries, Bored Panda encourages running and loud laughter.

#1 History Be Interesting

Image credits: insolent_swine

#2 The Eternal Struggle Rages On

Image credits: meme_stealing_bandit

#3 A Tenacious Fight

Image credits: insolent_swine

The r/trippinthroughtime subreddit has been capturing the imaginations of redditors far and wide since the late summer of 2013. In the years since, it’s become a major congregation point for everyone who likes to have a good chuckle and has a certain soft spot for paint, old books, and a dash of sociology.

You can tell that the sub loves to have fun from its description of itself alone. “In historic art pieces depicting multiple humans, there is a law that at least one of those humans will look like they have no clue how or why they got there. It's like Where's Waldo, except instead of looking for Waldo you're looking for the dude that looks like he just dropped acid.” See? We told you.

#4 Respect For The Hustle

Image credits: killHACKS

#5 Yes

Image credits: esberat

#6 Small Island Held By 13 Ukrainians Told A Russian Warship To Go F**k Itself After The Warship Told Them To Surrender

Image credits: MyNameGifOreilly

The moderators who keep the subreddit’s ship sailing smoothly recommend that the folks posting memes should also add the era, mention the historical event, and give a general indication of what the source of the painting is.

That way, anyone who’s been awed by the beauty of the art itself can Google their way into more knowledge. What’s more, anyone who’s interested in the historical background can do their own research far easier than if everyone keeps the sources secret.

#7 True Story

Image credits: Planet0259-S

#8 There Was Some Artistic License Used

Image credits: Scaulbylausis

#9 And For The Record I Totally Get It

Image credits: 42words

Shelby Bercume, a former Florida art gallery director and an expert in all things art, previously explained to Bored Panda that, in her opinion, accessibility and a more empathetic approach are vital when it comes to getting more people interested. Many people find art history “intimidating and difficult to grasp” because it’s not a subject that’s often taught in schools.

#10 I Am Never Getting Another For You

Image credits: killHACKS

#11 Nobody Likes You

Image credits: killHACKS

#12 How Long Is This Book Anyway?!

Image credits: insolent_swine

"I don’t necessarily think art history is an inaccessible entity, but I know that people tend to feel intimidated by things they aren’t experts in. Since art is often, if not always subjective, it feels even more intimidating than a subject with a 'right answer,' like math for example. I think often that leads to a disconnect between the desire to dive into the subject of art and by relation art history, and the execution of it,” the art expert told Bored Panda during an interview.

#13 Good Thing There’s No Fly In It

Image credits: insolent_swine

#14 Barrels Of Fashion

Image credits: Scaulbylausis

#15 Every Got' Dang Time!

Image credits: Hybrid-Moment

Art should be as democratic as possible, the expert shared. It shouldn’t be exclusionary. Everyone should have access to it, no matter their education. No matter their background.

“Art is something to be enjoyed and shouldn’t be reserved for an exclusive group," the former gallery director said.

#16 Sayeth Thou The Words, With Thine Own Lips

Image credits: insolent_swine

#17 Damn Girl

Image credits: killHACKS

#18 Pain

Image credits: Sp00n18

"Art is aesthetics and feelings. If you love something, voice why you love it... if you can’t find the words, that’s ok! Talking about art is really discussing how the art affects your emotional state and what thoughts it provokes," the expert told us.

#19 Who?!

Image credits: insolent_swine

#20 Headaches

Image credits: dulce_3t_decorum_3st

#21 Not Again

Image credits: killHACKS

"And remember, it is ok to not love everything, believe it or not, certain artworks are meant to be disturbing or disliked. Just don’t be intimidated to speak up because that’s really all we’re doing when we talk about art. We’re voicing opinions."

#22 It's A Tight Fit

Image credits: PaleBlueMeanie

#23 Me: I Hope This Email Didn't Find Me At All

Image credits: esberat

#24 Relatable

Image credits: B-L-O-C-K-S

Meanwhile, art historian and educational content creator Mary McGillivray explained to Bored Panda that it’s often people’s own perceptions about art and art history that stop them from learning more about both. In other words, if we think the areas are too high-brow for us, we won’t attempt to delve deeper. Even though the reality might be different.

#25 Cat Ears?

Image credits: B-L-O-C-K-S

#26 Damn Thats Crazy

Image credits: B-L-O-C-K-S

#27 Think Twice Before You Definitely Decide For Parenthood

Image credits: esberat

“A lot of people think that art history is very serious and very important and this leads to them feeling overwhelmed—or even feeling like art history isn't for them. This isn't true! I've said it before and I'll say it again, art history is just old memes. Once we start to see the humor and the humanity in art, it becomes far less intimidating,” Mary said.