Bear Surprise (often dubbed just Surprise!) is a watercolor painting by American painter/musician John Lurie, the style of which has been described as primitivist and naïve. [1] The painting depicts a couple having sex in a meadow, with a bear standing in front of them, with forepaws in a distinctive position. There is a speech bubble beside the head of the bear, which reads "Surprise!".
The painting features in a popular internet meme in Russian online culture. It has been described by Victor Sonkin in The Moscow Times as having "gained vast popularity with the speed of an avalanche". [1] Its popularity in Runet led to the bear's speech bubble being changed from "Surprise" to " Preved", misspelling of the Russian word privet ("hello" or "hi"). The title eventually became known as Preved Medved (translation "Hello Bear"). [2]
References
- ^ a b Sonkin, Victor (2006-05-12). "The "preved" phenomenon". The Moscow Times. Retrieved 2013-01-25.
- ^ Khrestin, Igor (2007-03-19). "From Russia, With Bear". The American. Archived from the original on 5 July 2008. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
External links
Bear Surprise (often dubbed just Surprise!) is a watercolor painting by American painter/musician John Lurie, the style of which has been described as primitivist and naïve. [1] The painting depicts a couple having sex in a meadow, with a bear standing in front of them, with forepaws in a distinctive position. There is a speech bubble beside the head of the bear, which reads "Surprise!".
The painting features in a popular internet meme in Russian online culture. It has been described by Victor Sonkin in The Moscow Times as having "gained vast popularity with the speed of an avalanche". [1] Its popularity in Runet led to the bear's speech bubble being changed from "Surprise" to " Preved", misspelling of the Russian word privet ("hello" or "hi"). The title eventually became known as Preved Medved (translation "Hello Bear"). [2]
References
- ^ a b Sonkin, Victor (2006-05-12). "The "preved" phenomenon". The Moscow Times. Retrieved 2013-01-25.
- ^ Khrestin, Igor (2007-03-19). "From Russia, With Bear". The American. Archived from the original on 5 July 2008. Retrieved 2008-07-08.