This book is a cute idea but the execution does not always work. For one thing the book and pictures should be bigger. Not every picture worked either. Some are detailed, some are humorous and others just fell flat. Overall this is a nice book to flip through and enjoy the creative inspiration.

These images are one of the wonderful that has come of the pandemic. I remember scrolling past similar images (and probably a few of these ones) on Instagram back in the spring. I am in awe by the amount of creativity and effort that went into some of these images (seriously someone made a depiction of Hieronymus Bosch’s “The Garden of Earthly Delights” out of objects from their house). The most striking image for me was the full page Black woman’s portrait recreating of “Girl with a Pearl Earring.” A few images reflected the pandemic itself, such as using toilet paper to recreate ruffled collars of the 16th and 17th centuries or a social distanced with masks and gloves “Creation of Adam.” Some of the images were just fun i.e. putting pipe cleaner antlers on a guinea pig and calling it “Monarch of the Glen.” My only issue with the book was that it credited the original artist on the page with the artwork but the people who were recreating the art were only credited in the Index. It seems odd to me that where the subject of the book was the recreated images that those artists were not given the same respect as the original artist. Overall the book was fun to look through. I don’t know that it is something I would purchase but I definitely would check it out at the library.

Thank you to NetGalley and Getty Publications for the temporary digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

Off the Walls is an engaging and well curated collection of quarantine-inspired recreations of iconic artworks. Released 22nd Sept 2020 by Getty Publications, it's 144 pages and available in paperback and ebook formats.

I'm a healthcare worker, so I was never in full lockdown mode - I had to go to work every day more or less like I had been for years. It made a deep impression on me though, especially those first months, seeing the deserted streets, no families and visitors in the hospital where I work, schools closed, universities and research facilities closed down. It was (and is) rather eerie. I know my friends and family struggled with the "new normal" every day. There have been a few positive benefits though. Almost everyone I know has picked up new skills, practiced more music, improved their chess game, started gardens, home improvements, and all the things which go along with staying home.

I was blown away by so much of the creativity, humor, inventiveness, fun, whimsy, and *awesomeness* documented here. Many of the world's museums and collections provided remote access to their collections, and Getty was among the benefactors to do so. The challenge came soon after: recreate iconic artworks with items from which the participants had access. This volume is curated from the responses sent in by readers/instagrammers.

The images are arranged roughly thematically: home/interiors, still life, portraiture, animals, food, dramatic works, children. Each of the works is placed in proximity to the original (credited) work with artist's name, title, and date. Some of them are really eerily similar, some are (very) tongue-in-cheek, some hilarious, touching, melancholy, and beautiful in their own right.

I really found myself smiling and impressed by the creativity. It was a struggle not to race ahead and look at them all immediately. This would make a superlative coffee table book (although, be warned, the print version is tiny), library book, or gift for an art enthusiast still in lockdown. Beautifully, mostly respectfully rendered. Bring a sense of fun to the quarantine party.

Five stars. This is a timely, if ephemeral, volume.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

This book was received as an ARC from Getty Publications in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

These pictures inspired by iconic paintings all over the world was such a brilliant idea to spread joy across the country to bring hope in surviving the pandemic. A lot of the pictures displayed throughout the book were such a joy to look at and a few I got inspired myself to recreate with my family and staff. The getty images do brilliant work and the proceeds of the book will go to the Artistic Relief is an even better reason to add this title to our library. We have some inspiring artists and this book will give them hope and get them more exciting to continue down their path. Plus artist or not, I think all of our community will find happiness and joy in this book too.

We will consider adding this title to our Arts & Photography collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

What a brilliant book! It is very entertaining to see the way that renowned works of art have been reinterpreted. This looks like it was a lot of fun, as well as hard work, for the artists. A great collection of art recreated. It made me smile. Thank you to Sarah Waldorf, Annelisa Stephan, Net Galley and Getty Publications for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Okay, I loved this book. Of course its very amusing, but more than anything I was surprised at how inspiring it felt. So many people, trapped in quarantine, using only the things they have and their imagination to recreate magnificent works of art! I was so impressed by it. It'll be my gift book pick this year.

I'm not sure this is the type of content that necessarily belongs to a book. It's a nice thing for social media because it involves people all around the world into the art world, but it's a long path from this kind of activity to a published book. I also had a problem with the photo attribution because the people who recreated the artworks only appeared at the end of the book in a list with the location of their photo. I think this could have been done better.
It was also disappointing to only have a short introductory text, so basically it was a picture book... Again, great initiative during the pandemic for social media, but I expect something different from a book.

This is a creative and funny book. First of all its collection of great artworks is a treat for the reader.
It has creative and funny recreation of significant and iconic artworks of past.
It has lots of pictures of artwork and accompanying recreation alongside it.
I liked the idea and creativity. One also tends to think that human brain can match and relate widely exoticly different signals. Pictures have totally different stuff and characters but somehow they appear to have same theme.
A very entertaining and eyesoothing work.

I like the idea of this book and the creative process of the pictures. I don't like how this book is put together. I found it a mess, everything is out of line, like this was a rush job and nobody cared what the outcome would look like. It is a shame, it could have been so much more.

Off the Walls was a fun book to go through, as many were creative in their interpretation of the artworks. If you like coffeetable books about art, this book is for you.

What a brilliant book ! I got so much enjoyment from browsing the pages and seeing all the famous art recreations. Some funny, some inspiring, and some so clever and resourceful. Along with the fun aspect and the fundraising, it has another huge benefit: it encourages people to study and really look at famous works of art in a clever and fun way. It may help entice people into the art world using fun, curiosity, and hands on observation. Brilliant book all round.

Delightful book! Not only did this contain the fun recreations of fine art, but it also had references to pandemic life. Still life with thermometer and NY Times crossword puzzle. Art including toilet paper elements.

You could probably find all of these images with an Instagram search, so this book isn’t for everyone. But if you like coffee table books, this is a fun one.

Ahahahahah!

Loved this book of famous paintings coupled with photographs of people imitating them. Well done, and hilarious to boot!

This fun art book wouldn't have happened if not for COVID-19. Getty Publications wanted to see how art would be "a tonic for people through these uncertain times," so they put out a challenge: recreate your favorite art piece using materials from around your house.

There are seven different sections of art:
—Home, Sweet Home, which features portraits of people in and around their house.
—Life Holds Still, which features paintings of scenes and objects without people.
—Strike a Pose, which features people in different poses.
—Creature Comfort, which features pictures of animals or recreations using animals.
—Culinary Arts, which features pictures of food or recreations of art using food.
—High Drama, which is an eclectic section with some abstract art, some famous art, and dramatic reinterpretations of them all.
—Child’s Play, which features art recreations using children or children's toys.

I loved seeing a wide variety of art in this book. We see recreations of some of the most famous paintings, but we also see recreations of many lesser-known paintings, some I had never even heard of before. Some recreations were more faithful than others. Some were very detailed and serious, while others were simplistic and humorous. Some even incorporated the spirit of quarantine in there, communicating how all of us have felt these past few months. It was interesting to see how people around the world interpreted different artworks and what focal points they chose to make stand out.

My personal favorite piece of art in this book was a recreation of Van Gogh's The Starry Night using spaghetti. So creative. I also really enjoyed the COVID reinterpretation of Michaelangelo Buonarroti's The Creation of Adam.

One issue I had with this book was that the original artwork was not always presented first. On some pages, the original artwork would be printed after the recreation, and I found this confusing at times because I kept expecting the original to be first and then I was taken aback when it wasn't. Just something to be mindful of when you read the book.

This exciting art book, created while everyone has been in quarantine, can remind us all that even when we’re faced with uncertain times and stress in our lives, we are still able to create happy moments at home and find joy and peace in art. I recommend Off the Walls for anyone who even remotely appreciates art and creativity, or for anyone who simply needs to enjoy a happy and relaxing afternoon.

A fun coffee table book or even to show friends in general. I loved seeing creative things people came up with to reinvent or add to the famous artwork pieces. I found myself smiling at some and thinking deeper at others. I felt it was a fun look at them and some of the art pieces made me want to look them up to learn more about them. This a great way to introduce people to famous art if they do not know much about it. If you are already an art fan it may give you a little giggle. This was an interesting challenge and it looks like the people who responded did a good job. My favorite two are "the two girls at the window" and "the girl with the pearl earring".

I curse my own laziness for not participating in this challenge when I heard about it. The inspiration was immediate... Our schipperke and I would behead my husband following Artemisia Gentileschi's Judith Slaying Holofernes. It was the start of lock down and to distract from the pandemic we were seeing article after article on how 'all marriages will crumble after time served'...
But then the logistics piled up - how could I do justice to the blood shooting everywhere? Would I use knife in place of the sword (because, yeah, that actually seems like a terrible idea by human neck)? How would I position the dog as the maidservant when he is only 2 feet tall and nearly impossible to photograph in the dark (all black fur). Also, how do we take the photo with only our phones and on and on and on... and I am just so happy that these mundane nit picky concerns did not stop the wonderful people of the internet from doing their own as I did not. (shout out especially to those folks who did tackle Judith - y'all are my heroes.)

There are these moments of historical anachronism - the Decadent Young Woman's book is now a Game Boy. Saint Paul is now a leather skirted lady boss. Van Gogh's chair has a mask and purell on it - in so many of the photos that just catch you and they are wonderfully jarring and inventive, entertaining, subversive? I suppose that is up to the viewer as it is in in all art. But, those are definitely some of my favorite moments.

I'm glad Getty is capturing this in hardcopy and keeping it from disappearing into the short term memory of the internet. This will be one artifact of 2020 that we won't mind hanging on to. And, I'm especially glad that the proceeds of this are going to a cause, not a corporate interest.

My thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

The crazy Museum Internet challenge that has been our secret Pinterest addiction. It will make you look at fine at in a hole new way. Sometimes creepy, bad, gross and beautiful.

A welcome fundraising effort by the Getty this, for it's the book version of the meme they created at the start of the coronasniffles lockdowns, whereby everyone tried their best to mimic famous artworks using found objects around the home. Some of the results are a little too simplistic, or just in drag, or just too weird, but when they're good they're very good. "American Gothic" comes with the expected fork, but the couple are decorated spatulas. Van Gogh's "Starry Night" is/was edible, and we get a very good double for him later on in the book (and I don't mean the dog). Anybody who fails to laugh at this version of "The Monarch of the Glen" needs putting down, for they're halfway there. Not many of them gain anything from just shoving a facemask on, but "The Creation of Adam" from the Sistine ceiling is certainly a standout with its look at how even God needed to allow for social distancing. A highly amusing browse, it's no keeper for everyone, but it is in a good cause for American creatives' funds. A strong four stars – made out of whatever you like.