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Hear ye, hear ye! Gather round for some of the world’s funniest and most relatable memes that will blow your medieval minds! These masterpieces will make you chuckle harder than the queen’s jester, and they might just bring you a greater appreciation for high art.

Allow us to introduce you pandas to the Official Medieval Reactions Instagram account. This brilliant page puts a modern spin on medieval paintings, giving them hilarious captions mentioning dating apps, first world problems, cell phones, internet etiquette and more. Shakespeare would likely be horrified by the writing on these images, but lucky for us, he’s not around to create a tragedy about how we’ve ruined the art of his time. 

Enjoy this list of paintings that you might find surprisingly relatable (as you sit there with your smartphone or laptop…), and be sure to upvote the memes you think belong in an art museum. Feel free to share in the comments which medieval pieces of art you’d like to use as a canvas to convey your modern day woes, and then if you’re interested in checking out a Bored Panda article featuring classical paintings with a similar spin on them, you can find that right here!

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    #2

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    Headless Roach
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    2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Yep, they've worked hard and built their position to be able to be the 'cats now'. What have YOU done?

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    #3

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    Paul C.
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    2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    For any of you just starting to read this thread "random username" would appear to have a bit of a bee in their bonnet about what is "Medieval", despite the fact it is clearly just a bit of fun.

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    The middle ages were definitely a different time, which we can clearly see reflected in their artwork. But even though we might not be able to relate to wielding swords, wearing fabulous dresses or having our villages pillaged, human nature stays the same, and some part of us can relate to the emotions experienced in these images. That’s why Official Medieval Reactions is so brilliant. It doesn’t matter what caused the people in these paintings to be upset, excited or scared, we can relate to the way they feel. And clearly, the Instagram page resonates with many people, as it has amassed over 140k followers.

    In fact, the trend of meme-ing medieval art has become so popular that Alicia Eler, a writer for HyperAllergic, even published an article earlier this year dissecting why exactly medieval art is so meme-able. She first notes that the original intention of these pieces was not comedy at all, but as times change, we tend to find many things from the past humorous. The outfits our parents wore to prom, even the outfits we wore in middle school ourselves, don’t quite hold up to fashion standards today. But at the time, we looked fabulous. It’s important to keep in mind that the world was just a different place back then, and we now view these pieces of art through a very different lens.      

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    #5

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    Flowers
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    2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Perfectly normal Krampus greeting card in Austria until attachment parenting came along...

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    #6

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    Aidan Pite
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    2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    'Excuse me that is MY load-bearing sense of humour, please do not meddle with it'

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    “There’s something about the surprise of the medieval,” Sonja Drimmer, a scholar of medieval European art, and associate professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, told HyperAllergic. “One of the conceptions about the European Middle Ages has to do with blind piety, prudishness, but when people see imagery that defies that, the disjunction leads to laughter.”

    Many of us believe we have much more contemporary views on topics such as sex, relationships, and gender equality today, but the people of the middle ages might not have been as conservative as we imagine them to be. There are plenty of memes on Official Medieval Reactions featuring nudity, violence, drinking, and even intimate acts. I wonder what their parties were like...

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    “I think there is something about Western medieval art that seems like a safe target … some of the memes — like the side-eye horse, if it were sub-Saharan Africa — you could imagine meme-ifying it, and then imagine it becoming deeply problematic very quickly,” Erik Inglis, professor of Medieval art history at Oberlin College, told HyperAllergic. “I think with the very white faces of Western medieval art, it seems innocent. We are pretty willing to condescend to the Middle Ages, [which is] not fraught as it is to condescend to other ages.” I can see how the white subjects in these photos can be linked to first world problems today because it seems very familiar to see wealthy, white individuals complaining about the woes of being rich and not having the world revolve around them. Although it wasn’t the initial intention with these pieces of art, it is fun to imagine these people as entitled, out of touch celebrities. 

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    #11

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    Headless Roach
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    2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I'd tell you to go to hell, but I live there and I don't want to see you every day.

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    Birgit M
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    2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I wish I could get away with only two flutes, a lute and a choir of three....

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    “Medieval imagery is so phone-friendly,” Cem A., an artist and curator who runs the popular art meme page @freeze_magazine, and curatorial assistant at Documenta 15, told HyperAllergic. “For me, its style is more simplified, representational, and cartoonish than our classical understanding of painting. Figures in these images usually have exaggerated (and therefore easier to grasp) relationships onto which you can build a meme. Its aesthetics works better on the compact screens of smartphones.” Also a great point; why draw up a cartoon or create a meme from scratch when you have two people in the frame already? Similar to how stock images make great meme bases, such as the famous distracted boyfriend photo meme and the man holding a cup of coffee while smiling meme, all it takes is a simple image with one or more people showing emotion, and you’ve got an excellent meme canvas.    

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    #14

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    Headless Roach
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    2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    *I'm suddenly very busy folding my laundry, sorry, can't possibly drop it right now*

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    Aside from how well it fits into many memes, medieval art is still important to us today. Many people love watching films and reading books set in fictional versions of these times, and if we want to have fantasy worlds that have even slightly realistic qualities, it’s important to actually understand those times. “We all know what brings students and museumgoers through our doors,” says Lisa Fagin Davis, executive director of the Medieval Academy of America, the world’s largest medieval studies advocate. “'Game of Thrones,' Lord of the Rings, 'Vikings,' Harry Potter, film, even 'Dungeons & Dragons' and pseudo-medieval video games all feed the flames of medieval fandom. It's our job to take that enthusiasm and direct it toward productive and fact-based pedagogy."

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    #17

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    Allison B
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    2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    @Random username why do you keep posting dates like that? Does it really matter?

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    Dani M
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    2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Random Username? not here? ok then - def. not medieval; prob. mid to late 19th century.

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    If you’re interested in learning more about medieval art, you might need to invest a decent amount of time into your studies. “One of the barriers to cultivating a passion for medieval art among modern viewers is that we are looking at objects that are deeply decontextualized,” says Nicole Meyers, curator of European painting and sculpture. “Whether fragments of architectural elements that originated in Gothic cathedrals or liturgical objects that have been isolated from the rich environments in which they would have been used and observed by medieval men and women.” It’s fun to spin these paintings into modern context, but it can be nice to understand the actual background of the images as well.

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    Let’s also take a moment to appreciate medieval art for what makes it so special, aside from its meme-ability. According to Art In Context, art from the dark ages spans such a long period of time that it can be broken down into several distinct periods and styles, including Early Christian Art, Byzantine art, Pre-Romanesque and Romanesque art, and Gothic art. Various regions in Europe also had their own unique artistic styles that overlapped in time period with the styles of other countries. Medieval art featured a variety of mediums, such as sculptures, illuminated manuscripts, mosaics, tapestries, metalworks, and stained glass. Some pieces even utilized precious metals, ivory carvings, enamel and embroidery, and these works were seen as more valuable than simple paintings and sculptures.   

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    As with any time period, the art of medieval times reflects the social structures and views held by the people in those times. Most of the art that emerged during the dark ages was religious in nature and featured Catholic subjects and themes. There were also many conflicts within society between the peasants and the upper classes who controlled their land. Art was also important to be able to convey messages, as many people could not read. Illuminated manuscripts became very important for this reason.    

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    We are very lucky to be able to see this art from our phone screens without any fear of plagues or imminent village pillaging; that safety allows us to find humor in these masterpieces from the middle ages. Keep upvoting the memes you find particularly relatable, and if you’ve thought of any more hilarious medieval reactions, feel free to share them down below! If you want to see even more of these images, you can follow Official Medieval Reactions on Instagram right here, and if you’d like to check out a Bored Panda article featuring similar memes, but of classical artwork, you can find that story right here

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    #28

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    Headless Roach
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    2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Are we missing a tiny vomit splash around here for a complete picture?

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    #45

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    Riley Quinn
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    2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Some of you are being extremely rude and petty by downvoting @random username. Comments don't deserve a downvote because you're annoyed. Chill out and move to the next comment.

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    #49

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    Potato Panda
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    2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    ALRIGHT PEOPLE. PLEASE stop downvoting @random username. They have said absolutely nothing wrong or offensive and there is no reason for them to have a bunch of downvotes. If you don't agree with the comment then just MOVE ON. Thank you.

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