In 1966, inventor, artist, and amateur psychologist Chazz Cromwell, created the first Art Thingy. Cromwell was tired of the conventional "art world". He didn’t like the prefabricated art that Vincent Price sold at Sears. He was considered too obtuse by the beatniks. And he didn’t understand why a silkscreen of a soup can was art. He wanted Art to be something personal to each individual. Who needs another sad-eye kid on their wall? Is a giant picture of W.C. Fields art? Do I really like that picture of the Blue Boy? Chazz wanted the art lover to participate in the art that they would be enjoying in their living room, den, or office. But how to individualize each piece?

While on a trip to the Santa Cruz beach board walk, Mr. Cromwell was struck by inspiration. The personality test! There was a carny charging people 25 cents to have their personality tested. Why not ask the art lover to answer some questions which would determine their personality and their artistic sensibilities.

Chazz developed a series of questions which defined the users artistic sensibilities. From the answers, his machine (The Art-Thingy Mark 1) crafted a unique piece of art based on the individuals "tastes".

Mr. Cromwell took his Art-Thingy traveling around the country. He stopped everywhere from the parking lot of the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art to the Fresno County Fair. Nothing was too hi-brow or too low-brow for The Art Thingy. He was even written up in many magazines including Playboy, Gentry, and Graphis. This went on for many years, until Chazz decided to retire the venture (his creation) in 1975.

In June of 2004, Chazz’s son Christopher Cromwell, stumbled upon the Art-Thingy while cleaning the senior Cromwell’s garage. He was fascinated. There were a few attempts to get the Art-Thingy Mark 1 up and operational again, but it proved too costly. So, Christopher took to the internet and The Art-Thingy Mark 2 was born.

He took many of the same questions that Chazz used in the original, added a few new ones, and rewrote some that were not up to date.

The value of this unique piece of art "meets or exceeds your purchase price."

Scientifically formulated

A piece or art only you can appreciate!