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The rectangular cows of Art UK (2018)

(artuk.org)
151 points onychomys | 1 comments | 21 Nov 24 13:12 UTC | HN request time: 0.207s | source
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jdietrich ◴[21 Nov 24 14:17 UTC] No.42204522[source]▶
The shape of the cows is exaggerated, but not by much - many breeds of cow are just incredibly rectangular in profile.

https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5475e650e4b0df...

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Mistletoe ◴[21 Nov 24 15:18 UTC] No.42205121[source]▶
And the beef cattle industry ideal shape has evolved over time as well. In the past that rectangle with short stubby legs was what they wanted.

https://onpasture.com/2016/07/04/from-big-to-small-to-big-to...

All 3 parts of this are fascinating.

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shermantanktop ◴[21 Nov 24 15:57 UTC] No.42205583[source]▶
“Ideal” is a nice word for arbitrary fashion, literally a herd mentality.

This mirrors what happens with muscle cars, women’s handbags, JavaScript frameworks, and so many other things. The purpose remains ostensibly functional but the real driver is peer group status, to the point that function is totally compromised but the peer group loves it.

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1. gilleain ◴[21 Nov 24 17:35 UTC] No.42206621[source]▶
So an arbitrary ideal, then? As in, not conforming to 'the' ideal in the sense of some platonic, eternal idea of a cow, but some ideal in the mind of farmers of what they would prefer cows to be.