We're all obsessed with Internet sensations like the Ryan Gosling 'Hey Girl' meme, Texts from Hillary, #whatshouldwecallme, and LOLCats -- but have you ever thought that these online amusements could be a form of art unto themselves? Probably not. But a new PBS video that's starting to go viral makes a good case for the aesthetic value of the memes we all know and love.
Before getting outraged at the comparison of socially awkward penguin to Da Vinci's "The Last Supper," consider their argument. According to the video by PBS's Idea Channel, "People are creating images and sharing them with strangers for the purposes of communicating their personal experiences? That, my friends, is art. Plain and simple."
In fact, memes just might be the most democratic art form in history -- anyone with a good image and a funny can plug their ideas into a meme generator, and voila. Art is born. Watch the above video to see why famous philosophers and artists throughout history, from Tolstoy to Andy Warhol, would argue in favor of a meme's artistic value.
Here at HuffPost teen, we genuinely feel that there's no such thing as too many memes (especially when they're Hunger Games-inspired!) And to be honest, we think these Hunger Games pick-up lines and GIFs from #whatshouldwecallme are so awesome that they almost do belong in a museum.
Do you agree -- can memes be considered works of art? Or is the argument too much of a stretch? Sound off in the comments below or join the conversation on HuffPost Teen's Facebook page.