Paul McCarthy is a contemporary American artist. Originally formally trained as a painter, McCarthy's main interest lies in everyday activities and the mess created by them. His work often seeks to undermine the idea of "the myth of artistic greatness" and attacks the perception of the heroic male artist. McCarthy has created several Christmas-themed works. Through them, he combines the dismal aesthetic and the real meaning of Christmas. Through this, McCarthy is able to stay close to the bottomless ground of creativity by accepting, even embracing, the one truly consistent strategy: failure.