Maybe not quite what you mean by "mediocre", but there have been claims that deliberately pushing kitsch to the extreme elevates it to Art: https://news.artnet

Maybe not quite what you mean by "mediocre", but there have been claims that deliberately pushing kitsch to the extreme elevates it to Art: https://news.artnet.com/art-world/koonss-monument-to-the-unknown-readymade-83840 https://news.artnet.com/art-world/koonss-monument-to-the-unk...