FYI: If you're looking for some in-depth critique of the art exhibit, you won't get it here. I'm hardly an expert in art.
A friend of mine sent out an e-mail blast regarding this LACMA night. I may not be an expert in art, but I do like going to art exhibits. We were worried about potential crowds so some of us showed up early. I showed up a little before 7:30 p.m. I called my friend and learned they were on a tour of the Berlin exhibit. I headed over to meet up with them. There was a crowd of perhaps 50 listening to the docent. I missed the discussions regarding the artwork between 1945-1949. Note: I do believe that most of the people stuck with the whole tour. In fact, the tour probably got larger versus smaller. I found this interesting, because my past experience is that tours usually get smaller as time goes by.
One artwork I found interesting was (I believe) in the 1950s section. I'm not sure of the artist, but it had an interesting take on the consumer culture by using a variety of Coca Cola advertisements. There was also a piece of artwork that changed between a picture of Mao (I think it was Mao) with thick red lips and a red star every 30 minutes. The docent mentioned this fact and gave us a specific time of 7:58. So about five of us left the main group to watch it occur. I don't think any of us five felt very impressed -- probably indicating our lack of art appreciation. There was a piece of art (I believe in the 1960s-1970s section) that was full wall size. Straw was heavily used in this specific artwork. I guess it representing building things with basic material, I'm not sure. There were a couple interesting pieces in the 1980s section. In Germany, there were tensions with Turkish citizens moving into Germany to work. One piece of artwork took up much of the floor space. It was old boots and gloves. The security staff needed to work overtime to make sure none of us accidentally walked into the middle of the piece. Another work was a photograph of an apartment. If I recall correctly, the artist was a politician who went into an apartment formerly occupied by Turkish immigrants. He destroyed the furniture and then cut a Nazi symbol into the wall. (This being against the law.) After the tour, I went back through the exhibit. I believe it was in the 1950s section where there was an exhibit made of chocolate. I love chocolate, but after a short while I realized the smell was over-whelming.
The Franz West exhibit was also going on. This was a more current art exhibit. It was also very hands-on. A friend and I got to sit in a couple chairs and play with a cube that was suspended from the ceiling. It was a cool exhibit with a bunch of sculptures that I'm not sure had any real meaning attached.
Regarding the over-all event: it lasted till midnight. It was more the art versus the event. There was a live DJ, but no one was dancing. It was well attended, though hardly as well attended as some free art nights at The Getty or GLOW in Santa Monica. GLOW had tens of thousands. The night I went to The Getty must have had north of 2,000. I think this LACMA event probably had around 1,000. But in some ways, The Getty and Glow are more about the party atmosphere whereas the LACMA event focused in on the art.
A tattoo: I saw a young lady on the tour with a the following across her neck: Oct 30, 1986. I wish I was a bold enough person to ask her what this symbolized for her. A friend and I discussed it and we figured it represented her birth date, but I can't help but wonder if it had another special meaning.
My friends and I briefly left the event to get some food. Discussion turned to my writing for intraffik.com. One friend told me to write about the following discussion:
Friend: I can't believe it, I've got to pee again.
Me: Okay.
Friend: You can write this down in your next column. Don't drink in cold weather, because your bladder becomes smaller and you have to pee more often.
Me: I'll use that. I really will.
Friend: Go ahead, yes.
Okay, I'm not using this in an intraffik.com blog, but I'm using it here.
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