MOCA, "In These Times"
Vincent Valdez, Nothin' to See Here , 2008. MOCA, promised gift of Arlene, Aleah, Adiana, and Andy Hurwitz The poster image for MOCA's "In These Times: Recent Acquisitions at MOCA" is an anodyne Alex Israel painting of Westwood movie theaters. Don't let that throw you. There's a better neon nocturne just feet away—Vincent Valdez's Nothin' to See Here— and spectacular pieces in the galleries that follow. "In These Times" focuses on works purchased or donated in the past five years. They are shown in context of related works from the MOCA collection. Alex Israel, Movie Theaters, 2024 Installation view. At right is Andrea Bowers' Abolish ICE, 2018 Kathleen Ryan, Screwdriver , 2023 Kathleen Ryan's Screwdriver is a rotten garnish for somebody's fancy drink, crafted from semi-precious stones and consumerist detritus. The label lists the media as "'68 AMC Javelin trunk, aluminum umbrella, and coated polystyrene with onyx...
