From the NYT: "Its 35 galleries are each named to reflect human experiences like love, family, community, play, work, sports, childhood, adventure and more."
These are hackneyed themes, not narrative genres or codes. Hallmark Cards is the curatorial model.
Anonymous said…
^ When I read that part of the article, I grimaced..
I don't know what exactly would be a more professional format. The works could be grouped by artist, style, period. Or more in keeping with traditional art museums. But that runs the risk of overly segregating what's on display, which could end up being even more problematic than using a cheesy greeting-card theme.
Across town, I'm curious what the Geffen Galleries will be like. Talk of more textiles displayed throughout the building may be a good change of pace (more decorative arts too?), but all the gray concrete walls may be too much.
But as with the Lucas, I'm hoping for the best but preparing for the worst. Actually, the latter is not acceptable. All the work, cost and, in particular, delays (Covid or no Covid) of the 2 museums make that inexcusable.
There are a thousand ways this curatorial approach could go. I'm willing to suspend judgment until we see the hang, or whatever it is that they'll call it.
Anonymous said…
Family, community, play, etc. are not primary considerations for a serious collector. Did the Lucas Collection begin with these themes in mind? I doubt it.
The Broad Collection may be equally impersonal, but Eli Broad was a serious collector. He sought blue-chip contemporary art. It didn't necessarily have to fit a theme. It just had to be a worthy example of the artist's work.
He also collected in depth. If you don't really know what any of it means, collect in depth. Eventually, it starts to make sense on it own. Or, you hire smart people to make sense of the good stuff you bought.
The Lucas Museum does not have enough good stuff to overcome its intellectual deficit.
Anonymous said…
The Metropolitan has this now on display or scheduled for next year:
The Jefferson R. Burdick collection of ephemera at The Met contains one of the most distinguished collections of historical baseball cards anywhere in the world....This exhibition features over one hundred cards...
Raphael: Sublime Poetry is the first comprehensive exhibition on Raphael in the United States, bringing together more than 200 of the artist’s greatest masterpieces and rarely seen treasures to illuminate the brilliance of Raphael’s extraordinary creativity. [End quote]
So what really counts, therefore, is a museum doing so many things in sheer volume - whether from "treacle" to certainly the sublime - that shortcomings of its special shows aren't as obvious.
In the case of the Lucas, its newness-novelty and spaceship-looking building will help take attention away from the cheese. Its current budget or future endowment funds may help too.
But in LACMA's case, they're not just struggling with tight funds, their director (who's also on the board of the Lucas) doesn't seem to mind his operation looking like a provincial-municipal-type museum stuck with relatively cheap contemporary art shows
The Metropolitan has its fair share of nouveau-hipster exhibits too. But it easily balances that by having a lot of big-time temporary shows, some of them from its own collection. And, okay, yep, the Met has a huge, superb permanent collection. LACMA doesn't. But that doesn't mean it should keep installing on-loan exhibits better left to a Hauser & Wirth or the Fresno Gallery of Starving Artists.
Do you know what the Lucas's collection is comprised of? I myself do not. If no, then I'd be interested in how you could discount its quality.
Anonymous said…
If this were my museum, I would have axed the fountain in the front of the building and spent the money instead on a searchable archive.
I would have used the archive to present research on the objects and establish their significance. For the most important objects (in my view), there would be essays or notes by the collector. Why did Lucas buy the object and how does it complement the other objects in the collection?
... Hard to feel optimistic about the quality when the museum itself has squandered the opportunity it had with all the construction delays to study and present the collection in the virtual space of an archive.
How awful a narrative museum gallery showing works embodying love. Art should be about transgression, shock of the new, new materials, ... oh wait that is the standard academy for the last 100 years. e.g. Urinals to smaller urinals made with lipstick. This is not a contemporary art museum for the hip. It it will do very well.
The Lucas Museum is not meant to be the Getty, LACMA or The Broad. I would say the demographic they are going for is not the typical museum goer. They are going for something new - and I'm okay with that. It will be good for Los Angeles to have diversity of museum choices.
Comments
These are hackneyed themes, not narrative genres or codes. Hallmark Cards is the curatorial model.
I don't know what exactly would be a more professional format. The works could be grouped by artist, style, period. Or more in keeping with traditional art museums. But that runs the risk of overly segregating what's on display, which could end up being even more problematic than using a cheesy greeting-card theme.
Across town, I'm curious what the Geffen Galleries will be like. Talk of more textiles displayed throughout the building may be a good change of pace (more decorative arts too?), but all the gray concrete walls may be too much.
But as with the Lucas, I'm hoping for the best but preparing for the worst. Actually, the latter is not acceptable. All the work, cost and, in particular, delays (Covid or no Covid) of the 2 museums make that inexcusable.
I doubt it.
The Broad Collection may be equally impersonal, but Eli Broad was a serious collector. He sought blue-chip contemporary art. It didn't necessarily have to fit a theme. It just had to be a worthy example of the artist's work.
He also collected in depth. If you don't really know what any of it means, collect in depth. Eventually, it starts to make sense on it own. Or, you hire smart people to make sense of the good stuff you bought.
The Lucas Museum does not have enough good stuff to overcome its intellectual deficit.
The Jefferson R. Burdick collection of ephemera at The Met contains one of the most distinguished collections of historical baseball cards anywhere in the world....This exhibition features over one hundred cards...
Raphael: Sublime Poetry is the first comprehensive exhibition on Raphael in the United States, bringing together more than 200 of the artist’s greatest masterpieces and rarely seen treasures to illuminate the brilliance of Raphael’s extraordinary creativity. [End quote]
So what really counts, therefore, is a museum doing so many things in sheer volume - whether from "treacle" to certainly the sublime - that shortcomings of its special shows aren't as obvious.
In the case of the Lucas, its newness-novelty and spaceship-looking building will help take attention away from the cheese. Its current budget or future endowment funds may help too.
But in LACMA's case, they're not just struggling with tight funds, their director (who's also on the board of the Lucas) doesn't seem to mind his operation looking like a provincial-municipal-type museum stuck with relatively cheap contemporary art shows
The Metropolitan has its fair share of nouveau-hipster exhibits too. But it easily balances that by having a lot of big-time temporary shows, some of them from its own collection. And, okay, yep, the Met has a huge, superb permanent collection. LACMA doesn't. But that doesn't mean it should keep installing on-loan exhibits better left to a Hauser & Wirth or the Fresno Gallery of Starving Artists.
If no, then I'd be interested in how you could discount its quality.
I would have used the archive to present research on the objects and establish their significance. For the most important objects (in my view), there would be essays or notes by the collector. Why did Lucas buy the object and how does it complement the other objects in the collection?
... Hard to feel optimistic about the quality when the museum itself has squandered the opportunity it had with all the construction delays to study and present the collection in the virtual space of an archive.