Collections "Beyond The Pale":
The MOCA 30-Year Survey

I sometimes wonder if, when Marcia Weisman hooked up with, among others then Mayor Tom Bradley and City Councilman Joel Wachs of Los Angeles (at a political fundraiser) and talked about LA's need for a contemporary art museum, what she really wanted was something along the lines of a kunsthalle, albeit one with the trappings of a civic institution — or, more broadly, a cross between a salon and this sort of independent art space with continually changing, wide-ranging curatorial agendas — in other words, a place where like- (or not) minded people with an interest in the visual and plastic arts might converse and confabulate their ideas about emerging trends in contemporary art on the continuously shifting tectonic plates of culture and technology.

TO BE FAIR:
LA's Trio Shows

JANUARY in Los Angeles brought torrential rain, and three art fairs which livened up the gray city.

First up on the calendar was photo LA (January 14–17) at the Santa Monica Civic Center. With the economy the way it is (dismal, like the weather) there was some anxiety that no one would show up — but they did on opening night, and in droves. It would be hard to say whether this was due to interest in photography or in partying, but certainly there was plenty of both. The number of exhibitors was cut back from last year, down to 40 from 65, but that's been true all over the world, including at Art Basel Miami.