When Los Angeles MOCA Director Jeffrey Deitch ordered the removal of artist Blu‘s mural, which he commissioned, from the wall of his museum, he was quickly accused of censorship by various folks in the art community. In response to his act, an anonymous street artist put up a wheatpasted mural near MOCA that depicted Deitch as the Ayatollah Khomeini, dressed in traditional garb, holding a dripping paint roller with outstretched arm – fresh from removing Blu’s mural from the museum’s wall.
The incident piqued my interest, not due to the issue of censorship, or the removal of Blu’s work, but the existence of a newly engaged public talking about art in Los Angeles. Deitch and his actions served as a lightening rod for debate regarding the role of the museum and art. It was exciting to see this level of discussion about art in Los Angeles – a pretty rare occurrence in this city. Inspired by these developments, my objective in starting MOCA-latte is to further discussion and engagement in art locally, which I see as vital elements for a healthy cultural center.
Beginning on April 17, 2011, The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA opens its landmark exhibition, Art in the Streets, establishing a museum curation of street art. The event raises many questions and issues worthy of further dialogue within Los Angeles and everywhere – about art, street art in particular, the role of museums, and LAMOCA in particular.
Should street art be subject to art world institutionalization on the same platform as other art forms? Is the museum an appropriate venue for street or graffiti art? What role does the public play in street art? Is it art? Is Deitch properly curating the history and artists of the movement? Is it a movement or are there separate movements within street art? Is MOCA breaking ground? Is the exhibit revitalizing for MOCA as far as demographics, attendance, revenue, relevance, and significance in the museum community? Is Los Angeles’ awareness of art lackluster compared to other cities? Is MOCA a reflection of that dynamic?
I take no formal position on these issues. My intention is not to broadcast my own opinions, but to spark discussion on these topics through a process of public expression and dialogue via our inaugural project, The Red Sticker Campaign. As an avenue to achieve this, I’m distributing free decals, which say either ‘APPROVED’ or ‘DISAPPROVED’ to anyone who wants to play Deitch for a day by curating art in the streets from their personal perspective. If you would like to receive ‘APPROVED’ and ‘DISAPPROVED’ stickers, to do with as you see fit, simply visit one of the many locations listed on our website at www.MOCA-latte.org or email your physical address to me and I will mail you a batch ASAP. Read more about participating in this project here.
Street art is a populist form of art. It is free. It is in the public space. MOCA is a publicly owned museum. Curating art holds a public trust. Culture is sifted, ranked, established, and rejected on behalf of the community by its curators. I’d like to ask, why not make this process a referendum? Let’s all vote for ourselves! There is so much art in the streets, I propose that we give Deitch a hand by personally curating the street art of Los Angeles on our own. Maybe he’ll even be interested to know how we vote. It’s our art, the public’s art that he is ensconcing into the history of art, it’s our museum he’s revitalizing, …or not.
Los Angeles is a broadly laid out metropolis stretching hundreds of miles in each direction. Similarly, our dialogue regarding arts in the community is diffuse, a loose weave, fragmented like our landscape. New York City has a dense topography and a similarly concentrated dialogue on the arts. That city’s tight weave enriches the city as a potent art center. To enhance our own vibrancy as an art community, Los Angeles doesn’t just need to save MOCA, which has been facing a serious financial crisis in recent years, but we also need to revitalize our community of voices. Very likely, the two go hand in hand. Museum attendance and revenue are improved by broader public dialogue on exhibitions, artists, and the museum itself. I believe that the many divergent and multifaceted issues surrounding the upcoming street art exhibition can serve as the perfect catalyst for continued discussion about art in our city.
MOCA-latte is a privately underwritten group seeking to provide, at no public cost, a spark to ignite these essential discussions. My hope for this project is that it serves to energize and enlarge the dialogue, leading to greater public awareness of our museums, broader public attention, increased attendance, and true public ownership of our city’s established culture.
While Deitch’s position as the leader of MOCA puts him in the cross-hairs of public opinion, it also makes him our leader in the march towards Los Angeles’ greater presence in the international art world. This site was created to talk to him, not at him, and talk amongst ourselves in the process. Let’s share our opinions with him, not put labels on him, and most importantly, let’s make our voices heard by using them … perhaps more than we have in MOCA’s recent past.