John Giorno's 'No Nostalgia' at Marciano Art Foundation
The Marciano Art Foundation in Los Angeles presents 'No Nostalgia,' an exhibition of text-based works by John Giorno in its Window Gallery. The show includes wall-hung pieces, a vitrine with artifacts like the 1982 vinyl record 'Who You Staring At?' with Glenn Branca, and an audio component of Dial-A-Poem (1968–2019). Giorno's works, such as the 1969 spray-painted monochrome 'Seale' referencing Black Panther Bobby Seale, and large-scale paintings like 'Thanx 4 Nothing' (2007), are critiqued as banal truisms lacking the conceptual rigor of peers like Jenny Holzer, Barbara Kruger, or Sol LeWitt. The exhibition's title belies a nostalgic air for a bygone bohemian New York, with the works feeling dated and slight.
Key facts
- Exhibition titled 'No Nostalgia' at Marciano Art Foundation's Window Gallery
- Features text-based works, vitrine artifacts, and Dial-A-Poem audio
- Includes 1969 work 'Seale' about Bobby Seale
- Includes 1982 vinyl 'Who You Staring At?' with Glenn Branca
- Large-scale painting 'Thanx 4 Nothing' (2007) is shown
- Critique compares Giorno unfavorably to Jenny Holzer, Barbara Kruger, Sol LeWitt, Bruce Nauman
- Dial-A-Poem project dates from 1968 to 2019
- Show is located in a small second-story space past more spectacular contemporary works
Entities
Artists
- John Giorno
- Andy Warhol
- Glenn Branca
- Bobby Seale
- Steve Reich
- Jenny Holzer
- Barbara Kruger
- Glenn Ligon
- Sol LeWitt
- Bruce Nauman
Institutions
- Marciano Art Foundation
- Giorno Poetry Systems
- Interview magazine
Locations
- Los Angeles
- New York City
- Chicago