Lorna Simpson's 2006 MOCA Los Angeles retrospective draws mixed review of her photo-text and video works
In 2006, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles hosted a mid-career retrospective of Lorna Simpson, showcasing twenty years of her artistic endeavors, mainly emphasizing photographic image-text works and video installations. The exhibition delved into the themes of subjectivity related to the black American experience and representation. Notable pieces included The Park (1995) and Easy to Remember (2001), recognized for their emotional depth, while Untitled (guess who's coming to dinner) (2001) and Corridor (2003) faced criticism for being formulaic. Andrew Berardini's review, published on December 7, 2006, highlighted Simpson's minimalist headless anti-portraits and their commentary on identity commodification. The retrospective traveled to various locations, reflecting her investigation of black American identity through distinct aesthetic forms.
Key facts
- Lorna Simpson's mid-career survey occurred at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles in 2006
- The exhibition featured works from the previous twenty years of Simpson's practice
- Primary mediums included photographic image-text pieces and video installations
- Key works discussed were The Park (1995), Easy to Remember (2001), Untitled (guess who's coming to dinner) (2001), and Corridor (2003)
- The review was written by Andrew Berardini and published on December 7, 2006
- Simpson's work explores subjectivity through black American experience and representation
- The Park is a six-panel serigraph on felt depicting Central Park with text about sociological observation
- Easy to Remember features fifteen sets of black lips singing in tonal variation
Entities
Artists
- Lorna Simpson
- Andrew Berardini
Institutions
- Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles
- Afterall
Locations
- Los Angeles
- United States
- New York
- Central Park
Sources
- Afterall —