The Artist Museum Showcases 140 LA Artists Across Two MOCA Sites

The exhibition 'The Artist Museum' at MOCA Los Angeles (October 31, 2010 – January 31, 2011) features 140 artists who have shaped the Los Angeles art scene over thirty years. Notably, it includes non-American artists like French Guy de Cointet and English David Hockney, considered Angelenos for their work in the city. The show is split across two MOCA venues: Grand Avenue focuses on painting, drawing, and photography, while the Geffen Contemporary presents installations, sculptures, and videos. This division reflects the challenge of presenting such a large, contemporary group without a thematic or chronological framework. The exhibition highlights the vitality of painters like Llyn Foulkes and Lari Pittman, who navigated movements from conceptual art to hyperrealism, and the influence of the Light & Space movement on younger artists such as Ruben Ochoa and Jorge Pardo, continuing the legacy of James Turrell, Dan Flavin, and Robert Irwin. Also featured are works by pop musicians Devendra Banhart and Devo. The show bears the mark of new director Jeffrey Deitch, known for his post-Warholian vision. The title 'The Artist Museum' references MOCA's origins as an artist-founded collective in the 1970s, a counterpoint to the official Lacma. Standout works include pieces by Piero Golia, Marnie Weber, and Doug Aitken, confirming that LA's contemporary scene rivals its postwar pioneers.