Vanity Fair Portraits...at the LACMA! Leibovitz, Newton, and Herb Ritts astound...

LACMA will unveil an installation of Vanity Fair Portraits (1913-2008) in what promises to be the first major exploratory exhibition to meld together the magazine's historic archive of rare vintage prints with its tantalizing collection of contemporary photographs from leading media artists of the day.

The exhibition runs October 26th through March 1st at the 2009 Hammer Building.

According to the curators, the insightful foray explores the myriad ways in which photography and celebrity have interacted and transformed each other in an almost mystical way.


The landmark exhibition at LACMA will feature portraits published during an earlier period between 1913 thru 1936 - and in conjunction with - a select few pieces from a later more contemporary time frame at Vanity Fair 1983 to the present day.

The Los Angeles presentation, which is sponsored by Burberry, will be the only U.S. stop on an international tour.


Photographers in the much-anticipated exhibition include Cecil Beaton, Harry Benson, Julian Broad, Imogen Cunningham, Annie Leibovitz, Man Ray, Steven Meisel, Helmut Newton, Herb Ritts, Edward Steichen, Mario Testino, and Bruce Weber.

Stills posted here are representative of the work of a handful of artists in the stellar show.

A collaboration between Vanity Fair and the National Portrait Gallery

LACMA...Masculinity and Sport! Fetish in art?

So, what happens when a group of artists focus their aesthetic eye on a handful of athletes and sports figures?

In - "Hard Targets - Masculinity and Sport - the time-honored arch type of the male athlete as an aggressive, overtly heterosexual, hyper-competitive, and emotionally remote subject has been shifted in an exhibition that opens at LACMA next week.

Opposing views on masculinity and sport (including the rituals and accoutrements that surround the intimate male-dominated world) are insightfully offered up by artists Mark Bradford, Harun Farocki, Brian Jungen, Shaun Leonardo, Collier Schorr, and Joe Sola.


Each artist examines the way masculinity is characterized and performed in a sporting context.

Complex systems of desire that accompany the way society views and consumes athletes and sporting events are explored in the intriguing exhibition, too.

In tandem with the art exhibition, there will be two open dialogues during the course of the show, which runs from October 9th through January 18th at the Hammer Building









In the discussion on - "Talking Hard Targets" - Artists and Historians (Jeff Sheng, Kori Newkirk, Jennifer Doyle and Christopher Bedford) will address how contemporary art engages and disturbs conventional codes of masculinity especially in regard to the athletic imagery.

Bing Theatre October 16th (Free)

"Conversations with the Artists" focuses on New-York based artist Collier Schorr who will speak with LACMA's assistant curator of Contemporary Art (Christopher Bedford) about "performances within performances and the dualities in movement and gesture".

The subject alludes to ranges of masculine emotions and expressions, according to Mr. Schorr, and should prove to be an enlightening discussion.

Bing Theatre October 10th (Free)

This exhibition was organized by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and made possible by Nike Sportswear and the Contemporary Projects Endowment Fund. Contributors also included Vidal Sassoon, Steve Martin, and the Broad Art Foundation.

Broad Contemporary Art Museum...a glitzy star-studded opening; Broad Foundation Art Collection wows!

Exotic-looking Museum fronts Wilshire Boulevard...



Glitzy gala delights art lovers...


Just recently, the Broad Contemporary Art Museum threw a bash to celebrate the opening of the new exhibition space at LACMA.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was in attendance - as were a bevy of lusty dolled-up beauties - Christina Aguilera, Nicole Richie, and Jamie Tisch - to name a few.

The Gala Chairs for the event were Jane and Marc Nathanson, probably the most-toasted glamorous couple in the glaring spotlight on that festive night.

Much to celebrate!

BCAM is being touted as the fabulous centerpiece for a transformation that has been underway at the Los Angeles County Museum over the past couple of years.

Eli and Edythe Broad coughed up $60 million to get the ball rolling.

The goals were:

"To ensure LACMA’s crucial role in the presentation of modern and contemporary art in Los Angeles was realized; to bring a great architect to LACMA to help redress its architectural and functional problems; and - most importantly - to catalyze and advance the growth of Los Angeles as a global capital of contemporary art," according to a BCAM spokesperson.

Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect - Renzo Piano - BCAM provides the LACMA campus with an extraordinary three-story 72,000-square-foot gallery dedicated to art from 1945 to the present.

BCAM is also the Phase 1 centerpiece of LACMA’s ambitious overall program of expansion and renovation. It features one of the largest column-free art spaces in the United States with loft-like galleries and a sky lit top floor.

A portion of the funds were set aside for the acquisition of important art works such as a mammoth eye-catching sculpture by celebrated artist - Richard Serra - which is currently on display.

Micaheal Govan, Director at the LACMA excitedly noted,

"The creation of BCAM greatly expands LACMA's contemporary art program, both enriching the experience of its historical collections and placing LACMA in a position of prominence in the area of contemporary art among encyclopedic museums."

In particular, Mr. Govan stated that he was thrilled that the BCAM will enable the staff to show the art of several major artists in great depth and in a more thoroughly engaging context.

Info: www.broadartfoundation.org

SUNDAYS LIVE...classical concerts free! LACMA

Each week LACMA presents, SUNDAYS LIVE, a free classical music concert series.

For example, in recent weeks the Capitol Ensemble - a unique group of musical artists dedicated to the performance of an eclectic range of repertoire from Baroque to 21st Century - were well-received by an enthusiastic audience.

On that occasion (October 28th) the musicians captivated music-lovers with 5 pieces for 3 violins and 1 piano - which consisted of a Prelude, a Gavotte, two Waltzs, and an Elegie by the remarkable, celebrated composer, Dmitri Shostakovich. (1906-1975)

The ongoing concerts, an hour in length, continue throughout the year.

No reservations required.

Because SUNDAYS LIVE is recorded, classical music fans unable to attend the performances in person may tune in the following Wednesday when the concerts will be broadcast on KCSN at 12 noon.
(arts & roots radio)

streaming on www.kcsn.org

Salvador Dali...LACMA exhibition, surrealism!

The legendary figure cut a wide swath, sported a ubiquitous handlebar moustache, possessed mischievous twinkling eyes and had an innate flair for publicity.

Known for his dripping clocks, surreal depictions of Christ, and a myriad of eye-catching avant-garde prints which have circulated the globe in major collections - of course - the man is Salvador Dali!

The eccentric artist with the showy public persona was one of the greatest surrealist painters of our time and best known for his ability to translate "dreams" into artwork.

According to Dali, the distinctive creations were for all intents and purposes "hand painted dream photographs".

Dali was born the son of a successful notary in Figuera (Spain) and enrolled in his first drawing classes when he was ten years old.

Undoubtedly, the influence of his first art teacher – well-known Spanish impressionist painter, Ramon Pichot – impacted the early stages of his development.

Later, Dali studied art formally at the Royal Academy of Art in Madrid. When he failed to graduate for declining to take his final examinations a controversy arose.

The mercurial businessman poohed-poohed the scandal by arguing to everyone within earshot that he was more "qualified than those examining him".

When he uprooted himself and moved to Paris, he quickly fell in with noted artists Pablo Picasso and Joan Miro and immediately established himself as a principal figure in a "surrealist" group of painters headed up by Andre Breton (often referred to as the "schoolmaster" of surrealism).

Salvador Dali unveiled his first one-man show in New York in 1933.

A few years later on the heels of success, Dali elected to seek permanent residence in the United States in 1940 to avoid the war.

Spectacular exhibitions – a retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art in New York – for instance, put him on the "artistic" map.

Dali was drawn to the cultural elite like a moth to flame.

In time, Dali was such an iconic figure in art circles that celebrities like Jack Warner and Helena Rubinstein shelled out large sums for the commission of portraits.

Famed followed!

Unknown to many, Dali was also a capable sculptor, filmmaker, and writer.

At the end of this week a much-anticipated exhibition is being unveiled at the Los Angeles County Museum of art sure to be a crowd-pleaser.

While Dali's main focus was on painting he also maintained a deep connection with film as an artistic medium.

On occasion, the visionary artist collaborated with the likes of such film greats as Luis Buñuel and Alfred Hitchcock.

In the words of the LACMA curators - "Dali: Painting & Film" - aims to illustrate the cinematic influences and elements that are present in Dalí's work as well as the contribution he made to cinema.

The dynamic exhibition brings together a variety of key pieces from Dalí's oeuvre and incorporates painting, film, photography, sculpture, and texts.

The stellar collection was organized by the Tate Modern (London) in collaboration with the Fundació Gala-Salvador Dalí, Figueres (Spain) and the Los Angeles County Museum.

The exhibition was curated by Dawn Ades, Montse Aguer, Fèlix Fanés, Matthew Gale, and Helen Sainsbury.

LACMA Curators were Ilene Fort (American Art) and Sara Cochran (Modern Art).

The Los Angeles presentation was made possible in part by LACMA’s Wallis Annenberg Director’s Endowment Fund and was also vigorously supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the Arts and the Humanities.

Salvador Dali quote,

"The first man to compare the cheeks of a young woman to a rose was obviously a poet; the first to repeat it was possibly an idiot."

LACMA will obviously explore Dali's work in full bloom...