MOCA board members weigh in on the mural controversy

In large part the public reaction to MOCA's removal of Blu's mural from the Geffen Contemporary has been split -- with some defending Jeffrey Deitch's right to do so and others condemning the move. But what about support or backlash from his own board?

Culture Monster checked in with a few trustees, who said they were not consulted about the decision to whitewash the mural -- and didn't expect to be.

"I think everyone understands that programmatic decisions are best left to the museum curators and director," says board Co-Chairman David Johnson. "The board is behind Jeffrey."

As for the reason Deitch offered for the decision, Johnson buys it: "I believe it was a very human decision, made out of respect for veterans in the community."

Board President Jeffrey Soros called it a hard decision: "As I see it, it's an unfortunate confluence of events that led us to being in a lose-lose situation. You lose if you take the mural down, and you lose if you keep it up," he says. "Had Jeffrey been in town, he and Blu could have come to an understanding about the work."

"Hopefully, MOCA has enough of a track record of championing artists' expression that this won't be the incident to define us," he says.

MOCA held its quarterly board meeting Wednesday, but trustees say the mural was not the focus. Perhaps they were dazzled by the location -- the meeting took place in the new "Suprasensorial" exhibition at the Geffen Contemporary, featuring Latin American light and space installations such as a light-splashed swimming pool.

-- Jori Finkel

www.twitter.com/jorifinkel

Image credit: Liz O. Baylen / Los Angeles Times

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Comments

[elegabalus]

"Had Jeffrey been in town, he and Blu could have come to an understanding about the work."

Too bad his actual physical presence was required. In other professions, people use email, phones, faxes, or skype to communicate when they are out of the office.

[sande]

lame and lamer.
From Selbie, 1924, using one of many definitions of censorship, definitions as old as the Indo-European languages: "Unpleasant experiences‥driven out of consciousness, and kept there...". The contemporary versions of the name censorship include such terms as "supervision," "control," and especially all forms of institutional "irony."

[sande]

Why would anyone think this is the "first time" MOCA or any other comparable institution has done this? From Selbie, 1924, using one of many definitions of censorship, definitions as old as the Indo-European languages: "Unpleasant experiences‥driven out of consciousness, and kept there...". The contemporary versions of the name censorship include such terms as "supervision," "control," and especially all forms of institutional "irony." Thus any intimation that this is a "first time" is mythical/magical/fictional thinking.

[eron]

Museum Of Contemporary Art of Los Angeles, censorship street art...
In same days, street art become Sacred Art in one italian church...

VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/user/boordL

[hairy carrion]

Sadly, this event, in this season of culture war and censorship, has already defined (the impotence of) MOCA.

[Rusty Dulce]

When a person OWNS his own place of BUSINESS they are entitled to do whatever they please. They can put something up and take it down and their actions will only reflect on them. When you are part of an institution that has a responsibility to its members (who pay fees to keep the organization functioning), a board of directors, other independent funders, staff and the public at large, then your actions effect an entire society on an multiple aspects. You can not operate an organization as if you own it, excuses such as "being out of town" does not justify being unprofessional. It only proves the level of arrogance on the part of some wealthy individual(s) and their total disrespect to the society and the citizens at large.
Curatorial decisions are made before a work of art goes on public display. If you take it down after the fact it's only censorship and nothing else. And on a last note, the idea of taking down the Blu mural which was clearly against the corporate war machine is not really about being sensitive to the public sentiment about war since according to even the corporate media's recent poll (ABC News) 60% of Americans are against continuing the war in Afghanistan!

[All EYEZ on me]

Yawn....... true about not owning the space & doing whatever you want and instead having 2anwser to those that pay and donate funding like your board but they most likely buffed it because it's wack, plain and simple. An eyesore will remain just that if left for all to see, especially for 4 or 5 months.

[Pat Hasken]

Jeffrey Deitch is for sure ruining MOCA.