Under the Big Black Sun

Museum of Contemporary Art - MOCA, Los Angeles

California Art 1974-81, a unique period in American history when the political and social roles of artists, the authority of institutions, and the "objecthood" of art were all being questioned. The exhibition features approximately 500 objects from 130 artists, including decorative art, representational painting, conceptual performance, spectacular public demonstration, documentary video, and staged photography. The show is part of Pacific Standard Time.

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Curated by Paul Schimmel

Under the Big Black Sun: California Art 1974-81 constitutes the most comprehensive survey exhibition to date to examine the exceptional fertility and diversity of art practice in California between 1974 and 1980, a unique period in American history when the political and social roles of artists, the authority of institutions, and the "objecthood" of art were all being questioned. The years bracketing the exhibition represent the ignominious departure and auspicious arrival of two presidential leaders from California: Richard Nixon (1974) and Ronald Reagan (1980), respectively. The exhibition argues that the rise of pluralism was the result not only of the collapse of established canons but also the proliferation of new and divergent genres, mediums, and modes of production that reached their apex in the mid- to late 1970s in California, where, in comparison to the East Coast, artists were free to pursue catholic interests in the absence of the dominating forces of art institutions, commercial venues, and critical discourses.
Organized by MOCA Chief Curator Paul Schimmel, the exhibition features approximately 500 objects from 130 artists, including decorative art, representational painting, conceptual performance, spectacular public demonstration, documentary video, and staged photography. The exhibition is accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue featuring newly commissioned essays by Francis Colpitt, Thomas Crow, Charles Desmarais, Peter Frank, Schimmel, Rebecca, Solnit, Kristine Stiles, and others; an annotated exhibition chronology; a selected bibliography; and a checklist of works in the exhibition.

Under the Big Black Sun: California Art 1974-1981 is part of Pacific Standard Time. This unprecedented collaboration, initiated by the Getty, brings together more than sixty cultural institutions from across Southern California for six months beginning October 2011 to tell the story of the birth of the L.A. art scene.

Lead grants for the exhibition and catalogue provided by the Getty Foundation.
Generous support also provided by Kathi and Gary Cypres and and Mandy and Cliff Einstein.

Additional support provided by Lenore and Bernard Greenberg, The Pasadena Art Alliance, The Cecile and Fred Bartman Foundation, and Lisa Schiff.

In-kind support provided by Jerry Solomon Custom Picture Framing, KCRW 89.9 FM, and Los Angeles magazine.

IMAGE: Bruce Conner, CROSSROADS, 1976, 35mm film transferred to video; black-and-white and sound, 36:00 minute, The Conner Family Trust, San Francisco, courtesy of Michael Kohn Gallery, Los Angeles

Press contact:
Lyn Winter at 213/633-5390 / lwinter@moca.org or Jessica Youn at 213/633-5322 / jyoun@moca.org.

MOCA GRAND AVENUE
250 South Grand Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90012
HOURS
MON 11am–5pm
TUES, WED CLOSED
THURS 11am–8pm
FRI 11am–5pm
SAT, SUN 11am–6pm
ADMISSION
General Admission: $10
Students with I.D.: $5
Seniors (65+): $5
Children under 12: Free
Jurors with I.D.: Free
Free Thursday Evenings

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