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2/11/2001

Ed Ruscha

MOMA, Oxford

"When I began painting, all my paintings were of words which were guttural utterances like Smash, Boss, Eat. Those words were like flowers in a vase; I just happened to paint words like someone else paints flowers." Ed Ruscha
"Ed Ruscha has the coolest gaze in American art." J G Ballard

The Museum of Modern Art Oxford presents the UK's first major retrospective of American artist Ed Ruscha, in an exhibition organised with the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington, D.C. The exhibition comprises a wide range of Ruscha's paintings from early -pop' works such as Annie and Boss through to recent highly acclaimed -mountain' paintings and metro plots, and also offers visitors a rare opportunity to see a selection of drawings and all of his books, including Twenty-six Gasoline Stations (1963).

Considered both a pop and a conceptual artist, Los Angeles based Ed Ruscha has resisted such convenient labels for his work, but has always been a pioneer in the use of language and imagery drawn from the popular media. From his early, powerful word paintings, to his influential artist books of the 1960s and 70s, through to his recent, colourful views of generic mountains, Ruscha has investigated the spaces between highways and journeys, image and words, abstraction and representation, public imagery and the contemporary landscape.

"I am more firmly rooted in issues of abstract art than I am with things figurative, yet I use figurative objects. This is a contradiction that is never resolved but does not confuse me." explains Ruscha of his work.

Ed Ruscha was born in December 1937 in Omaha, and grew up in Oklahoma City. In 1956, (aged 18) he left home driving along Route 66 to California. The highways and landscapes he passed on his journey were to influence his work in a profound and lasting way. In Los Angeles, Ruscha attended the Chouinard Art Institute until 1960 where, under the influence of teachers such as Robert Irwin, Richards Ruben and Emerson Woelffer, he gave up his original intention of becoming a cartoonist and began to focus instead on fine art.

In the early sixties, Ruscha worked for an advertising agency, after which he made his first paintings using words, a prime focus for him throughout the years since. At first, words were rendered in great brushstrokes in the style of Abstract Expressionism, which later became words that floated against a variety of backgrounds. His early work featured mostly single words such as "Ace" and "Jelly".

Ruscha's work is included in numerous international museum collections, and previous retrospectives have been mounted by the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the Boymans van Beuningen, Rotterdam. The MOMA exhibition brings together, for the first time in the UK, works from private and public collections from all over the world, that survey Ruscha's entire career to date.

"There's been a kind of renaissance of interest in his work in the last three or four years" says Neal Benezra, who co-curated the exhibition. "He¹s continually reinventing his paintings and reinventing not just the look of art but the way it's made."

Ed Ruscha opened in June 2000 at the Hirshhorn, and has toured to MoCA, Chicago, Miami Art Museum, and the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth.

Ed Ruscha has been organised by the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. and the Museum of Modern Art Oxford. The exhibition is co-curated by Neal Benezra, Deputy Director, Art Institute of Chicago and Kerry Brougher, Chief Curator at the Hirshhorn. Major funding for the exhibition was provided by The Henry Luce Foundation, with additional support from Melva Busksbaum, J. Tomilson and Janine Hill, and The Broad Art Foundation. Other funding was provided by The Ansley I. Graham Trust and Emily Fisher Landau.

A fully illustrated, 196 page catalogue has been produced in association with Scalo Ltd, including essays by Neal Benezra, Kerry Brougher and Phyllis Rosenzweig. RRP £28.

Notes to Editors
Please note that at present MOMA's incoming e-mail isn't working, so please call or fax with any press enquiries.

Press Conference
Friday 2 November 2pm
Galleries open to press 1-4pm

Preview
Saturday 3 November 3-6pm

Ed Ruscha (pronounced Rew-shay) will be at the Museum of Modern Art for the Press Conference and Preview. Please contact Carole Scott, Press and Publicity Officer, to discuss interviews or to attend the Press Conference, and for press images. T: +44 (0)1865 722733

On Saturday 3 November, the Preview will be preceded at 2pm by a walk round the galleries, with Ed Ruscha and Kerry Brougher in conversation. This is a public event, but we have a limited number of press tickets available. Contact Carole Scott for a ticket.

Please note that because of the talk and preview, on 3 November MOMA will be open to the public from 11am to 1.30pm only. The exhibition re-opens to the public on Sunday 4 November.

New Winter Opening Times at MOMA Please make a note of our new times for your listings, and highlight these in any coverage of the Ed Ruscha exhibition.

MOMA and CaféMOMA are now open at the same time:
Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday: 11am ­ 5.30pm
Thursday: 11am ­ 8pm, Sunday: 12 noon ­ 5.30pm, Closed every Monday
Christmas and New Year: closed 24, 25, 26 & 31 December, & 1 January 2002.

Listings Information
30 Pembroke Street, Oxford, OX1 1BP
Admission: £2.50 (£1.50 concessions). Free: All day Thursday.
Tel: 01865 722733 or 01865 813830 for recorded information.
e-mail: info@moma.org.uk

Events
For details of any events, or to book, please call 01865 722733.

Ed Ruscha in conversation with Kerry Brougher
Saturday 3 November, 2pm
Admission free by ticket only, maximum of two tickets per person.
To book, please telephone Daniel Stocks on 01865 722733.

Gallery Talks ­ Sundays and Thursdays in November
Find out more about the exhibition. No need to book, just turn up.
Sunday 11 November, 2pm, Simon Grant, Tate magazine
Sunday 18 November, 2pm. Donna De Salvo, Curator, Tate Modern
Sunday 25 November, 2pm, Patricia Bickers, Editor, Art Monthly
Thursday 29 November, 6.15pm, Rob Flint, artist and writer
Thursday 8, 15 and 22 November & Sunday 4 November ­ speakers to be confirmed. Call for details.

Special Events
Thursday 25 October
OX1 Festival
Organised by Oxford Brookes University, OX1 is a new festival, and will this year focus on the blurred boundaries between art and music. On 25 October, artist Ray Lee will perform in the Upper Gallery at MOMA. Call MOMA for performance times, or contact OX1 directly: http://www.oxford-artsculture.net, jcharles@brookes.ac.uk or 01865 484957.

Friday 16 November, 5.30pm, Main Galleries
Oxford Contemporary Music ­ Gareth Davis: Clarinet solo
A unique opportunity to hear one of Britain's finest young clarinettists performing new music by Japanese composers. For details please call Oxford Contemporary Music on 01865 488369 or at www.ocmevents.org 6.30pm, CaféMOMA: a special sushi meal is available, supplied by Edamamé Japanese Restaurant. Must be booked at least 7 days in advance ­ call Oxford Contemporary Music for details.

Weekend Workshops
For children aged 7-14
Exciting painting, design, collage and three-dimensional activities using images, words and popular imagery inspired by Ed Ruscha¹s work. Admission free, book in advance.
Saturday 10 & 17 November, 1-4pm with artist Ellie Ridsdale
Saturday 24 November & 1 December, 1-4pm with artist Sam Johnson

For anyone over 16
Two two-day courses with artist Sara Davidmann. Painting, collage and design as processes for exploring the use of imagery and words from popular culture and everyday life. Admission free, book in advance
Course 1: Saturday and Sunday 8 and 9 December, 11am-4pm
Course 2: Saturday and Sunday 15 and 16 December, 11am-4pm

Schools Workshops
For children with profound and multiple physical and/or learning disabilities, their teachers and carers from Oxford City Special Schools: 4 half-day sound and music workshops inspired by the work of Ed Ruscha organised and led by Soundabout.

For Oxford City Schools: Ed Ruscha study workshops, admission free, but by advance booking only. Every Tuesday throughout November and early December, 10am ­ 12noon.

After-School Workshops
For children and young people aged 7-14, advance booking only. Every Thursday throughout November and early December, 4.30 ­ 6pm

Christmas Holiday Workshops
Thursday 3 January, 10.30am ­ 12noon, admission free, book in advance. For children with severe learning difficulties and their families. A sound and music workshop led by Soundabout. Tel: Dee Pizzo at Soundabout on 01865 744175.

The Museum of Modern Art
30 Pembroke Street, OX1 1BP, Oxford
T: 08454582733 F: 01865722573

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