Screenshot from Jeffrey Deitch’s video tour of what he calls his “movie-star house,” formerly owned by Cary Grant
Did anyone besides me gag while reading this press release from LA MOCA?
Max Anderson, director of the Indianapolis Museum of Art, apparently did. On his Twitter page today, Max allowed himself an implied dig at a colleague, LA MOCA’s director Jeffrey Deitch, whose vision has evidently been blinded by the flashy Hollywood lifestyle. This was demonstrated, yet again, by the parody-ripe video (unabashedly titled, “Jeffrey Deitch Takes Hollywood”) that MOCA has proudly posted on its website.
Here’s the tweet that I read as Max’s poke at MOCA:
Indicator of a museum’s contributions more germane to mission than no. [short for “number”] of A-list celebs at parties. http://tinyurl.com/37cd4f7
Max’s “indicator,” at the link, takes us to a webpage on his museum’s site identifying 256 artworks loaned by IMA to other institutions, as of Sept. 10. I’d say, though, that Max went easy on Jeffrey: A goodly portion of the bold-faced names listed under the heading, “Star Arrivals” in MOCA’s breathless recap of its fundraising gala rank down the alphabet from the A-listers. The party, which raised more than $3.2 million, was dubbed “The Artist’s Museum Happening,” after the title of MOCA’s current exhibition of 146 LA artists from the 1980s to the present.
I suppose Jeffrey might argue that Max, hunkered in the heartland, has a touch of celebrity-envy. But I’d say that Deitch has a touch of cluelessness about professional decorum. One example: We learn from MOCA’s press release that “legendary French fashion house and international brand CHANEL Fine Jewelry” not only sponsored the gala, but also did some product placement:
Maria Bell [co-chair of MOCA’s board], Rachel Bilson, Kate Bosworth, Elodie
Bouchez, China Chow, Kirsten Dunst, Liz Goldwyn, Ginnifer Goodwin, Chloë
Sevigny, and Gwen Stefani wore CHANEL and CHANEL Fine Jewelry to the
event. [The CAPS are theirs.]
Was this press release written by MOCA’s own PR scribes or ghost-written by publicists for movie premieres? Wait a minute! One of the three PR contacts listed at the bottom of the release is Slate PR, which characterizes itself as “a top PR agency representing high-profile actors, directors, producers, and production companies.” Makes sense.
All of this comes as no surprise, since Deitch did tell Artforum (scroll to bottom) that there is “great potential for [museum] partnerships with luxury and consumer brands.” Chanel could be the first of many. (Or did I miss one already?)
What we all really want to know is: Will manic ex-dealer Deitch be admitted into the solemn fellowship of the Association of Art Museum Directors? I recently asked for an update from AAMD’s executive director, Janet Landay, who on Nov. 9 replied that Deitch had not yet applied for membership in the field’s leading professional organization and ethics arbiter.
Another one of life’s mysteries: How did the Wall Street Journal‘s detailed report of the West Coast museum’s gala manage to land in the newspaper’s “Greater New York” section? Did LA become a New York suburb when I wasn’t looking?
UPDATE—Max Anderson responds:
Thanks for the mention. Actually, I was thinking about the media’s mad scramble to cover parties more than about how museums look for much-needed support. I like parties as much as the next director—which the opening festivities for the U.S. Pavilion in Venice [my link, not his] will prove.