Year of the Snake

Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden

Art Watch: Hirshhorn

Hirshhorn! I love this museum. Hirshhorn --part of the Smithsonian group-- consistently brings cutting edge and thought provoking work to the District. It remains one of the more bearable museums on the Mall during the busiest days of tourist season. Here are a few highlights/recent works I have seen and want to see:

Seen it:

Ali Kazma's Black Box film. Black Box is always provocative and always a treat. This time is no different. Eccentric and mesmerizing are words that come to mind regarding this entry. Also "repetition." December 19, 2011 to April 2012.

Dark Matters. All of the pieces (and film) are from the Hirshhorn collection that "draw upon the associations and implications of darkness." The film is crazy and quite an experience. Don't go alone. February 3, 2012 to May 31, 2012.

Want to see it:

Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone: This is not an exhibit, but a screening of the 2010 documentary about the legendary L.A. rock band Fishbone. March 8, 8:00PM.

Gallery talk on Suprasensorial: Experiments in Light, Color and Space. The exhibition opened last week. Gallery talks are traditionally held on Fridays and this this is the first of two on Supradensorial. Hirshhorn has tapped an educator and curator from DC's Phillip Collection to present this week. I should probably see the exhibit first, but perhaps this will give me some perspective. March 2, 12:30PM.

Doug Aitken: Song 1: How to describe this installation? I'm not sure. The artist will use the outside skin of the Hirshhorn building as a canvas for projections in this unique, walk inducing, large scale and site-specific exhibition. Concept imagery looks cool! March 22, 2012 to May 13, 2012.

Hirshhorn: Art Quickie

Busy weekend! I have a few neat posts in the works, but for now, take my advice and stop by the Hirshhorn. We visited yesterday and I realized that I'd nearly forgotten that its an oasis on the Mall. The one the tourists seem to pass up and the locals like myself seem to visit not quite often enough. I get spoiled, lunching at the National Gallery of Art so often. A hard-knock life life, I know... If you have a few minutes for lunch or just find yourself downtown take a few minutes and check out downstairs at Hirshhorn.

Black Box is usually my favorite, featuring a short film which loops repeatedly throughout the day. Either visitors walk away satisfied because they think they "get it," or completely bewildered. Often, I think I'm the only one who sits through the entire film, as was the case yesterday (I think the film was just over 10min). Its art people, take it as it is... The current film is A Laundry Woman, Yamuna River, Delhi by the Korean artist Kimsooja. No point trying to explain it. Also downstairs is a collection of some of the recently acquired pieces of the museum, titled Currents. The curators did a great job of showing the various types of artwork which the museum collects, even if much of it may never see additional exhibition time. That's where shows like this come in handy. There's no real theme or rhyme or reason, just interesting pieces used to show off the collection. Anyway, if you just want a quickie of new art and don't have time to lounge (or are on lunch), hit downstairs at the Hirshhorn. A diversion well worth your time.