~ELI BROAD is losing his marbles – and MOCA . . . is tripping

BREAKING NEWS: the buzz about LA MOCA is so bad, the keyword most used to describe it is: “cratering”.

FILE UNDER: the unspoken truth behind the LA MOCA MESS, and it’s not just JEFFREY DEITCH.

what everybody else down there is afraid to say (out loud !!) – but surely knows, is that the man whose last big project was an ‘accelerated’ self-penned book about himself, entitled: “THE ART OF BEING UNREASONABLE” – a title that would be funny coming from him in his prime – he was notoriously tough in his leveraging skills – is now throwing the scene into even greater chaos – in his swan song. (hey, it happens to us all).

how do you say it nicely: you don’t, and that’s why nobody is saying it. out of sheer respect – which the guy deserves a thousand-fold over – and I guess down in LA, money ties might make it a . . . delicate subject.

a kingpin falling is a sight to see – but it’s a big problem when the whole city has all of its cultural eggs – in his ONE basket.

ELI BROAD at his MAY 6, 2012 booksigning for the launch of ‘THE ART OF BEING UNREASONABLE’ at 92Y – this past Spring in New York City.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH

HOW DO I KNOW ?
I didn’t state it outright – the first time I covered the event – BUT then, I hadn’t read much NORA EPHRON !!
so blame it on NORA’s recent DEATH – but this story is MINE. cruel as it might be – I hope Nora’s smiling down and if you don’t see me at the next opening – call the cops.

I mean he already had the art word by its throat, and everybody knows it, “lending one person museums”, ha. and he was proud of it. so when the person whose holding the 6 million in matching funds, falters, it’s obviously a big big wipe-out.

as NORA says:
“I can’t get over this aspect of journalism. I can’t believe how real life never lets you down. I can’t understand why anyone would write fiction when what happens is so amazing.”

so, here’s the story that I, as Nora would say: own.

I covered that booksigning. I went in awe – when everybody else was at that PETER BRANT party in the country including Jeffrey Deitch. I drunk in every word Mr. Broad said, and never took my eyes off the guy. he was my BILL (CLINTON). I got a great photo of his beautiful wife EDYE with the close associate who sat beside her – and who posed with her – almost as if she was a daughter, an insider for sure. and that would be the well-known curator, NORA HALPERN.

NORA NORA NORA !!

only thing is when NORA stood in line to get the 5 or 6 ‘Unreasonable’ books she had tucked under her arm to be signed, Mr. Broad did not recognize her – out of context.
and when she said, very embarrassed, yet kindly . . “it’s me, NORA” – he said: how do you spell that ?

oh to be a fly on a wall, if not just – a pesky ‘see all – say nothing’ paparazzi.

and then Nora cut her losses and went back to join Edye on the couch, and Eli re-joined the gang and life rolls on, but things must be crazy Shakespearean – down in good ole LA.

the BREAKING NEWS ?:

with thanks to JOSH HARRIS, who took a brief time-out from his 24-7 VEGAS poker game to send this over-nite link – to CULTUREGRRL. Josh titled his heads-up of how bad things really were: “wow, this lady really works him over !!” – meaning DEITCH !!

YEP, hit this: ‘HEAR US NOW: CHRISTOPHER KNIGHT, ROBERT STORR & ME’ . . . CULTUREGRRL aka LEE ROSENBAUM: on the LA MOCA ‘MESS’ – a local radio interview with LA TIMES CRITIC CHRISTOPHER KNIGHT, ROBERT STORR, former MOMA chief curator and current Dean of Yale University’s School of Art and Ms. ROSENBAUM herself – posted JULY 5, 2012.

and she’s still at it: CULTUREGRRL – HOME PAGE/JULY 7, 2012

also, see: the original artlovers post – ELI BROAD BOOKSIGNING at 92Y – MAY 6, 2012.


CURATOR NORA HALPERN, left, with EDYE BROAD, Mr. BROAD’S wife – at the ELI BROAD ‘THE ART OF BEING UNREASONABLE’ BOOKSIGNING, 92Y, NYC. MAY 6, 2012.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH

SOME AFTERTHOUGHTS, MONDAY MORNING – JULY 9, 2012:

well I was feeling guilty all weekend about being so mean to someone who blew so much of their mind and money on the art world – and who is still 100 times smarter than most of us, even if he is coming undone, organically.
a couple of marbles rolling away, here and there.

but everyone I spoke to, o.k. Simon (!!), told me the guy was a real . . . how does one say this, ballbreaker – so, it was okay funny justice to have a small, but sharp – blog arrow – slung at him from such a lowly art site as this !!
hey, if you don’t like heat – stay outta the art kitchen. art 101.


case in point:

The big upcoming Whitney-generated JEFF KOONS retrospective – a huge festive blow-out gala to mark the end of the WHITNEY tenure in their historic uptown location – will OPEN (!!) get this: “in JANUARY 2014 at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, (MOCA LA), then in June (6 months later !!) it will go to the Whitney before traveling to the Pompidou Center in Paris.” – CAROL VOGEL, NEW YORK TIMES, MAY 10, 2012.

it don’t take too much reading between the lines – to see what they all mean by what a cocksucker of a bargainer ELI BROAD is. dependent on him most likely for KOONS work loans, and huge exhibition support aka dough ($$) – the big New City shoe, I mean SHOW !! – gets major pre-empted, it’s like being . . . friggin’ cut at the knees – by having the opening !! and the first 6 months !! of the show – debut at MOCA.

if that’s not a Broad touch, I don’t know what else it could be . . . but I bet it’s a mighty, mighty bitter pill to have to swallow – down here in NYC.

there you go . . . . ‘THE ART OF BEING UNREASONABLE’ – in a nutshell.

yes – see !! and pay attention to the bit about huge exhibition fabrication expenses: JEFF KOONS RETROSPECTIVE at WHITNEY – CAROL VOGEL, NEW YORK TIMES, MAY 10, 2012

makes feel glad – I don’t have to suck up to anybody for content . . . or dough.
I couldn’t handle that kind of ‘swallow it and sing a little song’ beat-down. I guess maybe that’s why, I’m still – just a fly on the wall. cause that’s probably what it takes to be a major player.

SO, FILE UNDER: SUCKING IT UP. oops, I mean . . . . HOOVERING !! IT UP !!

and don’t get me wrong – I love Jeff’s work. hanging two ton train engines aside.
the retrospective’s sure to be dyn-o-mite – it’s just re: collections. come on, guys. red rover red rover, let someone else come over !!

‘HOOVER CELEBRITY III’ – a 1988 (!!) vacuum cleaner assemblage by JEFF KOONS.
PHOTO: JEFF KOONS c/o NEW YORK TIMES

and p.s. the big connect btwn ELI BROAD and JEFFREY DEITCH ???
JEFF KOONS.

it’s street legend that Jeffrey Deitch’s big claim to fame, early on in the 80’s – was discovering and advocating for JEFF KOONS, when Koons first began showing at the small trend-setting INTERNATIONAL WITH MONUMENT. the assumption is, it was DEITCH who was able to find, and then front the big money that enabled Koons to fabricate his larger pieces.

through the late 80s and early 90s – it was JEFFREY DEITCH, in co-operation with SONNABEND – who sold and placed Jeff’s work – in key collections.

case in point: the MICHAEL JACKSON with the CHIMP limited edition (of 3 ?) – at the time the most expensive piece of art by a young living contemporary artist, going for something like . . . half a million dollars.

when JEFFREY meet JEFF – it was art history in the making, at its best.

20, 30 !! years later – it’s funnie to see, how things – play out !! LA – OLA !!