MCASD’s Monte Carlo Night

Written by Emily Shaw

On September 7 join the Museum of Contemporary Art in La Jolla for an unforgettable night at the annual event, entitled Monte Carlo: A Night at Les Caves. Guests will take an imaginative tour of the South of France, a night of living the high life in St. Tropez.

This glitzy fundraiser will be organized by chairs Sonia and Gavin Mandelbaum. As an exciting first in the event’s history, the museum has snagged a contemporary artist, local Kelsey Brookes, to be its art ambassador. His psychedelic original works have garnered fame in the local art world, and Brookes will contribute his unique vision to ensure that the museum’s Monte Carlo event is one special night.

Starting at 6:30 pm, the night will consist of a cocktail reception, followed by a dinner, and then an after party stretching into the wee hours of September 8.

The fundraiser goes to a great cause, aiding in funding the museum’s exhibitions and educational programs. Tickets are available for purchase beginning July 26. You may also contact April Farrell at 858 454 3541 x162, or aefarrell@mcasd.org for tickets.

After or before the big night at the museum, be sure to stop by another one of La Jolla’s art havens, Thumbprint Gallery. The La Jolla art gallery is located at 920 Kline Street and features contemporary, urban, lowbrow and graffiti art from local artists. It is open on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Sources

https://www.mcasd.org/events/monte-carlo-night-les-caves-0

ANOTHER Artwork at La Jolla's UCSD

Price Center East. 'Another' on the left wall.

Barbara Kruger is everything that might be thought of when the subject of “crossover” artists is brought up.  Besides being a world-class photographer, she has been a critic, curator, writer and designer.  She was also a teacher at UCSD in La Jolla before joining the faculty at UCLA.

Krugers’s best-known work is the overlying of captions onto photographs.  Many of these works are very quirky and deal with feminist ideas.  One of her works she is well known for is “I SHOP THEREFORE I AM” which is a take on Descartes’ “I think therefore I am.”  

On the large interior wall of Price Center East, Kruger’s ‘Another’ dominated. A massive double image of clocks which contains the following phrases: ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER NIGHT, ANOTHER IDEA, ANOTHER DREAM, ANOTHER SONG, ANOTHER FEAR, ANOTHER JOB, ANOTHER EXAM, ANOTHER SMILE, ANOTHER BOOK, ANOTHER SWEATER, ANOTHER CAR, ANOTHER LOVE, ANOTHER LIFE. The words, which sporadically cover the clocks, suggest the moments that can happen at any time of the day or night. There are also two LED displays that show news stories to further suggest how our lives are culturally infected, constructed, and contained.

The clocks on the wall are extended to the floor by the use of terrazzo rectangles placed throughout the area. These colored blocks contain quotes from well-respected figures in the worlds of both the arts and sciences. The expansiveness of the wall and floor anchor the area with powerful images and, with the texts, create a space of visual pleasure, comfort, and relevancy.

Barbara Kruger is an internationally respected artist. She had an exhibition at the LA Museum of Contemporary Art in 2000, the Museum of Contemporary Art in La Jolla in 2005, received the Leone d'Oro for lifetime achievement at the 2005 Venice Biennale, and has done installations around the world.  She taught at UCSD for five years before joining the faculty at UCLA.

For more information on contemporary art in La Jolla, visit ThumbprintGallery on Kline Street. The gallery is open Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 12-4pm.

Source: http://stuartcollection.ucsd.edu/artists/kruger.shtml

Food Artfully Created at the Museum Café at the MCASD

Surrounded by fresh, modern art, stunning coastal views, salt air, and the sound of the crashing waves; it’s not hard to imagine a fabulous restaurant nestled in there somewhere. Connected to the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, in La Jolla, is the Museum Café, which easily satisfies all the senses. Calling it a ‘café’ seems almost an insult to the delicious food and ambiance the restaurant has. 

Owned and operated by Italian Chef Giuseppe Cuiffa, of Guiseppe Restaurants and Fine Catering, this ‘café’ serves European-inspired cuisine with fresh, organic, ingredients from local farmers. The Café is open from 8am to 3pm and serves breakfast and lunch, and brunch on the weekends. The food is light and flavorful, mixing different spices and textures to keep each item interesting in both taste and consistency. The quality of the food is outstanding. The use of fresh ingredients cannot go unnoticed in the signature salads and farm fresh organic eggs.  The brunch pastries are made fresh daily and are a perfect combination with a cappuccino or cup of tea.

The Museum Café is a fantastic place to sit and enjoy a light meal while discussing the art of the museum with friends or just a lovely spot to savor the La Jolla seascape over a cup of tea. Whatever your reason to dine at the Museum Café, you should also wander over to Kline Street and visit Thumbprint Gallery for an extra dose of fresh contemporary, urban, and lowbrow art. Open Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays, from 12-4pm. 

Source: http://www.mcasdcafe.com/index.html

Selected Works on Paper Exhibition at MCASD, La Jolla

Richard Diebenkorn, Untitled, 1970

The Museum of Contemporary Art's latest exhibition shows works on paper by a selection of contemporary artists. These works, exhibited at the La Jolla museum, include drawings, photographs, paintings on paper and prints. The select works are from the MCASD collection and are on display until September 2, 2012.

Included in this exhibition are two prints by the contemporary painter Richard Diebenkorn. This 20th century American artist was associated with abstract expressionism and is best known for his "Ocean Park" paintings. The two pieces exhibited at MCASD, La Jolla, were made in 1970, close to when the artist first moved to Santa Monica’s Ocean Park neighborhood. Looking at these works we witness his turn to an abstract style, moving away from his previously figurative works. Caught between Diebenkorn's figurative and abstract periods, these prints can be seen both as part of his departure from his 1960s work within the Bay Area Figurative Movement and his journey towards his celebrated "Ocean Park" works.

In these two works we can see the influence of the Californian landscape in which he was living. Also, in 1970, Diebenkorn was documenting water reclamation projects in Arizona and Colorado, with the U.S. Department of Interior's Bureau of Reclamation. The effect of viewing the valleys and extreme landscapes through the helicopter window had evidently affected the artist's vision and were visible in his work.

On visiting the MCASD in La Jolla be sure to also see works by local urban artists at Thumbprint Gallery, on 920 Kline Street. Thumbprint Gallery shows lowbrow and urban art works that range from contemporary surrealism to graffiti inspired illustrations. Visit the art gallery’s website here.

Source: http://www.mcasd.org/exhibitions/selected-works-paper