Art as Life

Living in Los Angeles provides endless opportunity to engage in as well as observe art. Last weekend I needed to get out of Pasadena so my roommate Rachel and I visited the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) downtown LA. It's a great space with an expibit on Alan Kaprow's Art as Life.

Kaprow understood that art wasn't just imitating life but it was something that we did on an everyday basis. From the MOCA website the "exhibition traces the development of the artist’s oeuvre from works that incorporated everyday objects into collages and assemblages to all-encompassing Environments. The installation consists of paintings, drawings, sculptures, and assemblages, along with photographs, films, videos, and activity booklets."

The exhibit was fantastic. It was basically all hands on and you bring yourself and your imagination into the exhibit. There are chances to move furniture, have a discussion, interact with his pieces through overhead projector, and there are film instillations that portray past endeavors.

I loved the feel of the exhibit. There was a maze created by shredded paper as well as fencing and clear plastic. I found the end where it was playing my new favorite dance song low....because the theme was apples and all I kept hearing was "apple-bottom jeans, and the boots with the fur". It was a fantastic exhibit and something, even a week later I can't escape my memory. It is still impacting me today. Every moment can be art....how often do we just want it to be perfect?