This weekend is your last chance to see Asco: Elite of the Obscure, A Retrospective, 1972–1987 before it packs up and heads to the Williams College Museum of Art, opening in February. One of five Pacific Standard Time exhibitions at LACMA, the retrospective highlights the multitude of performances and objects created by this influential East L.A. art collective. If you missed some of our blog posts on Asco, take a moment to catch up: the four original Asco members recall the making of First Supper after a Major Riot; Willie Herrón III talks about his newly commissioned mural; and exhibition co-curator Rita Gonzalez writes about Asco's "No Movies."
Asco, First Supper (After a Major Riot), 1974, printed 2011, color photography by Harry Gamboa, Jr., courtesy of the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center (CSRC) Library, © 1974 Asco/Photography © Harry Gamboa Jr.
All weekend long, in partnership with UCLA, we will be holding a three-day symposium in conjunction with Contested Visions in the Spanish Colonial World. Scholars from around the world will convene both here at LACMA (Friday and Sunday) and at the Fowler Museum at UCLA (Saturday) to discuss major themes addressed in the exhibition. View the schedule of events or read abstracts for each of the presentations. The events are all free.
Marcos Chillitupa Chávez, Folding Screen with the Genealogy of the Incas, 1837, Cuzco Circle, Pastor Family Collection, Lima, Peru, photo © D. Giannoni
Opening this weekend are two smaller installations highlighting works from our permanent collection: a selection of paintings by Edward Biberman and German Expressionist prints by Ludwig Meidner.
A note about museum hours on Saturday: the east side of campus will be closing at 5 pm for a special event. This will affect Edward Kienholz's Five Car Stud, Maria Nordman's FILM ROOM: SMOKE, 1967-Present, and many permanent galleries. The west side of campus (including Asco, Contested Visions, Glenn Ligon, California Design, Ai Weiwei and Monet/Lichtenstein) will remain open regular hours, as will Ray's and Stark Bar.
Sunday sees a couple of great talks and a concert, all free. If you’re into manga, check out a free lecture by Pomona College professor Lynne K. Miyake, who will discuss the ancient Tale of Genji. The famous Japanese story was written a millennium ago but has been updated and adapted over many generations—most recently influencing manga.
Also on Sunday, in the Art Catalogues store, performance art group Culture Clash reads and performs from its latest book, Oh, Wild West! They’ll also talk about recently having their art banned in Arizona by the state’s Attorney General.
Finally, violinist Phillip Levy and pianist Francois Chouchan will perform works by Franck and Mozart for our free Sundays Live concert.
Scott Tennent