Lee Rosenbaum's cultural commentary

Last Thursday I was glad to see the Wall Street Journal's Eric Gibson call out (without naming him) the NY Times' Ken Johnson for his perplexing, dyspeptic review last month of the Metropolitan Museum's rip-roaring roundup of The American West in Bronze (to Apr. 13). Johnson dismissed that show as "troubling, because it underplays a real-world history of appalling violence and … [Read more...] about “The American West in Bronze”: Action-Packed Casts at Metropolitan Museum (with video)

My brief WNYC comments and related CultureGrrl post on the Museum of Modern Art's just opened exhibition, Frank Lloyd Wright and the City: Density vs.Dispersal (to June 1), didn't adequately explain what this show is about. Who better to do that job than the show's co-organizer, Barry Bergdoll, MoMA's acting chief curator for architecture and design? He nominally left his … [Read more...] about Curator Barry Bergdoll Explains MoMA’s “Frank Lloyd Wright and the City” (with video)

Below is the audio for my New York Public Radio (WNYC) commentary (click the arrow) on the Museum of Modern Art's just opened Frank Lloyd Wright and the City: Density vs.Dispersal (to June 1). It's the first exhibition drawn from the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation Archives, which MoMA jointly acquired with Columbia University's Avery Architectural and Fine Arts … [Read more...] about Hear Me Now: My WNYC Comments on MoMA’s Frank Lloyd Wright Show

Following close upon the news that the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Battle Creek, has pledged $40 million towards the Grand Bargain, the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) has now agreed itself to raise $100 million as part of the campaign to purchase its independence from the City of Detroit and protect its collection from sales to pay the municipality's creditors. Here's the … [Read more...] about Pieces of Puzzle to Secure Detroit Institute’s Independence Fall Into Place

She probably didn't change the hearts and minds of the many in the architectural community who adamantly oppose the Museum of Modern Art's (to my mind justifiable) decision to knock down the 12-year-old American Folk Art Museum in connection with its next expansion. But Elizabeth Diller walked away from last night's presentation and panel discussion on the expansion … [Read more...] about Gladiator in the Architects’ Den: Elizabeth Diller’s Bravura Performance on MoMA’s Expansion

More good news today for the Detroit Institute of Arts. Here's the museum's reaction to this afternoon's expected announcement by Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (joined by the state's House Speaker and Senate Majority Leader---all Republicans) of a plan to provide up to $350 million over 20 years to protect the collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts from monetization and to … [Read more...] about Detroit Institute’s Good-News Day: Governor, Key Legislators Endorse Art-Rescue Funds (with video)

Looks like a step in the right direction for defenders of the collection of the Detroit Institute of Arts. This just in from Nathan Bomey's live blog of Bankruptcy Court hearings for the Detroit Free Press: BREAKING: Judge [Steven] Rhodes denies creditor attempt to establish independent committee to assess value of the Detroit Institute of Arts. The court "lacks the authority … [Read more...] about Rhodes Rules: Good News for Detroit Institute of Arts

I've learned (from cases like this) that trying to interpret judges' off-the-cuff comments in courtroom hearings is like trying to read tea leaves: They may be tipping their own hands or they may merely be playing devil's advocate, attempting to draw out further insights and greater clarity from the attorneys arguing a case. That said, Judge Steven Rhodes seems to have made … [Read more...] about My Takeaway (so far) From Judge Rhodes’ Detroit Bankruptcy Hearing (and Grand Bargain misgivings)

UPDATE: As I posted this, court arguments regarding the Detroit Institute of Arts' [DIA's] collection had just wrapped up. But this just in from Nathan Bomey's live blog from Judge Steven Rhodes' bankruptcy hearing: "Judge Rhodes said he plans to rule on the DIA art committee motion at 3 p.m. Gov. Snyder and legislative leaders plan to announce a deal today at 3:30 p.m. to … [Read more...] about News Flash: Detroit Free Press Live-Blogging Bankruptcy Hearing on Museum’s Art UPDATED

Can the dauntless, doughty Guggenheim vanquish all doubters and plant its flag in Finland? The chances for realization of a Guggenheim Helsinki improved last week with the 10-5 vote by the Helsinki City Board to set aside as its possible location a waterfront parking lot adjacent to the the Tallink-Silja shipping terminal in the city's South Harbour (image above). After … [Read more...] about Game On: Guggenheim Helsinki Architectural Competition Green-Lighted

After the Deitch Disaster, LA MOCA needed to make an impeccable choice for its next director. Instead, it's made a flawed one. Philippe Vergne, director of the Dia Art Foundation since 2008, does have a lot going for him---deep, impressive curatorial credentials, including distinguished work at the Walker Art Center, where he was deputy director and chief curator, … [Read more...] about Another Dicey Choice: LA MOCA Picks Dia Art Foundation’s Philippe Vergne As Director

A little known architectural gem in my home state, New Jersey, which I once visited and greatly admired (on a Wright-in-New Jersey bus tour), is about to be taken apart and transported to Bentonville, AR, along with the furniture and fixtures designed for it. I'm very glad this is happening. Gratitude is owned to the Crystal Bridges Museum for saving the 1954 Bachman … [Read more...] about Rescuing Wright: New Jersey’s Bachman Wilson House Moves to Crystal Bridges

In previous posts, I acknowledged that my failure to mourn the demise of the American Folk Art Museum's former building was a contrarian view (although Jerry Saltz is one who agrees with me). Giving the opposite side of the argument is Chris Crosman, founding curator of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art (who left there at the end of 2011). Crosman, who had to deal … [Read more...] about BlogBack: Chris Crosman on Saving Folk Art Museum’s Building

Everyone's beating up on MoMA, with a few sharp jabs reserved for Diller Scofidio + Renfro, the architects for the Museum of Modern Art's planned expansion. The pile-up seems more like a referendum on what MoMA has become under Glenn Lowry's directorship than on the museum's just announced architectural and programmatic initiatives. Someone yesterday asked if I knew of … [Read more...] about MoMA’s Excoriated Expansion: The Critics Pile On (plus AFAM’s good year) UPDATED

The Detroit Institute of Arts has just issued the following statement regarding today's announcement by the federal mediator, Chief District Judge Gerald Rosen, that some $330 million has been pledged by local and national foundations (identified at the above link) to support the "Grand Bargain" to prevent sales from the Detroit Institute of Arts' treasured collection to help … [Read more...] about Progress (but no closure) in “Grand Bargain” to Protect Detroit Institute’s Art