Some of these stories are confessional while others follow the activities and foibles of real-life or fictional characters. Most civilizations developed myths to explain the unknown—especially the mysteries of life, death and the universe. The artists in this exhibition draw on mythologies from various times and cultures or from their own imagination to come to terms with the world as they know it.
This exhibition includes works by artists Matthew Barney, Louise Bourgeois, William Cordova, Tracey Emin, John Espinosa, Phillip Estlund, Luis Gispert and Jeffrey Reed, Christian Holstad, Isaac Julien, Guillermo Kuitca, Mariko Mori, Adrian Paci, Jorge Pantoja, Raymond Pettibon, Ali Prosch, Matthew Ritchie, Jason Rhoades, Ann-Sofi Sidén, Saul Steinberg, Barthélemy Togo, Kyle Trowbridge, Tunga, and Michael Vasquez.
Among the featured works are recent acquisitions to MOCA’s collection such as Matthew Barney’s C-print, Cremaster 2: The Metamorphosis, 1999, a promised gift of Joan and Michael Salke, in which Norman Mailer appears as the magician Harry Houdini. Mailer played the role of Harry Houdini in Barney’s 1999 film, Cremaster 2 , a gothic western that was loosely based on the life of convicted murderer Gary Gilmore. Argentine artist Guillermo Kuitca’s 1995 painting, Untitled, a gift of Barbara and Avram Jacobson of Los Angeles, was inspired by maps and represents his often obsessive investigations into the psychological effects of such highly organized social spaces as stadiums, theaters, and classrooms. In Station 10 and Back Again, 2001, Ann-Sofi Sidén, captured the activity of a fire station in Norrkoping, Sweden over the course of several weeks with surveillance cameras.
The resulting documentation is shown on 18 video monitors placed among objects such as hoses, boots, helmets and tools. The work raises questions about voyeurism and represents the artist’s investigation into hidden conflicts in contemporary power struggle and it was a gift of the Martin Z. Margulies Foundation. Albanian artist Adrian Paci’s work deals with political situations and his own life as an émigré. Paci’s work, The Wedding, 2007 is part of a new series of freestanding frescoes on which he has painted tempera images from a traditional Albanian wedding that took place in the1990s. The work was a museum purchase with funds provided by the Ira and Irene Lampert Foundation, Michelle Rosenfeld, Peter and Jody Robbins and anonymous donor.
The exhibition is curated by MOCA Executive Director and Chief Curator Bonnie Clearwater.
Pivot Points is sponsored by Northern Trust.
Exhibitions and programs at MOCA are made possible through grants from the City of North Miami, the Florida Arts Council, the Department of State, the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs, Cultural Affairs Council, the Mayor and Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners. The Museum of Contemporary Art is accredited by the American Association of Museums
