July 19, 2006
Flashpoint Exhibit Destroyed by Partiers
An artist's worst nightmare. Not a bad review or lack of sales, but accidental destruction of their work by careless gallery-goers. Art writer Kriston Capps tipped us off to the notice on the Flashpoint Web site, which tells us that Axelle Rioult's exhibit Non Sans Emoi (As I Lay Myself...) is temporarily closed. Gallery Manager Rebecca Lowery told DCist that a private party held in the Flashpoint theater this past Saturday night escalated from a twenty-person sit-down dinner to a fifty-person out-of-control bash that moved into the art gallery and, by the end of the evening, was ripping down Rioult's site-specific installation.
Though the venue occasionally rents out space for low-key receptions, it's usually limited to corporate parties who provide proper security and rarely step above Mild on the party-scale. Lowery said that although this was a rare occasion where the venue was rented to a private person, the group seemed to be made of an "arts-familiar crowd." This turned out not to be the case as they began "trying to be helpful" by cleaning up the French artist's painstakingly placed and folded gauze.
The gallery is taking steps to recoup the loss, though it's unlikely a monetary award will fix what Lowery describes as "devastating" to the artist, the curator, and the gallery itself. Since Rioult is in rural France and unavailable to come repair her work, the exhibit as it was will likely be closed, but Lowery is trying to design a "counter-creative" memorial to acknowledge the artist's work and the destruction it suffered.
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I'm not a big fan of the Art-That's-Actually-Just-Trash movement. Must have been a relatively crappy piece if people assumed it was clutter and junk, much like Marcel Duchamp should've been lucky for people to piss on his art, let-alone destroy it.
Must have been a relatively crappy piece if people assumed it was clutter and junk
According to Kriston's review, it was a rather minimalist exhibit -- basically gauze and apples. So, while I hope the group gets fined and banned from holding future parties in galleries, we can at least take comfort in the fact that the 21st century's answer to the Mona Lisa wasn't lost.
Ahh, AUA, that's awful. Whether the art was good or bad is far off the point. No one had the right to destroy it, especially in a private gallery. More likely, these folks were just drunk and couldn't control themselves in a respectful manner, and they should be ashamed of themselves.
I would also check with Capps later on his art blog, as he'll have more information on what happened.
maybe it was painstakenly taken apart...ah, the uneducated masses...where was Gopnik to lead them?
Isn't a little public shaming in order here? Let's have some naming of names! Who was the party for, and who was the party planner who let things get so completely out of control? And how does a 20-person sit-down dinner turn into a 40-50 person drunken revel, anyway?
Of course, the real question here is where was the gallery's staff during the whole fiasco? Do they really rent out their facility and then just hand over the keys and ask folks to lock up on their way out?
I'm assuming by this sentence:
'This turned out not to be the case as they began "trying to be helpful" by cleaning up'
that it's feasible they had just assumed that the crepe paper streamers and apples and "milk bath" were from some other party & weren't cleaned up -- so they took the initiative to get rid of it.
Good art or bad, no one deserves to have their work destroyed; that much is true. At the same time, no one should be surprised when something that looks like trash is treated like trash. (Not that I've even seen it, mind you.)
I should have mentioned, there was a Flashpoint staff member on hand (as their always is when the venue is rented), who managed to stop the partiers before the installation was totally dismantled. The gallery always requires the party to provide security of their own, as well, but clearly it was inadequate in this case.
AUA: You wouldn't mistake this work for trash.
Whether it's trampling the Marco Maggi or sticking gum on the Frankenthaler, America loves screwing art!
Has anyone else noticed how apprehensive people are of stepping on a Carl Andre floor piece even though you are totally allowed, and even encouraged, to do so? I've had dozens of people tell me to get off the art.
But then this happens and the examples that Adrian provided.
The Andre is probably the least obviously Art piece in question yet people do not touch it. Why?
and they say D.C. is not an arts town? We love the art so much we devour it!
Damn, why am I never invited to cool parties like this one?
AUA, so people should piss and destroy crappy art? Your first comment really sounds like you're an apologist for the a-holes who did this. Trust me, I'm no big fan of work like this, but it shouldn't be wrecked. Same message to you Badger.
I agree - public shaming. Whose party was it?
"Must have been a relatively crappy piece if people assumed it was clutter and junk, much like Marcel Duchamp should've been lucky for people to piss on his art, let-alone destroy it."
Hmmm, what sort of litmus test do you propose to determine what pieces of art we are permitted to destroy? A focus group perhaps? Public ballotting? Or is it just subjective?
I'll be honest, I've always found Mondrian's modernist obsession with the grid to be a bit fascist. A good pissing on it would really go a long way towards improvement.
The party was a private group, not an organization.
Interestingly, the destruction of this piece of art has led to it (and its creator) being discussed outside of the usual closed loop that such things inhabit. Not being an art fan myself, I'm at least kind of interested in seeing some Rioult's other work. That's probably a good thing.