March / Apri 2016 - art ltd 39DONN DELSON
LIGHT AMPLIFICATION
March 22-April 16Opening Reception
Saturday, March 26, 5-8pm
Bergamot Station, Bldg. D3
2525 Michigan Ave.
Santa Monica, CA 90404
taggallery.net 310-829-9556donndelson.com
[email protected]nicely off of the blocky existing structure, just as the silvery grey
of the stainless steel covering the new structure plays off of the
white of the printing plant. Architect Charles Renfro points out that
he is particularly excited about how nicely the structures mesh, both
inside and out; the transition areas are indeed fluid. To temper the
coldness of the abundant steel and glass utilized, the interior fea-
tures custom wood structures designed by master woodworker
Paul Discoe, using pine reclaimed from the build site: “The level
of craftsmanship is really high,” noted Rinder. Interior accent walls
in a deep chili red also add warmth.
The building also succeeds in melding the museum’s two distinct
agendas: “We are unique among museums,” Rinder explains, “be-
cause BAMPFA encompasses art and film in equal measure,” so the
space must do double duty. Because the original museum was built
before the film archives were part of the organization, this hadn’t
been addressed from a design perspective before (and the two enti-
ties have been housed in completely separate spaces since 1999, so
this also marks something of a reunion). From the exterior, this is
done directly: one side of the museum features large plate-glass win-
dows that look on to an “art wall,” a 60-by-25-foot mural space for
which
a new work of art will be commissioned every six months (the first
piece, titled The World Garden, was created by Chinese artist Qiu
Zhijie). On the other side of the building is a 30-foot outdoor LED
screen for public screenings (yes, it’s very cool). Inside, in addition
to 25,000 square feet of gallery space, BAMPFA houses two state-
of-the-art theaters, touted as some of the best places to watch
film to be found.
For the first exhibition, Rinder chose, appropriately, to focus on
architecture. But he approaches it both from a straightforward sense
as well as by looking at architecture as a metaphor. The resulting
show, titled “Architecture of Life,” well establishes the museum’s
role in being, as Rinder said, “quasi-encyclopedic,” while also being
accessible, a driving focus for the museum. “As the doorstep to the
university, the museum needs to be welcoming to everyone,” states
Rinder. The show features over 250 works spanning 2,000 years. It
readily draws well-thought and pleasantly unexpected connections
to this broader concept of architecture—in Rinder’s accurate
description, “It’s a poetic excursion.” It also nicely blends work
by well-known artists—for instance, Georgia O’Keeffe, Chris
Johanson, Buckminster Fuller and Hans Hofmann (whose gift of 45
paintings and $250,000 in 1963 is how the museum got its start)—
with those lesser known or more obscure, showing the wide breadth
of the museum’s curatorial reach as well as its holdings. “Our collec-
tion encompasses artwork dating back to 3000 BC as well as new
commissioned work; it’s very diverse,” Rinder observes.
The curatorial aim for exhibitions over the next year and into 2017
is to highlight that quasi-encyclopedic diversity, with shows of both
historical work and that which is more current. “Berkeley Eye: Per-
spectives on the Collection,” “Mind over Matter: Conceptual Art
from the Collection,” “Repentant Monk: Illusion and Disillusion in
the Art of Chen Hongshou,” and “Covered in Time and History:
The Films of Ana Mendieta” are a few of the upcoming exhibitions.
About his new space, Rinder enthusiastically notes that “it’s a new
instrument for me, and it plays well.” Echoing early expressed senti-
ments of the museumgoers, he adds, “It feels great.”
—CHÉRIE LOUISE TURNER
Aerial view from the UC Berkeley Campus of UC Berkeley Art Museum
and Pacific Film Archive, 2016
Diller Scofidio + Renfro
Photo: Iwan Baan
Courtesy: Diller Scofidio + Renfro; EHDD; and UC Berkeley Art Museum
and Pacific FilmArchive (BAMPFA)view Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive