Foundation Louis Vuitton Basks in Bright Spotlight of its Major Jean-Michel Basquiat Exhibition

A few months ago while pondering art, a news item crossed my desk regarding the first major exhibition in years for Jean-Michel Basquiat.

My eyes and ears perked up for the potential opportunity to experience more works by the artist who rose to prominence during the 1980's.

The attention-grabbing article stated the Foundation Louis Vuitton in Paris would present 120 Basquiat works in one venue during late autumn to mid-January.

C'est magnifique!

In consideration of a potential trip to the City of Lights, I recalled my first encounter with Basquiat's craft, which took place in 2016 at The Broad, downtown LA's outstanding modern art assemblage (the museum was created by a married couple whose family name and art collection each rhyme with mother lode).

At The Broad, Basquiat's grand "Untitled" head canvas transfixed me, though I had no idea nor context that it was part of a series.

"Big Snow" via ArtNet.com

A few months later (spring 2017), at the gift shop for the Pompidou Center in Paris, another Basquiat quietly entered my experience, this time with the a five-ringed connection as the painter's work titled "Big Snow" referenced the 1984 Olympic Games, possibly on a TV in his studio while he worked on the piece. On this canvas (right), Basquiat also referenced Jesse Owens at the Berlin 1936 Games.

Closer to home, in September I was reminded there's also a vivid Basquiat in the permanent collection of the High Museum of Art, perhaps the best acquisition our Atlanta-museum-that-could actually did purchase.

I don't often splurge on "art travel," but a few weeks after reading the initial exhibition headlines, in late October my Moscow-based girlfriend Valentina mentioned she also read about other showstopping exhibitions taking place in Paris -- specifically, a blue and pink Picasso exhibition at Museum D'Orsay, and a Pompidou presentation of Cubism -- and this art trifecta emerged as the tipping point to meet in France.

An art weekend in Paris, just before Christmas, with my Russian girlfriend?

Twist our arms!

As it turned out, during our four-day art adventure (Nov. 30 to Dec. 4) we trekked to Foundation Louis Vuitton deux fois as the museum closed for one of those big weekend protests that made headlines worldwide.

"Sorry, folks -- museum's closed!"

Bummed at our denied access upon our first arrival on a Saturday, we vowed to return and snapped a daytime selfie (left) with the exhibition's promo poster, noting the illustrated figure held aloft something resembling an Olympic torch.

We later learned this image is part of a much larger 1984 work titled "Grillo" featuring likenesses for African gods of war.

Also learned (weeks later) Basquiat did create at least three Olympic-themed works, included at the base of this post, not seen at Foundation Louis Vuitton but "out there" to be experienced in person on a future art sojourn.

I was relieved and so pleased when we finally got in our two hours of Basquiat on a Monday evening, as the exhibition was not too crowded, enabling a leisurely pace to explore not one but four levels of the museum in which the Basquiat paintings hung in near-chronological order.

The image atop this blog post shows the view we experienced upon entering the exhibition. According to the Foundation press release, this "exceptional trilogy of big Heads from 1981-1983" accompanied a "presentation of works ... on the theme of the street, used as a studio, source of inspiration, living body."

Street art was the vibe. Amazing street art.

I found this gateway into Basquiat the most compelling of the exhibition sections spanning almost 10 galleries. In the first rooms, the work titled "Brett as a Negro" (above right) drew me in as it features acrylic applied almost like finger paint to 100 mint-green subway tiles.

This graffiti-like head left me wondering did the private collection owner pry these tiles from a New York metro station wall?

The exhibition's intro section also featured social commentary via the stern gaze of law enforcement portrayed in "La Hara" and "Irony of a Negro Policeman," both from 1981.

On level two we discovered the exhibition's only obvious five-ringed connection with the mostly red canvas "Cassius Clay" on view steps from a much larger "St. Joe Louis Surrounded by Snakes" and facing an installation of nearly three dozen more faces/heads drawn by Basquiat.

We also learned more about his proficiency with oilstick and collage.

The second gallery featured some of the brightest colors, and the canvases started getting bigger and bolder, punctuated by "Boy and Dog in a Johnnypump" (left) on loan from a foundation in Greenwich, Conn.

That was a fast graduation from street to fine art!

Though the bright colors and larger works provided surprises and intrigue, I found myself less moved by some of the artist's homages to musical heroes, notably Charlie Parker.

Instead the showcase of Basquiat's collaboration with Andy Warhol provided the most new-to-my-growing-Basquiat-knowledge and fandom. The vast and complex word-infused works made me dizzy in the best way.

No "Big Snow" on view? No big deal.

The monumental "Unbreakable" (right) seemed to showcase greatest hits of so many favorite painters I now believe Basquiat also studied and admired.

It's tragic the twentysomething artist's life ended too soon -- God only knows what more brilliance could emerge had more time and growth sans drug addiction and other demons been possible.

Through wall text, and later in the exhibition's thorough catalogue (a must-read for any Basquiat fan -- an excellent read on the long flight home), we learned the artist's final months included the loss and mourning of multiple mentors and friends, making the last work on view "Riding With Death" even more somber.

Nevertheless, we left the museum exhilarated and hungry for more Basquiat tout de suite. The exhibition closes 21 January, but will reside in fond memories for a lifetime.

Photos by Nicholas Wolaver except credited image of "Big Snow" and the three Olympic images below, none of which appeared in the museum exhibition.

Dozens of Media Follow The Sun and LA2024 to IOC Evaluation Commission Meetings May 10-12

More than 150 media from at least five continents descended on Los Angeles in recent days for the International Olympic Committee's 2024 Evaluation Commission meetings opening today and continuing through Friday.

The IOC will hear presentations and pose questions to guide the selection of the 2024 summer Games host city, with their vote set to take place in Lima, Peru, this September.

Unofficial media hospitality events kicked off Tuesday as the LA2024 Olympic bid team signed in arriving media at the press room at LA Live, the downtown entertainment district inclusive of Staples Center and the GRAMMY Museum.

About two dozen early arrivals joined LA2024's media relations team and other officials for an "authentic Angelino commute" including a short downtown walk and ride on the city's expanding Metro system.

Disembarking at the Hollywood station, attendees enjoyed a green room experience and mini-concert during the taping of the May 9 episode of "Jimmy Kimmel Live."

Kimmel took time between segments to visit with media and answer a few questions about his take on Los Angeles' bid to host the city's third Olympiad following 1932 and 1984.

When asked whether and which Olympiads he had personally experiences, Kimmel answered that he attended the Games in Atlanta and London and enjoyed both tremendously.

The late night comedian also joked with international reporters from Inside The Games regarding the outlet's neon green and hot pink colors on a staff writer's necktie.

The media entourage returned to downtown for a walk beside the iconic LA City Hall, Los Angeles Times offices, Disney Theater and The Broad museum, each lit up in the soft pink and purple colors of the LA2024 "Follow The Sun" logo.

Dinner at one of the city's newest and highly rated restaurants -- Otium -- included eight exquisite courses served from an open kitchen reminiscent of the prep area in Peter Greenaway's film "The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover" (I even spotted a young and blonde sous chef grating carrots to top the evening's dessert, much like movie's young cook's assistant).

Olympic gymnastics champion Nastia Liukin spoke briefly to provide a five-ringed welcome.

Today media will attend an opening session before a full day of venue tours. I'll post photos and updates later today as the bus is loading.

Photos by Nicholas Wolaver

LA's Museum The Broad = Modern Art Mother Lode

The phrase "mother lode" is a mining term tethered to the California gold rush.

Thanks to a family of progressive Los Angeles collectors, contemporary art lovers may now strike it rich with a visit to the state's newest museum, The Broad. 

Just reading about The Broad in 2014 and last year made me state aloud, "I wish Atlanta had its own art loving billionaire supercouple" like Eli and Edythe Broad (rhymes with "road").

The ATL has its share of billionaire couples, mind you, but sadly none of them have a passion for art on par with their love of fish and football. The "Mouth of the South" gives his money to U.N.-centric and other philanthropic projects, which leaves Anne Cox Chambers, John Wieland and a handful of others to try to keep the city's arts scene as close to world class as possible.

To their credit, these Atlanta arts patrons are indeed generous, but I don't think any of them are buying art the way the Broad family did.

A trip to The Broad yields room after room of fantastic contemporary and modern works by brand-name artists. My jaw dropped upon beholding the collection's massive Roy Lichtenstein canvas "Interior with African Mask" and, steps away, an entire room filled with other works spanning the artist's career. 

Need a dose of Andy Warhol? Then feast your eyes on another room full of his works.

And then there's the Jeff Koons sculptures -- remember those? You won't soon forget them once spotting the enormous "Balloon Dog (Blue)" and bokay of flowers titled "Tulips."

Damien Hirst? Check. Jean-Michel Basquiat? Check. Jasper Johns and Keith Haring? Check.

There's nobody in Atlanta who seems to be shopping for this stuff! Obviously, I wish they were.

New-to-my-eyes artist Mark Tansey made an impression with two large monochrome oil on canvas works titled "Achilles and the Tortoise" (a science versus nature statement) and "Forward Retreat."

A 1995 piece my Lari Pittman provided 25 minutes of study time. A case full of three-dimensional steel cutouts by Kara Walker was another fresh artist that left an impression.

Like the blood sought by vampires in "Only Lovers Left Alive," The Broad has the good stuff! They have so much good stuff, they built in a stairwell window enticing visitors to gaze into their cavernous on-site art storage room that teases of other greatness just waiting to dazzle in a future spotlight exhibition.

Hello! They did not just buy a Basquiat. They picked out several. And they are huge canvases, not the notebook leftovers. 

The only collector I've heard of who even comes close to the Broad family in terms of art acquisitions is Alice Walton, who continues to gather glorious works for Crystal Bridges in Bentonville, Ark. (more on that collection here). 

The Broad not only presents fantastic contemporary art, but the building itself presents a masterpiece of light and shadow that can actually be seen from the street instead of from the sky like this design hidden from pedestrian view outdoors.

Just driving by or walking up to The Broad -- located in the block south of another head-turning building, the Walt Disney Symphony Hall -- gets visitors minds and hearts racing with an architectural proclamation that "this is going to be an intriguing museum."

Entering the museum from the street, guests are directed to a cavernous escalator that opens up to that Koons work "Tulips." 

I must admit to some agreement with the Washington Post's critical view of The Broad collection -- there are elements that are all over the place, or just not my cup of tea.

But for this writer, the pros far outweigh any cons of contemporary art purchases by Mr. and Mrs. Broad.

Love the room filled with edgy conversation starters by John Currin including "Anna" as well as "Old Couple" "Patch and Pearl" "Maenads" and "The Storm."

A few logistical notes for future visitors:

Tickets are (amazingly) FREE. With that said, tickets require advance reservations, with many dates and time ranges filled weeks in advance. I noticed a handful of walk-up visitors did seem to eventually get in after a patient wait, but planning ahead and playing it safe with a reservation is highly recommended to save time and consternation.

Parking is available beneath The Broad, but like other popular LA destinations, rates ain't cheap. The good news is that other museums and several places to dine are within walking distance, so one may make a day of their downtown visit and benefit from the daily versus hourly parking rate.

I highly recommend the newly reviewed on-site Otium Restaurant, which LA Times critic Jonathan Gold named the city's "most ambitious new restaurant in years."

If the Cultural Olympiad remains a component of the 2024 Olympic bid process, then the LA24 bid committee may benefit from collaboration with The Broad -- this writer can hardly wait for another opportunity to explore the collection on site.

For readers who made it this far in the post, a potential reward: Two VIP Passes to The Broad! With thanks to the museum public relations department for my ticket (and a pair of giveaway tickets) to the museum, I am giving away a free pair of General Admission "no line no waiting" VIP Passes to The Broad.

To win this pair of tickets, simply POST A COMMENT on this blog by Tuesday, May 31, 2016, at midnight Eastern Standard Time. I will put the names of comment providers into a hat and mail the passes to the person whose name is drawn. Thank you for reading about The Broad via Olympic Rings And Other Things!

Photos by Nicholas Wolaver