10/20/03

A thought-provoking collection of modern works in a city where art is usually defined as the latest sequel.

by Contributor

The Scene
Financed by private donations and developed with pieces acquired from private collections, MOCA has grown into one of the West Coast's premier showcases of modern art. The museum was erected in 1983 as the Temporary Contemporary--a former hardware store refurbished by L.A. architect Frank Gehry--while the permanent site at California Plaza was under construction. This main building opened three years later in an architecturally striking complex designed by Arata Isozaki. Gehry's celebrated site lost its "temporary" tag and was re-christened MOCA at the Geffen Contemporary.

The Collection
Understanding and exhibiting art created since 1940 are the primary objectives here. The museum's permanent collection features a growing selection of challenging work by postwar artists such as Diebenkorn, de Kooning, Hockney, Lichtenstein, Mondrian, Pollock, Rauschenberg and Rothko. MOCA hosted a major Andy Warhol retrospective during summer 2002; it was the only North American stop for the blockbuster show.

08/08/02

Very impressive

by sky1977

I never thought that a museum with contemporary art can be this awesome. After visiting about 12 major museums in LA area, this is the #1 I would recommend to friends.

08/08/02

nice

by miumiu11

i went to see the warhol exhibit and it was really great. i'm going back to see it again in a week!

05/22/02

A museum for Everyone.

by izelmorena

MOCA is the place to go to see artists from the 1940's to Contemporary. If you want to see Impressionist or Flemish Paintings go to LACMA. MOCA has always kept its exhibitions innovative with live performance artists (DJ Spooky), post-war classics (Willem De Kooning).

With all the readily available information that the curators supply, this make it a great place to take kids and people who aren't submerged in the art world, but would like a taste. Full descriptions of what is being presented and interesting quotes by the artists are on the walls and in the flyers. Books on the artists being shown are also available for visitors to review. Tours are also available for anyone who wants extra inside information on the artist, work and display of the works.

• Pros: Curators, Available Information, Varied Artists
• Cons: none.

05/20/02

A great space for art

by DavidStansbury

Well-designed galleries that offer works up to the viewer rather than close them off. The Hockney show was well-done--taking a large and varied collection of a life's work and making good sense of it all. More managable in scope than LACMA, all of MOCA's galleries can be easily seen in an afternoon--very little museum fatigue at the end of a visit.

05/15/02

Grade-A Art Space

by RichardTate

I've been to MOCA for art shows (like Hockney in 2001) and architecture retrospectives (like Louis Kahn in 1993), and I'm always amazed at how the gallery spaces are reinvented for each exhibit. For a small museum, this one consistenly delivers. The facility itself is a fun bit of L.A. architecture as well, situated amid high rise apartment buildings and elevated above busy downtown streets. Parking is also convenient.

• Pros: Great setting, Good parking, Good shows