Is This Really So Much Worse Than The Usual Hirshhorn Show?

Where: Hirshhorn Museum

When: closing May 13, 2018

This show is a survey of New York art from the 1980s.  It shows artists engaging with the topic of commercialism in American society, and overall, they take a dim view of that.  When I saw this was open, I made plans to see it, feeling my usual lack of interest in another of the Hirshhorn's Bataan Death March shows (those that take up the entire 2nd floor, and make you think you'll never get to the end of them).

Then, I read Philip Kennicott's scathing review of the show in the Post.  (Note: you may need to subscribe to see this; since I do pony up the $$ to have access, I'm never sure what's free and what isn't.)  He thinks the show is crass and the art on display ugly.  "Well," I thought to myself, "how would that be different from any other Hirshhorn show?"  'Cause if you want to see ugly art, the Hirshhorn is your destination.

So, I decided to take a different approach to this show; rather than go and see if I like the art or not, I decided I would go to see if this art was so awful that it would stand out from the usual offerings at the concrete donut.  My opinion: it's the usual collection of dreadful stuff.

I will say, not all of it is bad.  I really like Barbara Kruger's pieces, and having her words plastered all over the escalators gives me something to appreciate every time I come.  I was glad to see more of her work.  I also liked Donald Moffett's images of Ronald Reagan entitled "He Kills Me."  The AIDS related art really brought back that time period, not a pleasant experience, obviously, but quite effective.

The rest of it?  Ludicrous.  We had a can of AJAX on a wooden shelf, a rug shampooer hanging in front of a fluorescent light and something called "Untitled Furniture Sculpture" by Ken Lum.  It was literally couches, tables and lamps in a square - like you would see in a furniture store.  I could understand if these objects were all made of plaster; then they would be actual sculptures.  But they're not.  It's furniture.  If this is art, then so is the display at IKEA.

Verdict: The Hirshhorn's usual nonsense, with a few exceptions; not worth the walk around the building, unless you need to hit your 10,000 steps for the day.