Alec Merchant
Staff Writer
“California Song,” a collection of works from fashion designer turned artist, Hedi Slimane, promises great things but falls flat, drained of originality and finesse.
Showcased at the Pacific Design Center MOCA location is “California Song,” a series of still lifes and portraits that tell the story of Slimane, the exhibits lone contributor, and his view of what California’s urban youth is. However, the task of bringing the California sun-ray subculture alive looks as if it was halfheartedly approached.
Jumping on the map in the early ‘90s, Slimane gained prominence in the French fashion industry. After years of making a name for himself, Slimane turned his attention to his first passion, art. With a background in design and photography, it was not long before he would attract attention in the art world as well.
Meant to give an insight on California’s youth, the exhibition doesn’t provide anything more than a collection of generic stills. Well framed and rich black and white portraits dress unstained geometric wood structures on the first floor, acting as a preface for the main installation. For a subject matter so involved in leisure, the fluidity and edge of the Cali-culture is lost in the translation to the canvas.
The main attraction of the collection is the geometric cube on the second floor. Projected onto each side of the cube are photos resembling the ones on the first floor. During the slide show, ambient music composed by California punk-band No Age sets a mood meant to be moving, but ends up tiresome.
As room consistently black in all corners, the main installation looks rather “do-it-yourself” and unflattering. Other than a metal pipe formation holding up a dozen mixed and matched amplifiers, the room is interesting, but not very creative.
Amidst the photos changing on each side of the cube, there are pictures of supposed southern California culture: typewriters, bikes and the beach, still rudimentary in form. The whole process feels rushed, from the simplistic looking structures on the bottom floor to the amateur photography and the underwhelming main installation, ultimately bringing nothing new to the art world.
“California Song,” feels more like a stepping stone than it does a big break for artist Slimane, the show is barren and devoid of much originality, not one of MOCA’s best.
The exhibit is free and at the Pacific Design Center MOCA location.
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