Love After the Cold War in an Open House
March 3, 2006 | Elif SUNGUR
As a culmination to six months of working and living in Los Angeles, the MAK Center Artists and Architects in Residence will present Love After the Cold War in an Open House of a (Re) Constructed Babylon by a Popular Mechanic. This weekend-long exhibition of their Final Projects will also include work by guest artists from Los Angeles. Offered at the newly renovated Mackey Apartments, the R.M. Schindler-designed building that serves as the residents' home base, the exhibition will be on view from Friday, March 10 through Sunday, March 12, 2006. Awarded through competition, the MAK Center residencies offer international artists and architects the opportunity to pursue projects that engage Southern California, its communities, culture, geographies and heritage. The 21st group of residents has
embraced this mission wholeheartedly, with projects that address the Hollywood dream, Los Angeles real estate, custom car culture and the contemporary architecture of sin.
Russian artist Elena Kovylina explores the potency of the Hollywood dream in her project, Love After the Cold War. She has written a screenplay, announced a new Russian-American co-production and conducted casting sessions for movie-star hopefuls, including both scripted and improvisational work. In Final Projects, Kovylina will present photographic and video materials from these sessions, highlighting the discrepancies between the images Hollywood projects and the reality encountered in pursuit of the idealized dream.
The Berlin-based Grupposenza, represented in L.A. by Benjamin Haupt, Robert Huebser
and David Emmer, is working on a project called (Re-) Constructing Babylon. In the first phase of the project, they conducted field research into Los Angeles strip clubs, brothels, casinos, bars and cults, investigating their architectural manifestations. In the second phase, they are collaborating with Heidi Fleiss to design the first brothel for women, to be located in Crystal, Nevada. In the exhibition, they will present day-to-day documentation of their research, design development and collaborative process with Ms. Fleiss.
In Custom Culture, Austrian artist David Moises will present his study of custom car culture through a series of sculptures made from manipulated vehicles and household appliances. These will be available for use in the Mackey Apartments garage and driveway. The use of this locale mimics both do-it-yourself ingenuity ā la Popular Mechanics and a classic, American pattern for success. As the artist notes, Hewlett- Packard, Ford Motors, Walt Disney and Barbie all began in backyard garages!
Italian-born Sonia Leimer intends to enact a fictional "sale" of the Schindler House. For this "sale," working with a local real estate company, she plans to generate advertisements, stage the Schindler House and give a Sunday afternoon of tours. Her project, Open House, refers to the concept of the Kings Road House, which was planned to be a venue for open discussion, as well as to the real estate business. At the Mackey exhibition, she will display her research via photos, video, drawings and found materials.
In appreciation for the hospitality they have felt from art and architecture professionals, the residents will also present works by Los Angeles colleagues in the Mackey Penthouse, a guest apartment.
Exhibition artists will include Jonathan Ballak, Mika Cho, Zoe Crosher, Skylar Haskard, Nicholas Kersulis, Mayumi Date, Arthur Ou, Nicola Stäglich, Melissa Tolar, Sergio Torres and Richard Wearn. Rob Faucette will perform the Heartsink Sound of Amy Radio, which will be broadcasted with an FM-sender throughout the apartments.
Final Projects will have a free opening reception Friday, March 10, from 7-10 p.m. The
exhibition will remain on view Saturday and Sunday, March 11 and 12, from noon to 6 p.m. The Mackey Apartments are located at 1137 S. Cochran Avenue in the mid- Wilshire section of Los Angeles. The Schindler House is located at 835 N. Kings Road in West Hollywood. There is no admission for Final Projects. For further information please visit http://www.makcenter.org
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