Earlier this week Jacob and I went to D.C. for a few days to visit some museums and—more specifically—to see the Hirshhorn’s Damage Control exhibit. We weren’t disappointed. Damage Control is a power-statement; its context is instantly apparent; it takes a long, long time to fully comprehend. Photography wasn’t allowed on the DC exhibit floor—stay tuned for more photos or a slideshow. It could happen.
About “Damage Control”
On view at the Hirshhorn through May 26, “Damage Control: Art and Destruction Since 1950” offers an overview of the phenomenon of destruction in international contemporary art and culture. The exhibition includes works by artists such as Vija Celmins, Jake and Dinos Chapman, Christian Marclay, Gustav Metzger, Laurel Nakadate, Yoko Ono, Raphael Montañez Ortiz, Robert Rauschenberg, Ed Ruscha and Andy Warhol in a range of mediums, from painting, drawing and sculpture to video, photography and performance. The exhibition is accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue with essays by co-curators Kerry Brougher, interim director and chief curator of the Hirshhorn, and Russell Ferguson, professor of art at UCLA, as well as art historian Dario Gamboni of the University of Geneva.
About the Hirshhorn
The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the Smithsonian’s museum of international modern and contemporary art, has nearly 12,000 paintings, sculptures, photographs, mixed-media installations, works on paper and new media works in its collection. The Hirshhorn presents diverse exhibitions and offers an array of public programs that explore modern and contemporary art. Located at Independence Avenue and Seventh Street S.W., the museum is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (closed Dec. 25). Admission to the galleries and special programs is free. For more information about exhibitions and events, visit hirshhorn.si.edu. Follow the Hirshhorn on Facebook atfacebook.com/hirshhorn, on Twitter at twitter.com/hirshhorn and on Tumblr athirshhorn.tumblr.com. Or sign up for the museum’s eBlasts at hirshhorn.si.edu/collection/social-media.