Chris Burden The Big Wheel 1979.
On display now as part of MOCA’s First Thirty Years. After this motorcycle turns the wheel, it spins for 2 1/2 hours.
They started the motorcycle at 3pm on Sunday, I don’t know if you can call ahead and ask when they will be performing it, but try to see it. It is really fun/loud/frightening in a roller coaster kind of way.
via stephenfalk
Chris Burden The Big Wheel 1979
Another great email from MOCA about their current exhibition Collection: MOCA’s First 30 Years. If you have the opportunity to see this show, do. If you live in Los Angeles (or the greater Los Angeles area) no excuses! It is up through May so you have some scheduling time. I know personally, I am going to try and see it at LEAST two more times before then.
“On the first night, when I realized they weren’t going to stop the piece, I was pleased and impressed that they had placed the integrity of the piece ahead of the institutional requirements of the museum.
“On the second night, I thought, my God, don’t they care anything at all about me? Are they going to leave me here to die?
”
—
Chris Burden talking about a performance piece he did for the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago.
Roger Ebert has a marvelous article on the experience that you can read here. (hat tip to atencio)
Chris Burden Shoot 1971
I was not prepared to actually see this. One can read about it, study it, debate about the “art” of it, but actually seeing it? Wow. Can you imagine having actually been there? I would have had a panic attack.
Chris Burden Beam Drop Brazil 2009
Is it premature to say this is my favorite piece of 2009? Jumping the gun? Maybe…
I FOUND IT!!!! It being video from Chris Burden’s Beam Drop in Antwerp from May of this year.
Can you imagine having been there? I don’t understand what they are saying, but the anticipation and excitement in their voices is obvious. To watch something, so large and aggressive, be made just yards away, sigh. It’s a long video, but absolutely hypnotic.
You know what is fun that I hadn’t thought of how noise would play into this, but listening to the groaning of the crane, monotonous but loud and present. Then intermittently dispersed are the sharp metallic sounds of the beams!! My senses are assaulted and I like it.
Chris Burden did a live install* of my favorite Beam Drop at the Middleheim Museum in Antwerp from 9am-9pm on May 30. Quite a few questions come to mind:
*If you think I won’t watch 12 hours of video on this install and liveblog it, then you need to get your mind right. It will probably turn out exactly like this, except with less Tom Selleck.
