Out of Sight

February 2, 2015
In this enjoyable and well-researched book, arts journalist Hackman presents a rich cultural history of Los Angeles art in the 1950s and ’60s, arguing that L.A. art “tells us more about the sort of country America was at mid-century, and the sort of place it was rapidly becoming, than does the self-conscious and sophisticated art of New York at the time.” Hackman concentrates on curator Walter Hopps—a “Wizard of Oz” character in the early days of the L.A. scene—and the artists who surrounded him, such as Marcel Duchamp, Judy Chicago, John Baldessari, Bruce Nauman, and Ed Kienholz, with whom Hopps founded the Ferus Gallery in 1957. Hackman is most engaging when he dwells on larger issues, such as the city’s geography, right-wing activism, and the conflict between “bohemia, masculinity, and sexuality in 1950s America.” The book—one of several recent titles to explore postwar art in L.A. (such as Michael Fallon’s Creating the Future)—serves as further proof of L.A.’s centrality to the story of American art. Illus. Agent: Laurie Fox, Linda Chester Literary Agency.

February 15, 2015

This is a deeply absorbing account of the midcentury years during which Los Angeles's once-marginal art scene transformed into a prominent locus of the avant-garde. Hackman (Inside the Getty), an arts journalist and former managing editor at the J. Paul Getty Trust, focuses on individuals who were instrumental in engineering this cultural metamorphosis, most notably Walter Hopps (1932-2005) and the Ferus Gallery he founded with sculptor Ed Kienholz (1927-94). Ferus was the epicenter of a couple of dozen galleries that set up shop along West Hollywood's La Cienega Blvd. in the early 1960s, exposing a vibrant community of artists--including such notables as Ed Ruscha, Peter Voulkos, and Judy Chicago--to the world. The author's prose is engaging, infused with deft turns of phrase (e.g., describing one collector as resembling "some rare species of egret in pinstripes"). An amusing chapter covers Hopps's challenges and successes as head of the Pasadena Art Museum, once a bastion of Waspy club ladies who were repulsed by Hopps's showcasing of Marcel Duchamp and pop art. Hackman uses such stories about people and institutions to annotate the cultural geography of L.A., adroitly chronicling how, where, and why an enduring art scene was established. VERDICT A thoroughly researched history of a great city's creative zeitgeist, recalling a time when art and artists were more accessible; this will appeal to anyone interested in contemporary art.--Douglas F. Smith, Oakland P.L.

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