US

The 16 Most Absurd, Interesting And Beautiful Pieces In The USA’s Official Modern Art Museum [PICTURES]

Christopher Bedford Former Editor in Chief, The Daily Caller News Foundation
Font Size:

The Smithsonian National Gallery’s East Building, or the modern art museum, is in full swing once again. About $30 million has been spent on updates, like a rooster garden on the roof. Even more was spent on repairing the facade, which, having rejected a thousand years of architectural wisdom, began to fall apart after only three decades.

To commemorate the event, I brought a classical Catholic architect, reformed modernist, professor and former punk rocker, James McCrery, around the building for a look-see. An apostate of sorts, McCrery rebelled under the apprenticeship of renowned modernist Peter Eisenman, going on to study classicism under Allan Greenberg before launching his own architecture firm 10 years ago. Today, he specializes in churches, but his rooms grace the Supreme Court and his sculpture, the U.S. Capitol.

Inside, we found absurdity, occasional beauty, and a few interesting things. Take a look:

  1. Richard Serra’s aptly titled “Five Plates, Two Poles.”

 

Richard Serra's aptly titled "Five plates, two poles."

Richard Serra’s aptly titled “Five Plates, Two Poles.”

What appears to be a perfectly nice window blocked by unsightly highway construction is, in fact, a work of art by the thoroughly serious Mr. Serra. It is among the first things we see after leaving the information booth. Hot-rolled steel, it is exceptionally heavy, denying a dozen critics the ability to budge it one bit.

      2. Alexander Calder’s giant, untitled mobile.

Alexander Calder's giant, untitled mobile.

Alexander Calder’s giant, untitled mobile.

Old visitors will recognize this permanent display, as will citizens of Boston, whose city has been unnecessarily decorated with a number of rusty mobiles. It’s an impressive work of balance, long surviving the motor that once twirled it wispily in circles and whose repair was apparently not budgeted in the millions spent. Today, its heavy pieces shift listlessly to the wonder of modern air conditioning.

3. Carl Andre’s “The Way North, East, South, West.”

Carl Andre's "The Way North, East, South, West."

Carl Andre’s “The Way North, East, South, West.”

“The Way” might look like “a folk-art swastika,” McCrery comments, but in the larger view, it appears to continue the theme of construction materials left behind after nearly $70 million in repairs and upgrades.

4. Tony Smith’s “Die” will take your life away.

Tony Smith's "Die."

Tony Smith’s “Die.”

Not to be outdone by the wooden compass, a block of bronze in the shape of a die, helpfully titled the same, takes up 35 square feet.

Tony Smith's "Die."

Tony Smith’s “Die.”

“The lobby is full of lobby art,” McCrery, who also teaches at Catholic University, mourns. “Could have been curated by Howard Johnson.” But beyond the art appropriately misadorning the lobby, hang some truly beautiful works, peppered with interesting — if not uplifting — pop art.

      5. Pablo Picasso’s “Petrus Manach.”

Pablo Picasso's "Petrus Manach."

Pablo Picasso’s “Petrus Manach.”

Our slightly deranged Spanish friend provides a rare example of classical masculine virtue.

Up a set of cheap-looking, undoubtedly expensive staircases that could have been inspired by a cruise ship, we found what followed.

Staircase in the East Wing.

Staircase in the East Wing.

      6. Jean Dufuffet’s “Bertele as a Blossoming Bouquet, shideshow portrait.”

Jean Dubuffet's "Bertele as a blossoming bouquet, shideshow portrait."

Jean Dubuffet’s “Bertele as a Blossoming Bouquet, shideshow portrait.”

“Hopeless, bleak” McCrery comments.

“What happened?” I ask.

“World war does terrible things to people.”

If there was any doubt the Germans broke Western civilization twice (third’s the charm), take a look at the face of European art in 1947.

      7. His “Building Facades” from the year prior continues the theme, showing Paris as it likely felt in 1946.

"Building Facades," by Jean Debuffet.

“Building Facades,” by Jean Debuffet.

“There was sadness in Paris,” McCrery says, “But it’s an artist’s job to lift up and inspire.”

With Christ to turn to, our art was even beautiful in the painful Middle Ages.

“World war unthethered us. They think we’re ‘free,’ but they’re just untethered.”

      8. Wayne Thiebaud’s “Cakes.”

Wayne Thiebaud's "Cakes."

Wayne Thiebaud’s “Cakes.”

On the way forward, we encountered a tasty focus on texture — or technique — over beauty, with delightful results if your aim is to decorate a bakery.

Wayne Thiebaud's "Cakes," detail.

Wayne Thiebaud’s “Cakes,” detail.

This, of course, beat out the glass-counter displays next-door:

      9. Claes Oldernburg’s to-the-point “Glass Case with Pies (assorted pies in case).”

Claes Oldernburg's to-the-point "Glass Case with Pies (assorted pies in case)."

Claes Oldernburg’s to-the-point “Glass Case with Pies (assorted pies in case).”

But there’s more:

      10. And it keeps coming, with Fred Sandback’s “Untitled (gray corner construction).”

Fred Sandback's "Untitled (gray corner construction)."

Fred Sandback’s “Untitled (gray corner construction).”

“If this were in a house you bought, you’d want it removed,” he says, scanning the sculptures. And we’re just getting started.

      11. “Hotels, Carrall St., Vancouver, Summer 2005” by Jeff Wall.

"Hotels, Carrall St., Vancouver, Summer 2005" by Jeff Wall.

“Hotels, Carrall St., Vancouver, Summer 2005” by Jeff Wall.

“How very meta of you,” McCrery feigns. “A photo of a photo. But he sold it. It’s as if artists exist to prove someone is stupider than they are.”

But then, when room after room it looked like the Germans had ruined the world forever, a glimpse of light, barely visible to the then-nearly blind artist catches McCrery’s attention.

      12. Henri Mattise is back on display, with the paper-on-paper cut outs he’d used with the help of an assistant once his sight had begun to fail.

Henri Mattise..

Henri Mattise..

Without a sharp eye, he returned to his roots, working with patterns.

Henri Mattise..

Henri Mattise..

      13. Barnett Newman’s fourteen “Stations of the Cross” are well-suited to number 13, lacking any Christianity at all.

Barnett Newman’s fourteen "Stations of the Cross."

Barnett Newman’s fourteen “Stations of the Cross.”

      14. But if you are a fan of Mark Rothko, you really must come anyway.

Mark Rothko.

Mark Rothko.

“If you have one of them, it’s a blob,” an impressed McCrery comments. “If you have this many, it’s a collection.”

And then to the roof, where you can host quite the cocktail party if you don’t mind the company of a giant bird.

The roof of the redone East Wing.

The roof of the redone East Wing.

      15. Katharina Fritsch’s “Hahn/Cock.”

Katharina Fritsch's "Hahn/Cock."

Katharina Fritsch’s “Hahn/Cock.”

In case you were wondering if Washington was ahead or behind in the culture game, this blue rooster was previously displayed on Trafalgar Square. “How distinguished.”

It’s worth an inspection.

Katharina Fritsch's "Hahn/Cock."

Katharina Fritsch’s “Hahn/Cock.”

      16. Having climbed so high in the renewed building, don’t miss the Calder room.

The Calder room at the National Gallery, East Wing. Photo by John-Donges, Flikr. http://bit.ly/2iqARzq.

The Calder room at the National Gallery, East Wing. Photo by John-Donges, Flikr. http://bit.ly/2iqARzq.

A wonderland of shadows, balance and fantasy, it’s like if F.A.O. Schwartz had built a museum to Isaac Newton. “The big thing out there in the lobby is a cartoon,” McCrery says. “These… Dr. Seuss should be so creative.”

If you’re a fan of the classics, focus on the other side. But “if this museum is from a curatorial standpoint, it’s damn impressive.”

Follow Bedford on Twitter

PREMIUM ARTICLE: Subscribe To Keep Reading

Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!

Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!

Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!

Sign Up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
Sign up

By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use

You're signed up!
BENEFITS READERS PASS PATRIOTS FOUNDERS
Daily and Breaking Newsletters
Daily Caller Shows
Ad Free Experience
Exclusive Articles
Custom Newsletters
Editor Daily Rundown
Behind The Scenes Coverage
Award Winning Documentaries
Patriot War Room
Patriot Live Chat
Exclusive Events
Gold Membership Card
Tucker Mug

What does Founders Club include?

Tucker Mug and Membership Card
Founders

Readers,

Instead of sucking up to the political and corporate powers that dominate America, The Daily Caller is fighting for you — our readers. We humbly ask you to consider joining us in this fight.

Now that millions of readers are rejecting the increasingly biased and even corrupt corporate media and joining us daily, there are powerful forces lined up to stop us: the old guard of the news media hopes to marginalize us; the big corporate ad agencies want to deprive us of revenue and put us out of business; senators threaten to have our reporters arrested for asking simple questions; the big tech platforms want to limit our ability to communicate with you; and the political party establishments feel threatened by our independence.

We don't complain -- we can't stand complainers -- but we do call it how we see it. We have a fight on our hands, and it's intense. We need your help to smash through the big tech, big media and big government blockade.

We're the insurgent outsiders for a reason: our deep-dive investigations hold the powerful to account. Our original videos undermine their narratives on a daily basis. Even our insistence on having fun infuriates them -- because we won’t bend the knee to political correctness.

One reason we stand apart is because we are not afraid to say we love America. We love her with every fiber of our being, and we think she's worth saving from today’s craziness.

Help us save her.

A second reason we stand out is the sheer number of honest responsible reporters we have helped train. We have trained so many solid reporters that they now hold prominent positions at publications across the political spectrum. Hear a rare reasonable voice at a place like CNN? There’s a good chance they were trained at Daily Caller. Same goes for the numerous Daily Caller alumni dominating the news coverage at outlets such as Fox News, Newsmax, Daily Wire and many others.

Simply put, America needs solid reporters fighting to tell the truth or we will never have honest elections or a fair system. We are working tirelessly to make that happen and we are making a difference.

Since 2010, The Daily Caller has grown immensely. We're in the halls of Congress. We're in the Oval Office. And we're in up to 20 million homes every single month. That's 20 million Americans like you who are impossible to ignore.

We can overcome the forces lined up against all of us. This is an important mission but we can’t do it unless you — the everyday Americans forgotten by the establishment — have our back.

Please consider becoming a Daily Caller Patriot today, and help us keep doing work that holds politicians, corporations and other leaders accountable. Help us thumb our noses at political correctness. Help us train a new generation of news reporters who will actually tell the truth. And help us remind Americans everywhere that there are millions of us who remain clear-eyed about our country's greatness.

In return for membership, Daily Caller Patriots will be able to read The Daily Caller without any of the ads that we have long used to support our mission. We know the ads drive you crazy. They drive us crazy too. But we need revenue to keep the fight going. If you join us, we will cut out the ads for you and put every Lincoln-headed cent we earn into amplifying our voice, training even more solid reporters, and giving you the ad-free experience and lightning fast website you deserve.

Patriots will also be eligible for Patriots Only content, newsletters, chats and live events with our reporters and editors. It's simple: welcome us into your lives, and we'll welcome you into ours.

We can save America together.

Become a Daily Caller Patriot today.

Signature

Neil Patel