Museums and Subcultural Appeal

I just heard a small snippet of John Cleese on No Dogs or Philosophers Allowed where he questioned our ability to live in the moment if much of our present is spent repairing the past or preparing for the future.



I found this looking at Lorna Dee Cervantes' blog
which i found looking for the poem "The Body as Braille"
which i found while looking for more information about Olafur Eliasson's installation "The Body as Brain"
which i found on his website,
which i visted to find more about his most recent installation at the SFMoMA,
which i visited trying to find out if Devendra Banhart is in fact in an upcoming Romantic Comedy. He is not, to my knowledge, but is a major part of an exhibit entitled "Abstract Rhythms: Paul Klee and Devendra Banhart".


now for a massive digression:

I'm not quite sure how I feel about the increasing attempts of museums to direct their attention at "the kids" by luring them in through sub/counter-cultural attractions like Devendra's --his name apparently means "king of gods") -- upcoming performance/simulcast (which are sold out/available for $8.00).

A few years ago, I saw DJ Spooky (Paul D. Miller) as part of a starbuck's sponsored event at the MFAH, in conjunction with an impressively comprehensive Basquiat exhibit. At the time I was doing a lot of research into appropriation art/culture, and he seemed to be gaining "academia clout", but somehow when i listened to his music, it failed to make the same leaps. I suppose I expected him to be utilizing "the mix" and his power as a "DJ" (buzzwords for his ideas) to reflect some of the musical and cultural influences that were reflected in Jean Michel Basquiat's work, but he ended up playing songs that you would expect to hear in a run-of-the-mill club, and making overall boring "re-mixes" of videos. The high point was "satisfaction", the rolling stones video where the room gets filled with bubbles. Either way, I was not enticed by Spooky's performance to look at or even consider the paintings and sculptures that served as little more than an elaborate backdrop for his DJ station. I didn't stay all night, and was less than attentive. however, i did attend on 2 other occasions, on DJ Spooky-free days.

The point is, I'm not sure how much events like this really foster lasting participation or interest in the arts, if _____ locust can simply come, gobble up a musical performance by their favorite "hippie, dippy" artist, glance at some stuff on the walls and never return to the museum or even consider the work of Paul Klee. This is an overall cynical response, based on a bad experience, but worth considering.

For the record, today, I like both DB's art and music. I wish him the best in his endeavor, and hope he will shatter the expectations of anyone who is equally disenchanted with institutional art's youth-targeted PR.