Ed Moses (1926–2018)

Our daily round-up of news from the art world

Ed Moses (1926–2018) | The artist Ed Moses has died in Los Angeles at the age of 91. Hailed as one of the most important figures in postwar West Coast art, Moses blazed a trail for abstract painting and experimented with a wide range of materials. He first came to prominence in the late 1950s, when his early shows at Los Angeles’s Ferus Gallery saw him joining a roster of artists that included Ed Kienholz, Robert Irwin and Ed Ruscha – a group colloquially referred to as ‘the Cool School’. Moses, whose work is held in the collections of most major American modern art museums, was primarily interested in exploring the nature and limits of painting itself. For a full appreciation of his life and work, see the obituary in the LA Times.

Report recommends transforming Toronto’s Old City Hall into museum | Toronto’s Old City Hall could be transformed into a museum of the city’s history after it ceases to function as a courthouse in 2021. According to the Toronto Star, city officials are recommending that parts of the historic structure be converted into a ‘Museum of Toronto’ incorporating temporary and permanent exhibits as well as a public library. Completed in 1899 to house the municipal government, the building is one of Toronto’s most prominent structures, and has been designated as a National Historic Site since 1984. The city council will vote on the proposal later in January.

Frank Lloyd Wright building destroyed in Montana | One of Frank Lloyd Wright’s final built structures has been demolished by a developer in Whitefish, Montana. The Lockridge Medical Clinic was designed in 1958, shortly before the architect’s death, was bulldozed overnight on 10 January. The demolition took place in spite of a campaign to preserve it. According to Artforum, the Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy was unable to raise the funds demanded by developer Mick Ruis. It is the first Lloyd Wright building to be demolished in more than 40 years.

Hamburg museum pulls Bruce Weber retrospective | The Deichtorhallen art centre in Hamburg has cancelled its planned Bruce Weber retrospective in response to allegations of sexual misconduct by the 71-year -old photographer. According to ArtNet, the exhibition was originally planned to take place in October, but has now been suspended indefinitely. ‘We will definitely not show Bruce Weber this year’, a spokeswoman from the Deichtorhallen told the Hamburger Abendblatt (German language article).

Dennis Oppenheim sculpture destroyed in Busan | A sculpture by the late artist Dennis Oppenheim created for South Korea’s Busan Biennale has been destroyed on the orders of city officials. Installed in 2011 and titled Chamber, the work had begun to rust, prompting complaints from locals. According to the South China Morning Post, the district office that ordered the sculpture’s removal had failed to notify Oppenheim’s estate.

Recommended reading | In the London Review of Books, T.J. Clark reviews ‘Cézanne Portraits’ at the National Portrait Gallery, providing a close reading of an exhibition he describes as a ‘great occasion’. In the Guardian Alex Rayner writes about Man Ray’s years in Los Angeles, and Martin Filler writes about the Bronx Museum’s ‘Gordon Matta-Clark: Anarchitect’ in the New York Review of Books. Finally, in Art News Alex Greenberger pays tribute to the artist Ed Moses, who died this week at the age of 91.