Bo and Microbo, (Milan)
Photo copyright Wooster Collective
You know, I like the Wooster Collective, but their three day exhibition of ephemeral art, Wooster on Spring has turned their blog into a positive energy reporting, MoMA-comparing, jock expletive bonanza. There's only so much self-love a person can take. Ask Sara and Marc if they knew the event would be “this fucking huge” (their words), and according to them you will expect their response to be “How can you ever anticipate that kind of madness? Of course not.” Typically AFC doesn't anticipate a reply that serves only to reiterate the promotional point that the event was well attended, but maybe w e aren't the mcweb audience the collective seemed to have in mind when they penned that line.
“In truth,” they continue, “we knew all along that it was going to be this big.” And of course, regardless of whether they actually foresaw the size of the event, it has to be said that it really was a zoo out there this weekend. Wooster Collective explains the reason for this, graciously providing this illuminating quote from Grafitti artist Cycle on the quality of the exhibition,
“Damn, it’s like a temporary MOMA in here. It’s what MOMA should be, but unfortunately never will be. One of these days guys like Doze Green and others in this room will be in places like the MOMA. But until then, they’re in here. I’ve never seen, or experienced, anything like this in my life “
Let's not forget that Graffiti Basics is currently up at the Brooklyn Museum, so it's not like “ephemeral” art isn't enjoying some institutional credit. As if gratuitous MoMA comparison isn't enough they follow the clip up with artist Doze Green's PS1 sentiments,
“Nothing like this has happened in New York since PS1 opened back in the day. The energy of Haring and Basquait, you can feel it in these walls. This is truly something special that probably won’t happen again in a long, long time.”
Now, I'm not going to sit here and dismiss the sentiments of these artists — if they think this exhibition is like an early PS1 or a temporary MoMA that's fine with me — but I will take issue with publishing such sentiments without making an effort to substantiate them. What specifically should MoMA be but isn't? What did MoMA Queens as a temporary space fail to do, that Wooster Collective achieves? Where is this “energy” they speak of coming from, and why is it akin to that of Haring and Basquit? There are no answers provided to these questions, and quite frankly, I don't believe the ones they would find would support the statements published on their blogs. Wooster Collective can support the statements of those who compare them to MoMA if they want, but they can't expect that it won't challenge their credibility if they don't make an attempt to back it up with anything more than a few expletives and reports of large crowds and well known attendees.
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