Allan Kaprow | Art As Life, at the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA, from March 23 - June 30, 2008.

Walking through Little Tokyo, downtown L.A. today, I was drawn to one of MOCA's exhibit posters of a black & white photo of women licking jam off the hood of a car. The piece, by Allan Kaprow, was intriguing enough for me to want to see more. I was not familiar with Kaprow's work, so it was one more reason to wonder into MOCA on a beautiful Thursday afternoon. I was pleasantly surprised by the show. Essentially, Kaprow describes himself as a Non-Artist or Un-Artist, and his work is more appropriately referred to as a "Happening". The whole exhibit is interactive. From the projectors, on which visitors are encouraged to chose the slide of their choice from metal baskets filled with different slide images, to multiple antique typewriters and piles of strange collage paper to type on, to a maze made out of fencing & neon lights with a paper shredder in the center for visitors to shred to their heart's content and discard the shredding all over the ground. The area with blue furniture, including a piano, is for visitors to move things around... and try to play the piano. One big art-mess party, if you ask me (which is a good thing!). This museum show is great for children. Definitely one they will enjoy & remember for a long time. Of course, no cameras allowed. (There was no rule about carrying your Blackberry sideways, though...)

"Fancy Shoes On a Piano" by Emmelie Brunetti.