New MOCA readies for opening

The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) Cleveland is finally set to open its new building in the Uptown neighborhood of University Circle, starting with a few events this weekend and the first official admission of the public this coming Monday.

Beginning with the HEX party on the evening of Saturday, Oct. 6 — which is being billed as a spellbinding, three-tiered VIP event — MOCA members will then be invited to check out the new digs from noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 7. The opening ceremonies then culminate with Free Public Day on Monday, Oct. 8, where admission will be free to all visitors from 1-6 p.m.

The museum looked very near full completion at a media tour this past Monday, with only minor things such as sweeping the floors, finishing up the entrances and getting a few things put away left to be done.

The initial exhibit, Inside Out and From the Ground Up, was largely in place on the museums fourth floor, including an incredible Henrique Oliveira creation that appears as if it’s tearing down a connected wall, while also allowing you to glance inside its structure.

Piece by artist Henrique Oliveira

The paintings by Jacqueline Humphries were impressive as well, their location just opposite the windows on the museum’s top floor allowing for striking interaction between the natural light and metallic, shiny composition of the pieces.

Pieces by artist Jacqueline Humphries

But ultimately, it is two aspects of the museum’s structure that figure to have people buzzing early on. The alternative/fire staircase (which the building was required to have) is actually built into and within the main staircase, giving it a hidden and confined quality. Enclosed all the way through, from top to bottom, the stairway and surrounding walls are painted a bright and vibrant yellow, giving you the feeling of navigating a winding maze inside of a giant lemon.

The building’s exterior, designed by architect Farshid Moussavi, is likely to illicit discussion as well. The smooth, reflective black glass of the exterior starts as hexagon at the base and expands towards the sky to a square roof. The veiled loading dock and blended entrances, not to mention it’s location at the corner of Euclid Avenue and Mayfield Road leaving it exposed on all sides, gives the structure what executive director Jill Snyder describes as a “James Bond, seamless quality.”

The new MOCA building

For an in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at everything the museum has to offer, be sure to pick up our October Best of Cleveland issue containing our MOCA feature package, or check out the piece online. Those involved are hoping the sleek and contemporary vibe of the building and neighborhood will help to attract visitors and reinvigorate the art scene. And if you’re going for cool, James Bond isn’t a bad place to start.

This MOCA Isn't Coffee, and It's Coming to Cleveland

Jill Snyder gestured to a dirt lot scarred with tire marks and dotted with piles of gravel, explaining how in just a few months, that same space will be occupied by a tree-lined plaza.

Snyder, Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland’s executive director, was one of about 50 people mingling and marveling at MOCA’s new house of art in University Circle during its “signing off” event yesterday. Donors and members of MOCA’s board signed the building’s stainless steel cladding with permanent marker, marking the completion of its exterior.

The building is an odd shape. It resembles a bulging Chinese takeout container, but one for a king, or maybe Batman. The outside, although black, reflects the sun and the surrounding environment, giving it a look that’s dark and edgy, yet somehow colorful and interactive at the same time. The chic exterior almost teases passersby, with windows showing off only certain segments of the museum.

The new building, at the corner of Euclid Avenue and Mayfield Road, opens Oct. 8, replacing MOCA’s old house in the former Cleveland Play House complex in Midtown. The move is a product of “opportunity and necessity,” said Stewart Kohl, a MOCA board member and co-chair of the building campaign. The old location “wasn’t convenient to our constituency.”

The building itself is a work of art that will complement the pieces on display. A virtual tour shows broad white staircases, Navy blue outer walls and light fixtures illuminating art on white inner walls.

The $35 million project involved a decade-long effort from brainstorming to completion, but only took 16 months to construct. More than 60 donors gave $25,000 or more, with several more contributors at lower levels.

The museum is expected to be a central fixture in University Circle’s Uptown district, a new retail and residential neighborhood.

Snyder and Kohl addressed the small crowd, which Kohl dubbed “MOC-ites.” They ranged from elderly art lovers to yellow-vested Donley’s construction workers clad in hard hats. Many ate Sweetie Fry ice cream as they stood in the sun. One woman described the move as “wonderful.”

“I love the architecture,” said Elaine Harris Green, an abstract painter who donated $10,000 to the effort. “I can’t wait to go inside and see the art.”

Kohl, who had just returned to Cleveland on a flight from New York, noted how he could see the building “clear as a bell” from the sky, which prompted some ooh-ing and ahh-ing from the audience.

“And the finishing won’t just be the bricks and mortar, but it’ll be the lights and the program and the people that this is going to generate,” Kohl said.

“This is going to become one of the most exciting corners in Ohio, if not the U.S.”

MOCA's Last Hurrah on Carnegie Avenue

The end is near for the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland – well, at least for the museum’s current location.

MOCA reflects on its impending move from 8501 Carnegie Ave. to 11400 Euclid Ave. with its last exhibition, 8501 to 11400 (On Moving). The exhibition's opening night celebration, tonight from 7 to 9 p.m., debuts work from regional artists Corrie Slawson, Brandon Juhsz and Ben Kinsley, all of it exploring their perspectives and philosophies about moving.

Kinsley, known for his playful and engaging site-specific performances, has engaged two actors to play street preachers. One actor will stand outside at MOCA’s current location and announce, “The end is nigh!” while the other, in University Circle near the construction site, will proclaim “A new beginning is imminent!”

The actors debut the performance tonight and will appear on the street 12:30-1:30 p.m. every Sunday through March 24. They’ll distribute hand-written brochures to witnesses on the street that will contain testimonials about MOCA from visitors but never actually name the museum itself. Sound recordings of this quirky scene will play through the speakers in the exhibition space.

Slawson’s work explores the move through screen prints that mirror the streets and landscapes of MOCA’s current and future locations. A screen-printed mural on a glass partition depicts an evolving streetscape that viewers can walk along.

Juhsz is known for recreating and reshaping ideas by manipulating digital images into surreal artwork and then photographing them. His eye-catching work explores the theme of a moving transition, reflecting a balance between architecture and nature.

During the exhibit, a board on the wall will invite guests to share memories and moments of inspiration from MOCA’s old space.

“Guests can share what they like about MOCA and what they look forward to at the brand-new gallery,” says marketing and design director Tom Poole.

The exhibit will run until March 31, when MOCA shuts its doors for the move. It’ll reopen in early October at its new location.

Chefs on Exhibit

There’s nothing new about our local chefs showing up to help other organizations. They are the backbone of benefits, generous contributors to every kind of charity gig, and the reason that many are willing to purchase tickets and attend these events. But it’s the food rather than the inspired, conceptual thinking behind it that usually gets all the attention. But it was quite a different story last Saturday night in the galleries at the Palate/Palette fundraiser for MOCA Cleveland.

The artistry of five chefs was the centerpiece of the evening rather than the backdrop. Each had chosen one of the five senses to express and fashioned a unique presentation environment for their dishes. Instead of just grazing mindlessly, we encountered intentionally designed sensory worlds that awakened and heightened perceptions, challenged assumptions, and engaged the mind in the act of eating. All the chefs seemed thrilled with the opportunity and clearly had fun with it. “Creating experiences and stimulating the senses is what we do,” Brandt Evans told me. “It’s wonderful to see that being celebrated.”

I was totally taken with the idea and wowed by the execution. Here’s a brief chef by chef recap of their food-meets-art offerings.

Brandt Evans, Blue Canyon, Sight:
Knowing that we eat with our eyes first, Evans hung big food photos behind his table, cuing up anticipation by adding a word to each image: luminosity; lush: stimulating. Big glass vessels willed with asparagus, limes, and basil decorated he staging area. So we were primed and ready for his scallop ceviche with lime and ginger. There was a kind of visual trick to it- the burst of flavor, full of exciting unexpected elements, was so much more than the sum of what could be seen.

Karen Small, The Flying Fig, Smell:
We entered a small windowless dimly lit room with seating for 20, 25 people at tables arranged in a squared-off u-shape. Each place was set with two small cups: in one a ricotta dumpling with onions, chives, and scallions; in the other slivers of grass fed beef short ribs and mushrooms. As we watched, steaming broth was poured on top- smoked pork for the meat, something gingery for the dumpling. Small urges us to inhale deeply before we open our mouth or pick up a spoon. It is a revelation- so much information coming in through the nose.

Jonathon Sawyer, The Greenhouse Tavern, Touch:
We filed in eight at a time, sat down, removed our shoes, and stepped up to the bar, as instructed, positioning ourselves on a marble square. Heat flowed up through the soles of our feet as Sawyer passed us a bowl of warm miso based broth. We cupped it in our hands and drank. Then we moved to the other side and stood on icy cold stones to sip chilled ramp vichyssoise. For both, Sawyer told us to close our eyes. It was like kissing- blocking out visual impressions intensified what the body felt.

Sergio Abramof, Sergio’s and Sarava, Sound:
He’s got a passion for percussion, so Abramof brought some drumming pals in to create beats to back up his Brazilian shrimp and rice. But instead of their usual selection of instruments, these pros pounded out rhythms using kitchen equipment: whisks, spoons, pots, strainers, skillets. It was impossible to hold still. Sergio was swaying and sautéing, people waiting to snag a plate looked like an impromptu conga line. The dish had a mouth music of its own- together they made a dance party.

Doug Katz, fire food and drink, Taste:
His chocolate truffles were the good bye gift. Four were packed in a clear box divided into sections with a paper insert featuring a different photo to accompany the list of primary ingredients and character descriptions for each bite. It was fun, clever, inventive. Like what the best chefs do. The candies were equally original- bittersweet chocolate peppercorn; white chocolate tarragon; milk chocolate rhubarb; and my personal favorite unsweetened chocolate laced with sea salt.

The event looked like a financial success. There was a nice sized crowd that paid $250 per ticket and big bucks were bid for original artwork during the live auction. But staying true to its mission of exploring contemporary culture, looking beyond the conventional and acceptable, and showcasing originality, MOCA is to be commended for also using their fundraiser as a vehicle for raising awareness of the exceptional talent in our culinary community.