Sesow in controversy

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7/6/26, 7:03 AM

Matt Sesow DC Dictionary, 2004

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Washington Post writes about cancelled show
Matt Sesow's "DC Dictionary' included in controversy
October 2004

https://www.sesow.com/funky2k4.htm

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Ailing City Museum

Cancels ‘Funky’ Show

Planned Exhibit Called Unsuitable

By Jacqueuine Tazscorr
Washington Post Sif Winter

0 the troubled City Muse-

| ‘um of Washington, an ex:

hibition by local ‘artists

seemed just the hip solution to

attract d new, desperately need-
edaudience,

But instead “Funky Furi-
ture,” a show of painted living
oom pieces, has been evicted
by the museum because some of
the artists’ themes were consid-
red unital

e furniture display, a proj-
ect organized by Art-O-Matic
2004, a volunteer confederation
of mainly Tocal artists, was

Kayti Didriksen’s picture was part ofthe

‘moved into the museum last
weekend and was scheduled to
‘open this month, The theme
was a takeoff on the museum's
desire tobe knovm as “the city’s
living room."

One artist decorated a church
ew with pictures and quotes to
allege that President Ronald
Reagan was indiferent to the
AIDS crisis, Another took an
end table and plastered it with
drug paraphernalia and a quote

former mayor Marion Bar

1, who was jailed for drug pos.

session. Another created a cof-

feetablesize dictionary with

‘See MUSEUM, C8, Col, 1

“living room” art

that City Museum had hoped would boost attendance,

batps:/www.sesow.com/funky2ks tm

Matt Sesow DC Dietionary, 2004

Che Washington Post

Fripay, Ocrozer 8, 2004

Museum Sends Furniture’ Back

MUSEUM, From C1

‘Washington entries, such as “A Is for An-
thrax” and “G Is for Gentrification,” ilhis-
trated by a drawing of a white male urinat-
ingon African American residents.

‘And what is a living room without. @
prominent painting? Kayti Didriksen, a lo-
cal artist, decided to paint President Bush
and Vice President Cheney in the well.
known style of Manet’ “Olympia,” Bush is
nude and reclining on a chaise longue, and
Cheney, in a suit and tie, is holding a velvet
pillow with a crown topped by an oil rig

‘The City Museums executive committee
decided yesterday that the museum was
“not an appropriate venue for this event.”

‘The museum is primarily a facility for lo-
cal and regional history and is operated by
the Historical Society of Washington, D.C,
thas severely overestimated its potential
audience and reventie: From its opening in
‘May 2003 through August, it had 36,536,
paying patrons, compared with the 100,000
to 450,000 that had been projected.

“This is not what we had bargained for.
We thought we were getting functional fur-
niture,” said Leste Shapiro, co-chairman of
the museum board. Shapiro and Seaa Dul-
fey, another board member, sid yesterday
that the political content was not an over-
riding factor in the decision not to go
ahead.

"T don't think I was judging it on that ba-

Shapiro said, "What we are not
art gallery. There are probably places this
should go.” She said she was disappointed
the arrangement didn't work out.

‘The exhibit would have been the first art
show at the museum, housed in the historic
Carnegie Library on Ninth Street NW, just
opposite the Washington Convention Cen
ter

But the board decided the work did not
meet
tions of the teachers who
children—the majority of the visitors the
‘museum has been able to Ture 50 far. “It
‘wasn't consistent with the mission of the
museum,” Duffey said.

‘The artists are upset.

“Lam shocked and disappointed, consid
cring that the museum is struggling to
make ends meet, They were not wiling to
go out on a limb with a group of emerging
artists,” said Chad Alan, a co-chairman of
the show and the ereator of the Reagan/
AIDS pew, “The artists told a true story,
and each city has dark sides.”

Jim Tretick, a member of the executive
commitice of Art-O-Matic, said: “We are
used to showing in galleries, where artis
art and you get what you get. This is a mu-
seum with a different clientele, and it was.
not a good match.”

‘Alan said the artists are looking for anew
venue and have pledged to keep the show
intact.

‘The museum did not oversee the assem-
bly of the show, which is the traditional
‘method by which an art museum creates its,
‘own exhibit or controls a traveling show it
thas agreed to accept. The show grew out of
a brainstorming session between a former
‘museum offical and an artists’ representa
tive. Alan said the artists were asked by Art-
(O-Matic’s organizers to submit designs to

im that would capture events and people
jn Washington in the whimsical fashion of
the ‘Party Animals’ public art competition
‘He said museum officials did know some of
the themes.

“They seemed excited about having the
show,” said artist Maggie O'Neill, a co-
chairman of the show. She painted a long,
executive desk to resemble hot pink snake
skin and included a pink presidential seal to
salute a future female president,

Shapiro and Duffey, however, said the
first time they saw the material was yester-
day, Monday, the day the artists started

ising a furor over the possible cancella-
tion of the show, happened to be the first
day of work for Maureen Robinson, a man-
agement consultant hired to develop new
‘ways to attract visitors to the museum.

After the art was installed last weekend,
representatives of the museum said they
‘were disappointed the pieces didn’t come
together as a traditional living room and
that the designs didn’t lend themselves to
sitting or touching. Also, the initial assem-
bly didn’t have information that identified
the concept or the artist

“Te was less interactive than the museum
thought,” said Tretick. He said the artists,
had planined to complete the labeling before
the formal opening.

While the furniture event was being
planned, both sides agreed that the pieces,
had to be movable to allow for party rentals,
‘of the main lobby, which provide the bulk of
the museum’s income. In August, a muse-
um official said special events had brought
{in $415,000, compared with $78,000 from
admissions.’ After the furniture show, the
artists planned to auction off the items,
with 25 percent going to the museum.

214

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7/6/26, 7:03 AM

https://www.sesow.com/funky2k4.htm

Matt Sesow DC Dictionary, 2004

"DC, A to Z"
from a book painted by Sesow for exhibit at
Washington, DC City Museum (Oct. 2004)
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(pages 1-2)

"DC, A to Z"
from a book painted by Sesow for exhibit at
Washington, DC City Museum (Oct. 2004)
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(pages 3-4)

"DC, A to Z"
from a book painted by Sesow for exhibit at
Washington, DC City Museum (Oct. 2004)
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(pages 5-6)

"DC, A to Z"
from a book painted by Sesow for exhibit at
Washington, DC City Museum (Oct. 2004)
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(pages 7-8)

"DC, A to Z"
from a book painted by Sesow for exhibit at
Washington, DC City Museum (Oct. 2004)
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(pages 9-10)

"DC, A to Z"
from a book painted by Sesow for exhibit at
Washington, DC City Museum (Oct. 2004)
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(pages 11-12)

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7/6/26, 7:03 AM

Matt Sesow DC Dictionary, 2004

"DC, A to Z"
from a book painted by Sesow for exhibit at
Washington, DC City Museum (Oct. 2004)
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(pages 13-14)

"DC, A to Z"
from a book painted by Sesow for exhibit at
Washington, DC City Museum (Oct. 2004)
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(pages 15-16)

"DC, A to Z"
from a book painted by Sesow for exhibit at
Washington, DC City Museum (Oct. 2004)
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(pages 17-18)

"DC, A to Z"
from a book painted by Sesow for exhibit at
Washington, DC City Museum (Oct. 2004)
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(pages 19-20)

"DC, A to Z"
from a book painted by Sesow for exhibit at
Washington, DC City Museum (Oct. 2004)
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(pages 21-22)

"DC, A to Z"
from a book painted by Sesow for exhibit at
Washington, DC City Museum (Oct. 2004)
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(pages 23-24)

"DC, A to Z"
from a book painted by Sesow for exhibit at
Washington, DC City Museum (Oct. 2004)
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(pages 25-26)

"DC, A to Z"
outside of book
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(book view from outside)

"DC, A to Z"
inside of book
12" x 9"
acrylic/mixed on book
(book view from inside)

CLICK HERE FOR MORE PAINTINGS...

https://www.sesow.com/funky2k4.htm

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