One hundred years ago the downtown Los Angeles space now occupied by Hauser Wirth was home to the Globe Grain and Milling Company. Before I learned the history I was guessing it was once a convent or monastery. There is an open air herb and vegetable garden in a central courtyard and a restaurant next to it. Some of the galleries are large and light filled. Others, like the space where David Hammons’ ‘Concerto in Black and Blue’ is installed, are completely dark.
Someone on Hauser Wirth’s staff had the foresight to preserve the chunk of industrial history (“ruin porn”) in the photo above. The blue with black stripe section on the right is part of a Mary Heilmann installation. And they added the plant, of course, but to recognize the beauty in the crumbling and long neglected chunk of wall was a masterstroke.
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