Spring 1985: Temple of Love, an installation created for the Grand Lobby of The Brooklyn Museum by Robert Longo, will open on March 1 and be on view through May 6, 1985.
Composed of works conceived specifically for the Grand Lobby and supplemented by several other pieces, this presentation will enable the viewer to study the diversity of the artist’s work. Longo is primarily known for his large-scale figurative drawings which he began to combine with relief elements in the late 1970’s. Longo’s work has become more and more three-dimensional and in 1983 he exhibited his first freestanding sculptures.
Since the beginning of his artistic career, Longo has used a variety of media. He explores drawing, lithography, sculpture, performance, video and most recently film, as vehicles for his creativity. Longo’s initial recognition as an artist came as a result of his large figurative drawings. Isolated in the white blankness of their uniform backgrounds, Longo’s drawings of urban men displayed formal beauty which disguised their unsettling content. The movements of contorted figures had ambiguous meaning. In the series called “Men in the Cities” created between 1979-82, Longo juxtaposed these drawings with large reliefs of architectural motifs. Most frequently he has depicted New York’s famous buildings rendered with photographic distortions. In this juxtaposition of drawings and reliefs and, more recently, paintings and freestanding sculpture, Longo has created a style uniquely his own, a style which he continues to explore in the most unexpected variations.
Brooklyn Museum Archives. Records of the Department of Public Information. Press releases, 1971 - 1988. 1985, 012.
March 25, 1985: An evening of Robert Longo’s Performance Works 1977-1985 will be presented at The Brooklyn Museum on Saturday, April 13, 1985. Performance time is approximately one hour and 15 minutes and two performances are scheduled for the evening, at 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. This event is a co-production with The Kitchen.
Longo’s avant-garde performance will include parts I and II of his acclaimed Empire Trilogy; Sound, Distance of A Good Man, performed at Franklin Furnace in 1978 and The Kitchen in 1982, and Surrender, which premiered at The Kitchen and was performed in several cities throughout Europe in 1979. Part III of this theatrical event will be the premiere of a piece created specially for the Museum, designed specifically for the Museum Court. This multimedia ever will feature original music, singers, film projections, dancers and other performers.
Tickets must be purchased in advance at the Museum’s Information Desk during its regular public hours or at The Kitchen, 59 Wooster Street in Soho, Tuesday through Saturday from 2-6:00 p.m. If available, tickets may be purchased at the Museum on the night of the performance.
Tickets are $10 for Museum and Kitchen members, senior citizens and students with membership cards or valid ID; $12 for non-members. No phone, mail orders or credit cards will be accepted. Personal checks should be made payable to The Brooklyn Museum. Ticket availability is on a first-come, first-served basis and seating is unreserved. No refunds will be made. For further information, call the Museum’s Department of Public Programs and Media (718)638-5000, ext. 232.
Brooklyn Museum Archives. Records of the Department of Public Information. Press releases, 1971 - 1988. 1985, 011.
