Dec 9, 2019

“From the Archives” is a series that spotlights The Kitchen’s history. As a complement to our Archive Website, these posts offer focused reflections on the artists, exhibitions, events, and institutional practices that have defined and shaped The Kitchen since its founding in 1971.  This From the Archives post is written by Olivia Guerriero, Fall 2019 Curatorial Intern. This month, choreographer and performance artist Lauren Bakst performs after summer, or not in the kitchen (the bed, the bathroom, the dance floor and other spaces) as the culmination of her residency through The Kitchen at Queenslab. The phrase in the piece’s title—“not in the kitchen”—is a play on the fact that she is in residence outside of The Kitchen’s institutional building. It also rec... Read On

Dec 3, 2019

Lauren Bakst is a New York City-based artist and writer working through performance. Her work draws from the materials and relationships of her life to contend with the conditions of intimacy, desire, and affect. She has been in residence through The Kitchen at Queenslab in Ridgewood since the end of October. From December 11 through 14, Bakst’s residency will culminate in a performance piece titled after summer, or not in the kitchen (the bed, the bathroom, the dance floor and other spaces) .  Halfway through her residency, we spoke to Bakst about her multimedia approach to creating after summer, the relevance of space and place during her time at Queenslab, and the relationship that she builds in her work between her personal life and her artistic inspirations. Throughout you... Read On

Dec 2, 2019

By virtue of its yearlong format, The Kitchen’s L.A.B. series creates opportunities for sustained, collective thinking around a single term of importance to art in dialogue with broader culture. Across these monthly events, we iteratively consider how shifts in our language are necessary for our grappling with a changing social landscape. This year, we are taking up the word “regeneration” in discussions with a range of artists and practitioners. The first gathering of the season took place in September with musician and curator Taja Cheek, writer and scholar Catherine Damman, and artist and writer Constance DeJong; the second program in November brought together musicians Chris Eddleton and Avram Fefer, poet Rachel Eliza Griffiths, and artist Sara Magenheimer. Each of these L.A.... Read On

Nov 25, 2019

In collaboration with Anat Ebgi Gallery, Los Angeles, The Kitchen will present a historic restaging of Tina Girouard’s Pinwheel (1977) for the inaugural Meridians sector at Art Basel Miami Beach from December 4–8 with daily performances at 3pm. The nearly hour-long piece features four performers creating a stage-like environment in four quadrants using silk-patterned fabrics. As the action unfolds, each performer incorporates base objects and elements all connected to their given personae of ANIMAL, VEGETABLE, MINERAL, and OTHER. The performers activate the space and enact rituals defined by Girouard’s symbolic language according to a detailed set of instructions and diagrams. The original staging of Pinwheel—which included Girouard acting as both director and performer—took place in t... Read On

Nov 21, 2019

In 2017, Brooklyn-raised multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and tape manipulator Taja Cheek used the moniker L’Rain to release her first eponymous album on Astro Nautico Records. Though this project was dedicated in name and spirit to Cheek’s mother Lorraine, who passed away shortly before its release, the material on the album has gone on the take many forms and now takes shape through live performance as a three-piece band. Alongside her bandmates, Long Island-native Ben Chapoteau-Katz and Buz Donald, who moved to New York from LA five years ago, Cheek constantly breathes new meaning into the compositions. Individually, the members of L’Rain have been a part of Kitchen programming in various ways over the past year, in performances and L.A.B. programs. Now, on November 21 L’Rain will... Read On