Essential Arts: Architecture and an insurgency

The Neoclassical Capitol serves as stage to a riot. Plus, a doc about Rembrandt and a George Floyd billboard revived, in our weekly arts newsletter. ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ [Los Angeles Times] Essential Arts PRESENTED BY The Wallis' Sorting Room Sessions* January 9, 2021 [View in browser]( And we thought 2020 was nuts. Welcome to Coup Week, 2021. I’m Carolina A. Miranda, arts and urban design columnist at the Los Angeles Times, with the week’s essential art, architecture and insurgency news: An icon damaged After the insurgency comes the cleanup. On Wednesday, a pro-Trump mob stormed the U.S. Capitol building — smashing windows, breaking through 19th century doors and pilfering historical objects, including the nameplate from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office. In addition, tear gas and pepper spray were deployed in parts of the building, including the rotunda, during skirmishes with law enforcement. In the wake of the incursion, which featured the startling sight of extremists leaping into the Senate chamber and propping Trump flags on historical statues, government assessment teams worked through the night to catalog the destruction. “Wednesday was a difficult day for our campus,” Architect of the Capitol J. Brett Blanton said in a written statement, describing scenes from the riot as “hard to watch.” [An ornate wrought-iron bench is shown in pieces inside the Capitol building.] A broken bench is just one piece of the damage suffered by the U.S. Capitol building after Wednesday’s pro-Trump insurgency. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) While the building itself remains structurally sound, architectural fixtures and other elements were damaged. “Our initial assessment is that most of the damage on the interior and envelope of the building is limited to broken glass, broken doors and graffiti,” a representative from Blanton’s office said via email. “On the West Front, the teams identified graffiti on the building near the inaugural stands and two broken Olmsted light fixtures. “There were also significant amounts of trash and debris. Statues, murals, historic benches and original shutters all suffered varying degrees of damage — primarily from pepper spray accretions and residue from tear gas and fire extinguishers.” A spokesperson for the Committee on House Administration, which manages the operations of the House of Representatives, likewise reported that windows had been smashed and historical mahogany doors damaged. “These are very old doors and very heavy doors, and they were smashed or attempted to be knocked down,” he said. “Door frames are splintered.” In addition, seven pieces of art on the House side of the building — including a marble statue of Thomas Jefferson — had been damaged by “a corrosive gas agent” (likely tear gas or pepper spray). Also harmed were portraits of Presidents James Madison and John Quincy Adams. Historical objects, such as Pelosi’s gavel and a lectern, the latter of which was seen being carted out of the building by a rioter in [an image that went viral]( were ultimately recovered. But the speaker’s office suffered other damages, including the destruction of a 19th century mirror that belonged to the federal government and many personal items, including a statue that had been given to Pelosi by the Dalai Lama. More extensive assessments will need to occur before conservators can begin repairing the damage. [A pro-Trump extremist in a ski hat waves at a camera as he carries the house speaker's lectern through the Capitol's rotunda.] A pro-Trump extremist carries the lectern of U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi through the Capitol Rotunda on Wednesday. It was later recovered. (Win McNamee / Getty Images) In recent months, staff members at the Architect of the Capitol have not only been laboring under the stress of COVID-19 protocols, they’ve been preparing for the 59th presidential inauguration later this month. (The office [oversees]( the construction of the scaffolding and other architectural elements for the inauguration ceremony, which takes place on the Capitol building’s steps.) Says Blanton: “Our staff showed exemplary professionalism during such a stressful time.” ADVERTISEMENT BY THE WALLIS' SORTING ROOM SESSIONS [THE WALLIS' SORTING ROOM SESSIONS]( The Wallis' popular nightclub series is back and your New Year just got brighter! January 9 Violinist Anne Akiko Meyers and pianist Fabio Bidini’s recital takes the audience on a journey to France. January 16 May 1971 – Richard Shelton portrays Frank Sinatra as he prepares for his last gig before his retirement. He drinks "One For My Baby" too many and starts to reminisce when things take an unexpected turn. January 23 Singer/songwriter/keyboardist Sheléa performs songs written by Alan and Marilyn Bergman, the Oscar-winning couple who have penned songs such as “What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life,” “Pretty World” and “Smile.” [Click here for tickets]( End of advertisement More on the Capitol The extremist riot at the U.S. Capitol led to talk online about the sullying of such an important “symbol of democracy.” But [as I note]( in a story about the building’s architectural and design roots, this important symbol has a troubled history: “The people’s house” was built by slave labor and designed, in countless ways, to erase their presence afterward. As part of this, it’s worth noting the aesthetics of the statuary on the Capitol’s dome were partly determined by Secretary of War Jefferson Davis in the 1850s — the same man who would later lead the Confederacy. More interesting facts: there is [a statue to Davis]( in the Capitol’s National Statuary Hall. [An extremist walks before a portrait of John Calhoun while carrying a large Confederate battle flag.] An extremist carries a Confederate battle flag inside the U.S. Capitol building. To his left is a portrait of former Vice President John C. Calhoun, who once described slavery as “a positive good.” (Saul Loeb / AFP / Getty Images) Sarah Begley writes on how the art in the Capitol served as [a tableau for white supremacy](. Barbara A. Wolanin, a former curator who helped care for the Capitol’s art collection for more than 30 years, [told the New York Times]( that Wednesday’s crowd “had no respect” for the objects on view. “That’s what’s really scary.” John King, architecture critic for the San Francisco Chronicle, revisits the executive order signed by President Trump last month, which established Neoclassical architecture as [the preferred style for federal buildings](. The order says this style of architecture is meant to “encourage civic virtue.” But as King notes, the Neoclassical design did nothing to stop the “horde of hateful and belligerent Trump supporters who ... occupied the building at will.” Enjoying this newsletter? Consider subscribing to the Los Angeles Times Your support helps us deliver the news that matters most. [Become a subscriber.]( L.A. Times television critic Lorraine Ali examines how the images of the riot reflected a failed state — [our own]( “We, as a nation, are not immune to the crises in which we are so often intervening overseas, parachuting in to save the day — and frequently mucking things up further by trying.” In [an essay]( on what the day meant for the Republican Party, urban theorist Mike Davis described the day’s visuals as “pure Buñuel and Dalí.” Lastly, [our photo editors gather]( some of the most striking images from the day. Recalling George Floyd’s death Makeda Easter reports on [a painting]( that re-creates the cruel killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis — now rendered billboard size in West Hollywood. The billboard is part of an effort by the George Floyd Justice Billboard Committee, which aims to keep the reasons for Floyd’s death in the public consciousness — but which has struggled with billboard companies that have refused to show the work, including one company in Minneapolis. “We definitely don’t want it to be forgotten,” says committee chairwoman Corinne Basabe, “and we definitely want it to be taken the right way and respectfully.” [WeHo billboard depicting the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police. ] Traffic streams through an intersection in West Hollywood beneath a billboard depicting the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times) ADVERTISEMENT Art quest The 2019 documentary “My Rembrandt” has [landed on streaming services]( and art critic Christopher Knight had a look. Directed by Oeke Hoogendijk, the film focuses on collectors, dealers, historians, auctioneers and government officials preoccupied with the work of the 17th century Dutch master Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn. “One lesson of the film,” he writes, "... is that to love an artist’s work is to possess it, whether physically, intellectually, emotionally or any combination thereof — including perhaps corruptly.” [Rembrandt's "Portrait of Jan Six" still hangs in the family's Amsterdam house, shown here with his descendent, Jan Six X.] Rembrandt’s “Portrait of Jan Six” still hangs in the family’s Amsterdam house, shown here with his descendent, Jan Six X. (Strand Releasing) If you are seeking some more online art viewing, Maximilíano Durón and Alex Greenberger over at ARTnews round up [the 10 best art docs of 2020](. When social media made a musical It started with a post on TikTok: Users spent months posting videos of original songs inspired by Pixar’s animated film “Ratatouille.” This inspired a Broadway production to create a real-deal show (well, a real-deal virtual show) drawn from this fan art, which also included choreography, costumes and Playbill cover art. The Times’ Ashley Lee [tuned into the show]( and notes how it upends industry paradigms: “Thanks to the democratic nature of social media, these talented, mostly Gen Z songwriters from all over the world have bypassed the industry’s institutions and gatekeepers to get their work heard and now professionally produced.” [Performers Tituss Burgess, Andrew Barth Feldman and Ashley Park in "Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical."] Tituss Burgess, left, Andrew Barth Feldman and Ashley Park in “Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical.” (TodayTix / Screenshot) Plus, Lee chatted with actor Wayne Brady about playing the role of Django in this production. “I’m learning that social media has become [a marketplace for creatives]( he says. “For every bad video of a bad impersonator who thinks they’re really funny, there’s a talented person just trying to be seen and find a way in.” Essential happenings Matt Cooper rounds up [13 virtual happenings]( including a free piano concert organized by CAP UCLA that will feature works by Philip Glass, Mozart, Berg and Ligeti. I think we could all use a break from the doomscrolling and a little classical music this week. [Composer Philip Glass.] Composer Philip Glass. (Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times) The Smithsonian is kicking off [a yearong screening series]( devoted to films by women — including works by Zina Saro-Wiwa, Ingrid Wiegand and the venerable Joan Jonas. Screenings and related programming will be virtual, so you can catch the show from anywhere. Passages Marshall McKay, an Indigenous leader who helped the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation secure economic independence and served as the first Indigenous board chair at the Autry Museum of the American West, is [dead at 68](. Roland Reiss, an artist and educator with a 60-year legacy in Los Angeles — and an endowed academic chair in his name at Claremont University — has [died at 91](. Kim Tschang-Yeul, an influential Korean artist known for paintings that evoked the dewy qualities of water, is [dead at 91](. In other news — L.A.'s beloved Blue Whale jazz club is [shutting down]( because of COVID-19. — Gagosian will [shut down]( its San Francisco gallery outpost. — The New York Times is reporting the San Francisco Art Institute may try to sell its famous Diego Rivera mural to shore up its finances — and that George Lucas may be [the interested buyer](. — How cash-strapped museums are turning to [sponsored content](. — Sculptor Edward Virginius Valentine created monuments to icons of the Confederacy. How the museum that bears his name is [reckoning with his legacy](. — I really dig investigations into vernacular art, and [this essay]( by Jasmine Sanders on the art produced by Artistic Impressions, a company known for producing works in the Black Romantic vein, is fascinating. — Why chess sets can get so expensive. [It’s the knight!]( (Not Christopher.) — In case you are running low on arty face masks, Open-Editions [has you covered](. — Aaron Timms has [a good essay]( in n+1 about restaurants, COVID-19 and the arms race to be a gastronomic destination. (Not about art but offers good parallels.) And last but not least ... The [“Maybe it was ANTIFA”]( generator will help you blame antifa for, well, everything. ADVERTISEMENT Thank you for reading the Los Angeles Times Essential Arts newsletter. Invite your friends, relatives, coworkers to sign up [here](. Not a subscriber? Get unlimited digital access to latimes.com. [Subscribe here](. [Los Angeles Times] Copyright © 2021, Los Angeles Times 2300 E. Imperial Highway, El Segundo, California, 90245 1-800-LA-TIMES | [latimes.com]( *Advertisers have no control over editorial decisions or content. If you're interested in placing an ad or classified, get in touch [here](. We'd love your feedback on this newsletter. 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