On May 29, actor Dennis Hopper died at the age of 74 due to complications from prostate cancer. Although he is best known for his role in Hollywood films alongside leading men from James Dean to Jack Nicholson and Keanu Reeves, Hopper was also active in the American contemporary art scene as both a collector and artist. His death coincides with plans for a retrospective of his artwork at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, to be held July 11 – September 26.
Entitled “Dennis Hopper: Double Standard,” the exhibition will be the first under incoming MOCA director and former New York art dealer Jeffrey Deitch, and has sparked public concern over the speed with which it has been organized. The exhibition will focus on Hopper’s works from 1961 to the present, with artist Julian Schnabel listed as curator. Considered the worst in Los Angeles history, the catastrophic 1961 Bel Air fire consumed many of Hopper’s works made prior to 1961. However, an abstract painting from 1955 that survived the fire will be on display at MOCA. Also in the exhibition will be photos Hopper took in the 1960s of an artistic coterie that included Andy Warhol; graffiti-inspired paintings from the 1980s and ’90s; and recent sculptures and installations.