The wall that is now in the middle of the main gallery didn’t materialize out of thin air. It’s actually been hanging around MOCRA since it was built for the Fred Brown exhibition in 1996. Since then it has split in two, wandered up onto the sanctuary platform, come back together for the Latin American photography show, supported curtains for the Andy Warhol Silver Clouds exhibitions and a rear projection screen for Miao Xiaochun’s Last Judgment in Cyberspace, and most recently doing what it was originally made for: holding Fred Brown’s “Madonna and Child” and “Descent into Hell.”
The walls don’t move themselves, of course. Relocation involves a careful coordination of muscle, carpet scraps, shims, and (of course) at least a couple of staff members to supervise and offer helpful comments.
Once the wall was in place this time, it certainly shook up the typical MOCRA floor plan. Though the giant nave is now split, I can’t say it feels fractured. It serves a great function by creating a line between stages of the Passion of Christ.
– Bob Sullivan, Museum Assistant
