It was a bumpy three years for Jeffrey Deitch as the director of MOCA in Los Angeles, and it wasn't entirely unexpected when he decided to step down from his position in July. Since then, rumors have swirled about Deitch's homecoming to New York, but only yesterday did he voice plans of his next move—a "hybrid" between a museum that puts on blockbuster exhibitions and a gallery that isn't restricted by the institutional complexities of a museum.
Deitch told the LA Times in an interview, “I’m more interested in the exhibition project than the institution” after giving a public talk on creativity and entrepreneurship with Michael Chow and host Steven Levine at REDCAT, CalArts’ downtown theater and gallery. The event was the first time Deitch spoke in public after his resignation from MOCA.
Deitch has named AEG, a Los Angeles entertainment company, as one of the potential collaborators for his museum/gallery venture. While Deitch will be focusing his energy on New York, he has said that he will still keep his home in L.A. Last month, Deitch's presence was already felt (if not in person) in the Big Apple with the opening of his show "Calligraffiti" at Leila Heller Gallery.
Deitch described his vision to the LA Times, “you get a big gate with admission fees, substantial sales of merchandise, and attract potential sponsors who want to be part of this. It’s a model without all the overhead of a museum and its collections and departments. I believe it’s possible for programs to be much more self-supporting than the conventional museum approach.”
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