Los Angeles County Museum of Art Photographic Services Department.

Biographical/Historical note

Intrigued by the advanced technology used by corporations in Southern California in 1966, Maurice Tuchman, Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) Curator of Modern Art, began to imagine what an artist could create in an industrial environment. The idea of linking art and industry eventually led to the creation of the Art and Technology Program.

Tuchman presented his idea to LACMA’s Board of Directors in November 1967 where it was resisted. Tuchman felt so strongly about the program that he told the Board he would raise the majority of funding himself, protecting the Museum’s finances in case of failure.

With support from Marilyn Chandler, Tuchman eventually had nearly forty corporations willing to participate in the Art and Technology Program. Over sixty artists responded to Tuchman’s invitation to participate in the program. Pairings were made based on a mutual desire to work together between an artist and a corporation. Artists were given information about a few of the participating corporations which people at LACMA thought might interest them. Then, the artists were invited to tour corporations to get an idea of what they might wish to create for the Program. Corporations agreed to house an artist in residence if they felt they could provide the resources needed by the artist based on his proposal. Eventually, twenty-three pairings were made. Although Tuchman’s primary interest was not in simply creating an exhibition, eight Art and Technology Works were shown at the U.S. Pavilion at the 1970 World’s Fair in Osaka, Japan. Fifteen pieces from the Art and Technology Program were later displayed in the exhibition, Art and Technology (EX.1399) at LACMA in 1971.

The greatest criticism of this program came from the Los Angeles Council of Women Artists in the summer of 1971, soon after the Art and Technology exhibit was displayed at LACMA. While a great variety of artists were represented, no residencies were offered to women artists for the Art and Technology Program. The Council of Women Artists felt that the lack of female artist representation in the program was a great oversight. Despite this, the Art and Technology Program was well received; seen as being an innovative, successful experiment.

From the guide to the Photo Services Department Art and Technology slides, 1970-1971, (Los Angeles County Museum of Art Balch Art Research Library)