Doug Aitken

Discussing the genesis of his recent project, "Migration," which has its West Coast debut at Regen Projects this month, Doug Aitken tells the story of a conversation he had in Las Vegas with funk musician George Clinton. "He was staying at a Days Inn," Aitken recounts, "but he was playing at some really fancy casino. So I said to him, 'Why aren't you staying at the casino? I'm sure they would have given you a penthouse or something.' And he said" -- here Aitken slips into a low, world-weary, rock star voice -- " 'Yeah, you know, I've been on the road since, like, 1968 and I've been staying at the Days Inn since 1968, and all I want to do is fall asleep and wake up in the exact same place.

The sleek logo for LACMA's “art+film” gala does a beautiful job of balancing “art” and “film,” giving each word equal space around the plus sign. The museum gala that took place Saturday night under that rubric was another story: The entertainment world easily outshone the art world, and the evening designed to celebrate artist Ed Ruscha alongside filmmaker Stanley Kubrick became mainly a Kubrick odyssey, to borrow the title of the screening series that accompanies LACMA's new Kubrick exhibition.

At the first Salon by the Shore to benefit the Museum of Contemporary Art, museum director Jeffrey Deitch introduced internationally recognized artist Doug Aitken and offered some explanations for L.A.'s ability to create so many great artists. Among other considerations, he named the landscape, climate and intellectual foundation of the city. "We're so lucky to have all this," said event co-chairwoman Lilly Tartikoff Karatz. "At one end of the city we have a great contemporary art museum and then, at the other end, we have the Pacific Ocean.

Choreographer Benjamin Millepied's LA Dance Project will make a sneak-peek debut in July with a performance in the galleries of the Museum of Contemporary Art. Millepied is creating a 30-minute, site-specific duet, "Framework," to a narrated soundtrack by artist Mark Bradford. The free performances, in conjunction with the MOCA show "The Painting Factory: Abstraction After Warhol," are scheduled for July 19, Aug. 2 and 9. Bradford has two large paintings in the exhibition, "Untitled" (2011)

Artist Doug Aitken is doing everything he can to liberate the 21st century message of his new book from the relatively staid confines of a Gutenberg-era medium. "Broken Screen" -- subtitled "26 Conversations With Doug Aitken: Expanding the Image, Breaking the Narrative" -- is, after all, a group portrait of unruly creative mavericks disinterested in traditional narrative forms.

DOUG AITKEN is pretty far removed from the stereotype of the artist, with its tropes of unrecognized genius, unheated garrets and the occasional missing ear. For more than a decade, in museums, galleries and festivals around the globe, the Los Angeles-based Aitken has exhibited complex, multiscreen video environments that are impossible to take in as a unitary whole.

Hammer Museum event: A listing in the "Happening Today" column in Tuesday's Calendar section said an event with artists Doug Aitken and Catherine Opie was Tuesday at the Hammer Museum. Tuesday's event was actually with Jeffrey Kipnis and Thom Mayne. The event with Aitken and Opie is tonight.

The sleek logo for LACMA's “art+film” gala does a beautiful job of balancing “art” and “film,” giving each word equal space around the plus sign. The museum gala that took place Saturday night under that rubric was another story: The entertainment world easily outshone the art world, and the evening designed to celebrate artist Ed Ruscha alongside filmmaker Stanley Kubrick became mainly a Kubrick odyssey, to borrow the title of the screening series that accompanies LACMA's new Kubrick exhibition.

DOUG AITKEN burst onto an international stage at the 1999 Venice Biennale, when he showed "Electric Earth" -- a three-screen video installation that filled a room with images of urban frustration and angst -- and walked off with one of the exhibition's top prizes. Now the Los Angeles-based artist is preparing to make a big splash on the streets of Manhattan.

The hole dug into the grassy hillside was small. The hole torn in hearts of those gathered around it was huge. "Nobody expects a child to die," whispered Heather Aitken. "Nobody is expecting to lose a baby." Aitken was standing outside the knot of family members and friends who had come to a Westlake Village cemetery recently to bury 7-day-old Daniel Tocyznski. Daniel's parents and the others were there to mourn. Aitken was there to help.

At the first Salon by the Shore to benefit the Museum of Contemporary Art, museum director Jeffrey Deitch introduced internationally recognized artist Doug Aitken and offered some explanations for L.A.'s ability to create so many great artists. Among other considerations, he named the landscape, climate and intellectual foundation of the city. "We're so lucky to have all this," said event co-chairwoman Lilly Tartikoff Karatz. "At one end of the city we have a great contemporary art museum and then, at the other end, we have the Pacific Ocean.

Discussing the genesis of his recent project, "Migration," which has its West Coast debut at Regen Projects this month, Doug Aitken tells the story of a conversation he had in Las Vegas with funk musician George Clinton. "He was staying at a Days Inn," Aitken recounts, "but he was playing at some really fancy casino. So I said to him, 'Why aren't you staying at the casino? I'm sure they would have given you a penthouse or something.' And he said" -- here Aitken slips into a low, world-weary, rock star voice -- " 'Yeah, you know, I've been on the road since, like, 1968 and I've been staying at the Days Inn since 1968, and all I want to do is fall asleep and wake up in the exact same place.

Hammer Museum event: A listing in the "Happening Today" column in Tuesday's Calendar section said an event with artists Doug Aitken and Catherine Opie was Tuesday at the Hammer Museum. Tuesday's event was actually with Jeffrey Kipnis and Thom Mayne. The event with Aitken and Opie is tonight.

DOUG AITKEN burst onto an international stage at the 1999 Venice Biennale, when he showed "Electric Earth" -- a three-screen video installation that filled a room with images of urban frustration and angst -- and walked off with one of the exhibition's top prizes. Now the Los Angeles-based artist is preparing to make a big splash on the streets of Manhattan.

DOUG AITKEN is pretty far removed from the stereotype of the artist, with its tropes of unrecognized genius, unheated garrets and the occasional missing ear. For more than a decade, in museums, galleries and festivals around the globe, the Los Angeles-based Aitken has exhibited complex, multiscreen video environments that are impossible to take in as a unitary whole.

Artist Doug Aitken is doing everything he can to liberate the 21st century message of his new book from the relatively staid confines of a Gutenberg-era medium. "Broken Screen" -- subtitled "26 Conversations With Doug Aitken: Expanding the Image, Breaking the Narrative" -- is, after all, a group portrait of unruly creative mavericks disinterested in traditional narrative forms.

Choreographer Benjamin Millepied's LA Dance Project will make a sneak-peek debut in July with a performance in the galleries of the Museum of Contemporary Art. Millepied is creating a 30-minute, site-specific duet, "Framework," to a narrated soundtrack by artist Mark Bradford. The free performances, in conjunction with the MOCA show "The Painting Factory: Abstraction After Warhol," are scheduled for July 19, Aug. 2 and 9. Bradford has two large paintings in the exhibition, "Untitled" (2011)

A 29-year-old West Hollywood man nearly drowned Wednesday in heavy surf off Leo Carrillo State Beach, Ventura County authorities said. Doug Aitken was swimming just after 11:30 a.m. when beach-goers noticed he was in distress and was being swept out to sea, said Deputy Tim Hagel of the Ventura County sheriff's search and rescue team. Bystanders swam out to Aitken, who was not wearing a wetsuit. By the time they got him back to shore he was unconscious and suffering from hypothermia, Hagel said.

The hole dug into the grassy hillside was small. The hole torn in hearts of those gathered around it was huge. "Nobody expects a child to die," whispered Heather Aitken. "Nobody is expecting to lose a baby." Aitken was standing outside the knot of family members and friends who had come to a Westlake Village cemetery recently to bury 7-day-old Daniel Tocyznski. Daniel's parents and the others were there to mourn. Aitken was there to help.