Artinfo Article About LA's Art Weekend

This writer would qualify as what my girlfriend Ginger calls an "athletic name dropper".

Dasha, Gaga, and Gago Party for MOCA
Published: November 16, 2009

LOS ANGELES—About a year ago, the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) appeared to be on the verge of death, as its endowment was bled dry by epic exhibitions and the formidable economic crisis. As the institution celebrated its 30th anniversary with a plush gala on Saturday night, though, it had never looked so stable — thanks to a hefty bailout from philanthropist Eli Broad — or so hip — thanks to a powerhouse group of celebrities and art world wonders.

Hosted by Russian art wunderkind Dasha Zhukova and super-dealer Larry Gagosian at the museum, the event featured an unusual collaborative performance by the irrepressible Italian provocateur Francesco Vezzoli and Lady Gaga. Accompanied by a coterie of dancers from the Bolshoi Ballet, Lady Gaga debuted her song “Speechless” at a violently pink piano decorated with butterflies courtesy of Damien Hirst. The piano was auctioned off after the performance for a boisterous $450,000, a good portion of the total $4 million the gala raised for the museum.

See photos and read more here.