June 11, 2022 - July 23, 2022
Opening Reception: Saturday, June 11th 2-5pm
What becomes a Legend most? Archival Digital Print, 2022
In advance of this year’s career-spanning survey show at the Zacheta National Gallery in Warsaw, Poland, veteran Los Angeles artist Susan Mogul offers local viewers a tantalizing preview in the exhibition “Susan Mogul: Sneak Peek” at as-is.la.
At least since the nineteen sixties when Norman Mailer titled his book of collected essays, Advertisements for Myself, writers and artists have acknowledged “self-promotion” as a central part of the artist’s job and perhaps even, of the artwork itself. Few, however, did so earlier or with greater gusto than Mogul. This cheeky attitude weaves in and out of Tales from the Mogul Archive, her 36-panel magnum opus which fills the gallery’s main space. Self-promotion plays an even greater role in What becomes a Legend most?, Mogul’s series of three strikingly beautiful semi-nude self-portraits with captions in three languages—Polish, Spanish, and English—on view in the entry gallery. These latter artworks are based on the mid-century ad campaign for “Blackglama,” that featured glamorous images of older women celebrities wrapped in the company’s mink coats, a campaign which is today best remembered for its hauntingly poetic tag line, “What becomes a Legend most?” Mogul poses this question at the top of photographs of herself, and then proceeds to answer it at the bottom with a characteristic mix of self-aggrandizement and self-mockery: “Susan Mogul, the septuagenarian, anticipates her first solo museum exhibition.” As do we. And eagerly so. “Susan Mogul: Sneak Peek,” promises to provide the perfect send-off for this highly accomplished if not yet sufficiently appreciated artist.
Artist Bio.
Having been involved with video since the early 1970s, Susan Mogul is a pioneer of the medium. Initially producing an important series of humorous and staunchly feminist performance videos, her practice quickly expanded to more complicated and experimental forms of narrative, including feature-length work.
Mogul has received numerous grants including a Guggenheim Fellowship, National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, Getty Trust Fellowship, and Center for Cultural Innovation grant.
In 2020, a major essay by Kristina Newhouse about Mogul’s work and its significance to the history of feminist art and Los Angeles art appeared in X-TRA, prestigious art quarterly. Mogul’s first solo museum exhibition - a major survey of her work- will open on August 4, 2022, and run through October 30, 2022, at the Zacheta National Gallery of Art in Warsaw, Poland.
For further information about the artist go to www.susanmogul.com