Los Angeles artist secretly hangs a crayon-style drawing on a Met wall
A Los Angeles artist put his own drawing on a gallery wall at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, then made a video about it.
The artist, David (Sabastian) Miklatski, installed the work on Sunday, October 25. Its title is The MET 2027. ArtNews describes it as an oil pastel painting, a thick, crayon-like stick of pigment and oil. Miklatski said he made it in crayon to make it "extra ridiculous."
The picture shows a guest at the Met Gala ascending a staircase, with shrubs and photographers on either side. In the fiery foreground, police in riot gear beat protesters. The Met Gala is the yearly fundraising party for the museum's fashion department, known for its celebrity arrivals on the front steps.
Miklatski said he pulled off the installation with three things: a baby stroller, a portable speaker playing sex sounds, and a friend who was in on the plan. The stroller and speaker were part of the cover, according to his account.
He recorded the process for Instagram. The reel is set to "Baba O'Riley" by The Who, also known as "Teenage Wasteland." It cuts between his work on the Met wall and images from the Met Gala. It also shows scenes from Congo, Paris, Milan, Gaza, Haiti, Ukraine and the United States. ArtNews reported that the reel went viral.
The stunt is a playful one, built on a famous room full of fancy clothes and a hard-edged painting. Miklatski's choice to set the reel to a rock anthem about youthful restlessness gives the video its bite. Viewers can judge the tone for themselves by watching it.
