The Bunker Playlists

I once loved making themed playlists, even before the digital era, when it required using cassette tapes to record and sequence individual album cuts after precisely dropping the needle.  Now that I've been to the two-story Bunker in West Palm Beach, I realize you can do the same with art if you're as rich as Beth Rudin DeWoody, who has 19,000 pieces in her collection!  DeWoody has a sense of humor, too:  her portrait hangs in the upstairs restroom where everyone is sure to see it.

Appointments are required to visit the "art space," only open for the duration of the "season" (November through April) in a converted government building dating back to the 1930s.  The place is so below-the-radar that Google maps only can get you there with a street address.  Chris, Thom, Christine and I each paid $25 to get in and signed liability releases (in case we fell after being blown away?)  before a punky young docent crisply explained how the place operated.  

Lobby

Taba" by Bronwyn Katz (partial side view, 2021)

Basically, guest curators, selected by DeWoody, review digitized images of the collection and propose various themes.  Guided tours are offered for $300 per group; otherwise you're on your own.  No labels to interfere with your photography, just inexpensively printed catalogs marked "Please return" in discreetly placed plastic holders at the entrance to each room with tiny photos of each work to identify the artist, title and year it was produced. 

The Endowed Chair

"Eames Pony Skin Chair" by Pia Ledy (2021)

"Lawn Chairs" by Rob Davis (2022)

"Trophy (Gehry Chair)" by Carlos Rolon/Dzine (2011)

The name of everyone Florida had executed by Old Sparky to date are printed on this fluorescent-tube beach chair.

"You Sit, You Die" by Ivan Navarro (2002)

"Siamese VII" by Kyung-Me (2021)

Thom's shirt and bartending skills chime with this painting.  What better place to enjoy a Cosmo?

"Next Bar" by Kirsten Everberg (2019)

I couldn't tell if these chairs were part of the theme or just a place to plotz.

Citrus

"Lemon Being Engulfed in the Bardo" by Dustin Metz (2020)

"Pile of Lemons" by Pedro Pedro (2019)

Some works straddled themes.

"Nothing To Worry About" by Laure Mary-Couegnias (2022)

"Molded Lemons" by Ryan Flores (2022)

Odalisque

"Lounging Nude No. 1" by Karon Davis (2022)

"Elizabeth Taylor As Cleopatra Wax Statue Los Angeles
(On Red Yellow Striped Water Music Toile)
by Tim Hailand (2015)

"Lorelei" by Colette Calascione (2002)

"Drowsy" by Kyle Dunn (2019)

"Untitled (Study for Minotaur)" by Nahuel Vecino (2013)

"VR CFNM" by Naruki Kukita (2020)

"Celebratory Skin/Knowledge" by Raul de Nieves (partial, 2019)

Utilities

It's not often that art reminds me of my father's garage.  He hung his not-quite-so-colorful tools on pegboard, too.

Various Artists

"Brooms" by Patrick Bayly (2021) + "Bicicleta Blanca" (2006)

"Sick Pack" by Robert Arneson (partial, 1968)

Family Affair

"Fish Tank" by Paul Thek (1976) + Paul Thek in a Black T-Shirt by Peter Hujar (1976)
+ Andalusian Dog by Jean Conner (1958)

"Company of Strangers" by Tony Oursler (1996)

From the title I'm guessing this massive collection of bootlegs tapes has been passed down from Grandpa Deadhead.

"3RD Gen" by Mark A. Rodriguez (2018)

Yep, there's video, too.  Chris, standing in front of "Radio Ramble" by Johannes Vanderbeek (2016), struck a pose in the screening room behind works by Carlo Mollino and Claude and Francois LaLanne.

Checkpoint II" by Ryland Arnoldi (2023)

"Tapestry (Dogwood)" by John Currin (2010)

"Mock Up for Oswald" by Cady Noland (1989)

"Investigation Piece No. 82 (Barry Goldwater) by Al Hansen ( (1964)

The Library

Not a theme, rather my favorite room at the Bunker.  Only the tchotchke tableaus change from season to season.  Christine found the ultimate self-help book.

 

Andy is EVERYWHERE.  I'm trying to put together a really difficult jigsaw puzzle of his selfies.

Barkley Hendricks is having a moment.  In the past year, I've seen his work exhibited in three different places.

May she rest in peace.

The Unisex Bathroom

I must admit, the James Brown figurine on the floor gave me pause.

But look what's lurking under the sink!

Here I am in the elevator, decorated with pictures and and another endowed chair (no doubt commissioned) featuring the flora from DeWoody's West Palm Beach home.

Here's something I'd never thought I'd say:  there's nothing quite like the Bunker in New York City.  Brava!