Art That's Not Stuffy: TRANSMISSION LA: AV CLUB

The latest pop-up exhibition at MOCA, curated by Beastie Boy Mike D, is a clanging mix of art, technology, and mad beats.

I attended The Avant/Garde Diaries festival TRANSMISSION LA: AV CLUB's opening weekend and it was an all-sensory visual, social and intellectual experience. Curated by Beastie Boy Mike D, Transmission LA: AV CLUB, started the party on Thursday April 19th, at The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA with an exhibition that beautifully explores the relationship between the audio and visual through music and streams of colors and images.

Some of the artists in the show are Tom Sachs, Ara Peterson, Jim Drain, Cory Arcangel, Mike Mills and Ben Jones, who mesmerized me with his installation 8 Bit World. The entire gallery was filled with moving imagery causing me to feel more like I was trapped in the mind of a person consumed with this racing game. Night and day passed by as the viewer drove quickly to nowhere leaving a lasting impression with me and served as a metaphor for just how quickly life goes by with the only constant being the sun and moon. (Perhaps that's a bit of over-thinking on my part but the space will most certainly charge your mind.)

One of the highlights for me was Peanut Butter Wolf's set. He played the classics like James Brown, Rick James, Michael Jackson and fused them with hip-hop favorites Tribe Called Quest, Special Ed, De La Soul and of course the Beastie Boys. He even threw in George Kranz's Din Daa Daa, which is always a win for me. If you head over this weekend for Cinco de Mayo, expect to dance as Diplo and Mad Decent Crew are expected to perform.

While you are there, make sure you check out the staging of the Mercedes-Benz Concept Style Coupé. The never-before-seen car echoes the exhibition's focus on design and technology.

Transmission LA: AV Club exhibit at the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA is scheduled to run through May 6, 2012 and is free to enter. For updates on the music series and other events, visit Avant Garde Diaries or like them on Facebook.

Rachel Matos is a museum professional and founder of the lifestyle blog The Art Muse. For more information you can visit her site RachelMatos.com or follow her on Twitter.