Selections from MOCA's permanent collection were juxtaposed in ways that highlighted issues of process, gesture, appropriation, and perception, resulting in a fresh look at both well-known works and recent acquisitions. Groupings included Jackson Pollock's Number 1, 1949 (1949) next to an installation by Cady Noland and Der Lauf Der Dinge (1987) by Fischli and Weiss. A separate grouping included No. 61 (Rust and Blue) (1953) by Mark Rothko and unti-tled, Surface Veil 26"x 26" (1970) by Robert Ryman adjacent to an installation by Lawrence Weiner. Composition of Red, Blue, Yellow and White: Nom III (1939) by Piet Mondrian was paired with a work by John Baldessari, while a room-sized installation of Mike Kelley's Monkey Island series was surrounded by Larry Clark's Tulsa photographs. Featured in the exhibition were many acquisitions not previously on display, including Bruce Nauman's Four Corner Piece (1970), a Richard Prince silkscreen, Jim Shaw's drawing Study for Horror A Vacui (1991), Christopher Williams's (Supplement*) 4 Iraq 2128 15141 Pterocles Alchata Pintailed Sandgrouse Pteroclididae 18.11.88 Presented by Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales and( Supplement*) 5 Morocco 2128 15141 Pterocles Alchata Pintailed Sandgrouse Pteroclididae 18.11.88 Presented by Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales (both 1990), and Robert Wilson's Dining Room Furniture (1986). Robert Gober's Cigar (1991) joined the exhibition at a later date.
Fragments and Form: Conjunctions in the Permanent Collection was organized by Paul Schimmel, Chief Curator, The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.