Jeffrey Deitch welcomes you to his posh L.A. house

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

It’s no secret that directors of major art museums are well-compensated financially and often lead lives that rival those of movie stars in terms of conspicuous consumption and real estate. Such is apparently the case with Jeffrey Deitch, the head of Los Angeles’ Museum of Contemporary Art.

Deitch, a recent New York transplant, has taken up residence in the trendy L.A. neighborhood of Los Feliz, known for its youthful hipster scene as well as its pricey mansions. In a recent video from the site Nowness that has been posted on the museum’s own website, Deitch leads viewers through his abode, which he says used to be the home of Cary Grant.

‘I wanted a Spanish revival house like this, a movie-star house,’ says Deitch in the video. The former gallery owner takes viewers on a virtual tour of the property, including the outdoor pool and various rooms.

At one point, Deitch reveals that he has commissioned artist Richard Woods to create a ‘party room’ with a ‘super Tudor pop’ feel. Deitch also makes a stop in the bedroom, where he reveals that he has hung an abstract painting of Jesus Christ by artist Aaron Young over the bed.

Also hanging near the bedroom is a drawing by Andy Warhol, whose work Deitch has frequently referred to as an inspiration. ‘Celebrity has become, for better or worse, an art form,’ Deitch says in the video. ‘An artist can use themselves as a medium to become a celebrity as a walking work of art.’

As was previously reported in the Los Angeles Times, Deitch’s contract with MOCA includes a ‘relatively modest’ housing allowance.

The house tour, which you can view after the jump, was directed by Alison Chernick, a filmmaker who has helmed documentaries on artists Jeff Koons and Matthew Barney.

-- David Ng

Images: Top two photos are screen shots from the Nowness video. Below, Jeffrey Deitch. Credit: Anne Cusack / Los Angeles Times

RECENT AND RELATED:

Graffiti and street art show to take over MOCA’s Geffen Contemporary in 2011

Who is parodying Jeffrey Deitch on Twitter?

Jeffrey Deitch on Andy Warhol -- and on James Franco’s project with MOCA