1. The Laurel Canyon 12
    May 21, 2014 by Walden3
    Five of the Laurel Canyon 12, aged 13, in 1987

    Five of the Laurel Canyon 12, aged 13, in 1987

    With all of the controversy and buzz surrounding Walden 3’s new exhibit BABY, it’s worth noting that this is not the first time that offspring have been curated in the name of art. In the winter of 1973-74, a small group of Hollywood producers and intelligentsia set their sites on “directing” a next generation of film stars and models by auditioning acting talent with desirable physical attributes. What followed was the intentional procreation of 24 beautiful, talented couples, hand-selected for their breeding potential, and a dozen babies, born in the fall of 1974, with all the expectations of their “creators” to dominate the silver screen in years to come. But what actually happened?

    Walden 3 has reunited the surviving members of the Laurel Canyon 12 for a panel discussion of the unpredictable tension involved in using human beings as curated art projects. Of the 12, 1 ended up taking his own life, 2 have been in and out of rehab for decades after early careers as child stars, 7 have abandoned the Hollywood dream for alternative careers, families, and solitude, and only 2 went on to moderate success in the film and modeling worlds.  Nature, even if carefully planned and engineered, yields to nurture in odd, unforeseeable ways.  Amanda Manitach and DK Pan will be on hand to talk about the expectations for their ‘living sculpture’ and their odd relationship to the benefactors of the child.

    We hope you’ll join us next Tuesday on the steps of the Denny School of Art, for what will surely be a passionate discussion of the hubristic intersection of art with genetic engineering and its untenable results.

    -JD