MALBA and face-licking

Yesterday Road2Argentina (still hate the name) organized a trip to see the new Andy Warhol exhibit at the MALBA (Museo de Arte Latinamericano de Buenos Aires). I've been an embarrassingly huge slacker about going to museums (Baird would be so disappointed in me) and I've been dying to see both the museum and the exhibit so I RSVP'd for the free entrance/tour yesterday. Turns out Wednesdays are always free and the tour was a 70-person pared-down visit in Spanish; since I can't understand foreign languages through a microphone and hate being told what art to look at when, I peaced to explore on my own.

I was actually very impressed by the MALBA; it's tiny but full of gems. Warhol was Warhol, which is to say awesome but dripping everywhere with pretensiousness. The title of the exhibit was 'Mr. America' and the walls included a bunch of quotes (The museum had rooms of the Marilyns and the soup cans, a collection of his polaroids/photostrips of famous people, and several videos (including the controversial 'Blow Job,' a 35-minute film of a man's face while supposedly receiving one. Hey Mom).
The actual museum is contemporary Latin-American art, which means it has a large collection of odd works (Rye, I thought of you multiple times). Some of my faves:

The Disasters of Mysticism by Matta

Look at this Spaghetti Bench! It winds through two stories! I miss woodworking!

You can't tell but this is a huge collage - FOUND OBJECTS, so many kinds!

You flip a switch and these circles spin!

MALBA also houses that really famous painting of Frida Kahlo with a monkey and a parrot.

Last night I went to Desnivel, which is supposedly the best greasy-spoon parrilla (steak place) in the city and was indeed AMAHZING - got a huge ribeye soaked in garlic with fries and a bottle of wine for 44 pesos ($12). Then I experienced a healthy dose of Argentine saliciousness at a club called Museo(/Museum, locals seem to call it Museum and foreigners Museo, go figure.) Wednesdays are an infamous after-hours party that starts early (10pm! for Portenos that's like noon) and is, I would guess, comprised of 75% men. No, maybe 85. They are mostly in suits, which is a fun little added bonus, but they are also extremely aggressive. I had hands touching my face and hair and creeping under the straps of my dress etc, and my friend Eliana actually had her face licked. To their credit, if ignored or given a firm no, Argentine men will quit the pursuit. The club, in the end, was a nice confidence boost and an interesting experience but a bit too much for me. It also had terrible music (think Shania Twain followed by Depeche Mode).

I am about to go for a run before teaching a class at 5:00 (it's 87 degrees at the mo, so we'll see how I do) but I'll post more soon. xo!