Joe Mangrum’s City of Gold at the de Young Museum

City of Gold

Joe Mangrum is this month’s artist-in-residence at the de Young Museum in San Francisco and the opening reception for his ephemeral art installation “City of Gold” takes place this Friday, August 24th from 5:00 to 8:45pm.

Joe Mangrum transforms the Kimball Gallery into an alchemist’s laboratory. He deconstructs consumer culture and modern idyllic attachments to explore our meanings of wealth. Drawing inspiration from the de Young’s historical collection, Joe invites the public to take part in his allegorical journey, by gold-leafing various everyday and ritualized objects. A landscape will emerge serving as a mirror to our obsessions, connections and true desires.oe Mangrum transforms the Kimball Gallery into an alchemist’s laboratory. He deconstructs consumer culture and modern idyllic attachments to explore our meanings of wealth. Drawing inspiration from the de Young’s historical collection, Joe invites the public to take part in his allegorical journey, by gold-leafing various everyday and ritualized objects. A landscape will emerge serving as a mirror to our obsessions, connections and true desires.

Scott Beale
Scott Beale

Scott Beale founded Laughing Squid in 1995 in San Francisco and is currently based in New York City. When not running the blog, Scott can be found posting on Bluesky and sharing photos on Instagram.