Hopper's Ed Ruscha, exhibited at Shafrazi Gallery

A Dennis Hopper survey is on the short list of  inaugural shows to be presented  at LA MOCA under new director Jeffrey Deitch, according to a Los Angeles source. Deitch has said he aims to incorporate shows with broad appeal into MOCA’s exhibition schedule. Hopper’s easy-on-the-eyes photos and paintings populated by the Hollywood and art set fit the bill.

Hopper, who is undergoing treatment for advanced prostate cancer, is best known for films including the 1969 Easy Rider and the 1979 Apocalypse Now. He has also been photographing since the 1960s. Over the years he has also experimented with different painting styles.  Tony Shafrazi presented a large show of Hopper’s work, Sign of the Times last fall. Included were photographs and photo-realist paintings of artist Jasper Johns, Bruce Conner and Larry Bell.

Hopper is also a collector. His Venice, California Frank Gehry-designed  house is jammed with paintings by Basquiat, Schnabel, Haring and others. A video of Hopper leading a personal tour found here. At the end of the tour Hopper says of his collection: “hopefully they’ll all end up in museums.”

The actor is embroiled in a nasty divorce. Last month, he obtained a restraining order against wife Victoria Duffy-Hopper, whom he accuses of stealing artworks. Read more here. Just today, reports say Hopper claims he is broke and has been living off a $450,000 line of credit. He has sold $1.89 million worth of artworks in the last nine years, but claims to have spent that much caring for his collection. Read more on that here.