Los Angeles: Art Spaces Are Focusing on the Election

This week in LA art reviews, two contemporary painters challenge our perception of commonplace images

Oct 21, 2020 • View in browser

This week in LA art reviews, two contemporary painters challenge our perception of commonplace images: Amir H. Fallah expands what we might think of as a “portrait” and Linda Stark lends serious attention to the heart symbol. Presidential political advertisements in the US have a long, fascinating (and at times disturbing) history. Artists Antoni Muntadas and Marshall Reeves have been compiling 70 years’ worth of them into a feature film. Don’t miss the premiere via the Getty Museum’s website this Friday, and I encourage you to read Matt Stromberg’s longer feature on how LA art spaces are gearingup for the election. Many of you might have been noticing the Armenian flags around town — signs of protest against the escalating war in the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh. Last week, a collective of performers showed up at the Broad Museum, and other downtown locations, wearing robes printed with images of rifles in an effort to raise awareness about this largely ignored war. Editor in Chief Hrag Vartanian writes an illuminating article on the topic. Wishing you all a lovely rest of your week 🌼– Elisa Wouk Almino, Senior Editor

LA’s Art Spaces Are Focusing on the Election

SPARC Digital Mural Lab, “We Vote” Brooklyn Voter Turnout 2020 (photo courtesy Alchemy)

LA-area cultural institutions have organized several projects around the upcoming election. One of them is artist Aram Han Sifuentes’s “Official Unofficial Voting Station,” now online at the Skirball Cultural Center, which aims to give voice to the millions of Americans who cannot legally vote.With her project, Sifuentes hopes to question the US’s exclusionary voting system:“People talk about voting as if it’s the answer. It’s so important, I’m not discrediting it, but it’s also important to question the system of voting as well, a discriminatory and racist system.”

SPONSORED Patty Chang, Beatriz Cortez, and Kang Seung Lee Present New Work at 18th Street Arts Center This Fall Chang meditates on our fears in Milk Debt, and Cortez and Lee collaborate on the new exhibition Becoming Atmosphere.

Latest Reviews

How Do You Paint Portraiture Without a Portrait? By negating the figure, Amir H. Fallah expands the limits of portraiture to make space for multiple interpretations. Caroline Ellen Liou

A Painter’s Sincere Affection for the Heart Ideogram Linda Stark lends serious attention to the heart symbol, which, like most symbols associated with women and femininity, is easily dismissed and oft-overlooked. Jennifer Remenchik

A Discussion About "Unrecognized Labor"

Black Women Performers Discuss “Unrecognized Labor” Gabrielle Civil, mayfield brooks, and Jasmine Nyende respond to Nikita Gale’s installation PRIVATE DANCER at the California African American Museum. Elisa Wouk Almino | October 22, 5–6:30pm (PDT)

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Outfitted With Symbolic Rifles, Female Collective Raises Awareness for a Largely Ignored War Performers took to the streets of downtown Los Angeles to raise awareness about the escalating war in the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh. Hrag Vartanian

Meet LA’s Art Community: Candice Lin Has Been Researching Ideas of Citizenship An interview series spotlighting some of the great work coming out of Los Angeles. Hear directly from artists, curators, and art workers about their current projects and personal quirks. Elisa Wouk Almino

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From the Store

Guerrilla Girls Clutch This nifty clutch by intersectional feminist activist-artist group Guerrilla Girls lists 13 advantages of being a woman artist, such as not having to undergo the embarrassment of being called a genius or be in shows with men!Shop our Guerrilla Girls collection

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