DTLA is preparing for a celebration of creativity like no other as the 25th Annual LA Art Show returns to the LA Convention Center this Feb 5-9th.
Established 25 years ago, the LA Art Show has grown into the most comprehensive international art show in America bringing with it an every emerging Los Angeles art scene, over 100 galleries and some of the most well known names in the art world to date.
The 25th annual LA Art Show will feature over 100 galleries from more than 18 countries.
LA Art Show will be immediately followed by the second edition of Frieze LA and their first full art fair season. For 25 years, the LA Art Show has championed the city’s artists, the growth of our collector base, and even the renaissance of Downtown LA, after moving to the LA Convention Center in 2009.
Here’s a look at the highlights from the last two and a half decades: https://www.laartshow.com/timeline/#2014
Honoring LA’s position on the Pacific Rim, the LA Art Show has been devoted to honoring the influence of Latin America and Asia. This year’s programming lineup has proven to be the most diverse to date, with Featured Exhibitions showcasing the largest collection of ink painting of any art fair outside Asia, and DIVERSEartLA’s non-profit and museum exhibitors hailing from Chile, Spain, and all over Europe and Latin America.
Check out their list of Highlighted exhibitions:
The M.C. Escher Experience
Featuring the world’s largest collection of M.C. Escher’s work. Presented by Walker Fine Art
For over 40 years, Walker Fine Art has assembled the largest collection of Escher works in the world, and will showcase the “rarest of the rare” at the 25th Annual LA Art Show. The M.C. Escher Experience runs the span of the artist’s entire career, and will include rarely seen lithographs, wood cuts, engravings, and mezzotints, as well as the artist’s iconic custom furniture. Many of these will be shown in California for the first time ever. In addition to seeing the artist’s work up close, LA Art Show attendees will have the opportunity to become Escher. A special photo-booth will recreate his iconic sphere self portrait with you in the reflection.
DIVERSEartLA
TRANSCENDIENTS: Heroes at Borders
Created by artist Taiji Terasaki, in collaboration with Japanese American National Museum (JANM)
TRANSCENDIENTS is a unique collaboration between artist Taiji Terasaki and JANM that honors the “heroes at borders,” individuals that advocate and fight for those who face discrimination, prejudice and inequity at borders both physical and conceptual.This participatory exhibition spotlights important figures working to overcome and transcend borders that reinforce discrimination, inequity, and intolerance. Whether it be those fighting to rectify human rights injustices and to counter anti-immigrant sentiments and actions, members of the LGBTQ+ community seeking equal rights, women pressing for equal pay, or religious adherents who want to worship in safety, these heroes use their personal experiences to build bridges of understanding that connect us at the core of our collective humanity.
The European Pavilion
The European Pavilion is a brand new programming section comprised of contemporary European galleries, with an emphasis on exhibitors and artists from Spain, Italy, and the UK. The pavilion will be a celebration of the profound influence that European art has had on the world, with participating galleries curating exhibits that highlight the various movements and stylistic developments that have defined much of Western art. Within this new section will be a special exhibit showcasing Catalan artists from 1900 to present, offering a glimpse into the modern art history of the region. This first year will shine a spotlight on the Catalan Modernism Movement, which was an avenue for Catalonia to set itself apart from the rest of Spain and establish a form of independence. The Movement is stylistically characterized by motifs, shapes, colors and concepts inspired by nature, with the artists adapting physical shapes from nature and using natural light, colors and symbolism throughout their work.
ICONOCLASTS
New Photo-Realistic Portrait Sculptures by Kazu Hiro
At art fairs across the world, you’ve seen the eerily realistic sculptures of the heads of Abraham Lincoln, Frida Kahlo, Andy Warhol and other pop-culture luminaires created by Oscar-award winning makeup artist and sculptor Kazu Hiro. Now, for the 25th annual LA Art Show, Kazu will present a retrospective of his work, and unveil several new pieces that have never been seen before. The artist will be in attendance at select times throughout the fair.
DIVERSEartLA
MOLAA Pride
By artists Leo Chiachio and Daniel Giannone
Presented by Museum of Latin American Art
In order to commemorate local and international LGBTQ+ communities around the world, The Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) is presenting an installation about diversity and pride in collaboration with world-known Argentinian artists Leo Chiachio and Daniel Giannone. The 112 ft. long textile installation was created by the artists in collaboration with more than 3,000 members of the Long Beach and Los Angeles communities during the artists’ MOLAA residency between March and May of 2019. Visitors and community members were invited to contribute their own messages about the meaning of diversity and acceptance to the banner, before it was carried by over 100 volunteers at the Long Beach Pride Parade in July 2019. The Museum highlights underrepresented voices in Latin America, the US and around the world. This installation represents the commitment of MOLAA towards the values of diversity and inclusion for all.
THE SUE WONG SIGNATURE
A Showcase by Iconic Chinese & Hollywood Fashion Designer Sue Wong
This year, legendary Chinese fashion designer Sue Wong will be honored in the new FASHION programming section of the fair, displaying nearly one dozen of her iconic gowns. Wong’s dresses are astonishing, employing the revered age-old couture techniques implemented by the finest fashion houses in Europe, and evoking the allure and glamour of various eras such as Weimar Berlin, 1930s Shanghai, Precode Hollywood and Manhattan’s gilded Jazz Age. Her gowns have been worn to Hollywood awards ceremonies by stars such as Anne Hathaway, Kim Kardashian, Jessica Biel, Minnie Driver, Reba McEntire, Tyra Banks and more. Serendipitously, this year, the LA Art Show will be taking place the same weekend as the Oscars.
DIVERSEartLA
Performance
Diversity Walks And Talks
By artist Miss Artworld
Attendees are invited to strut their stuff down a runway and showcase what makes them unique. A variety of participants will be pre-selected and interviewed about what diversity means to them, and the interviews will play at the runway. At select times throughout the fair, spectators will also be recruited live to walk the runway. A photographer will document all individuals and their photos will be instantly displayed on a nearby wall. Like LA’s fashion and celebrity culture, this performance is all about high energy, fast pace and confidence!
For Tickets visit www.laartshow.com
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