The 'X' Factor: DesertX 2025, Coachella Valley, CA
Outdoor artworks, land art, site-specific installations speak to a tradition that exists outside museums and galleries, that is accessible and available to all willing to travel to a given destination, and which in many cases intervene in complimentary and contrasting ways with the environment.
DesertX 2025, taking place in the Coachella Valley (i.e. the greater Palm Springs area) March 8 through, May 11, features 11 artists who have created work for specific locations throughout the valley. Downloading the DesertX app gives you info locations and driving directions to each. Susan Davis, is the founder and President of DesertX and this year's co- curators are Neville Wakefield and Kaitlin Garcia-Maestas. The corporate sponsor is Jose Cuervo's 1800 Tequila (and there will be a DesertX Mexico).
The eleven artists featured in this year's iteration are a very diverse group that includes Agnes Denes, 94 years young, and Sara Meyohas, 33 years old, as well as Sanford Biggers, Alison Saar, Jose Davila, Cannupa Hanska Luger, Raphael Hefti, Kimsooja, Ronald Rael, Muhannad Shono, and Kapwani Kiwanga.
This is the fifth iteration of DesertX. Everyone still talks about Doug Aitken's 2017 Desert X installation, Mirage, a mirrored house. Other memorable works from Past Desert X are Nancy Cahill Baker's Augmented Reality installation in 2019 and Gerald Clarle's 2023 installation.
This year's DesertX may be the best yet. On opening weekend when I visited not all the artworks were open to the public yet (they probably all are by now).
Installation view Alison Saar, Soul Service Station, DesertX 2o25
What were my favorites? Alison Saar's Soul Service Station is a remarkable artwork. It looks like a Depression-era gas station of the American West and is filled with reclaimed tin tiles and other items and materials. School children from throughout the Coachella Valley were engaged to create their own devotional objects for the interior of the station (introducing them to artmaking).
installation view of Soul Service Station by Alison Saar, DesertX 2025
Inside stands a life-sized hand-carved guardian of the station in service station overalls. Saar's recent sculptures have explored violence against women and the legacy of slavery. On occasion, her sculptural figures such as Topsy, have been fearsome and rage-bearing. However, Soul Service Station is meant as an oasis, a figure of pride, strength, and joy.
Outside the station there is a gas pump. Rather than the expected gas pump filler neck, there is an item in the shape of a conch shell. When you place it next to your ear, you hear a blues poem sung by the Los Angeles based poet Harryette Mullen.
Soul Service station is a must-see and I truly hope that, post-Desert X, it finds a permanent home. Soul Service Station was also sponsored by the Jordan Schnitzer Family Foundation. On site at the press preview was Kimberly Davis of Saar's gallery LA Louver who believes it will happen.
intallation view of Sarah Meyohas' Truth Speaks in Slanted Beams, DesertX 2025
Sarah Meyohas' installation, Truth Arrives in Slanted Beams, uses a caustic spiral that leads from the road into the desert and then rises and falls looking like a piece of the Guggenheim Museum sunk in sand. The bends in the caustic creation surround desert plants. There are also reflectors that can be moved but that project words from the poetic phrase, Truth Arrives in Slanted Beams.
Jacob Jonas dance troupe, The Company, DesertX 2025, activation at artwork by Sarah Meyohas
At the press review, there was an activation at Meyohas' installation by the Jacob Jonas dance group, The Company. The dancers led in a file to the sculpture and moved around it doing a series of movements from Jonas' athletic, kinetic, dance vocabulary. It was a great collaboration (I know it was filmed – perhaps it could be an AR enhancement during the exhibition?). Regardless, the artwork stands on its own (literally and metaphorically) and is everything one hopes to find in a DesertX installation.
The Living Pyramid by Agnes Denes, DesertX 2025
Agnes Denes' The Living Pyramid is the centerpiece at Sunnylands, the former Annenberg home in Rancho Mirage turned museum and conference center. It is a very large construction of terraces filled with live native plants. So although the form of the sculpture is constant, how it looks is constantly evolving and changing. At the press preview, Denes made the statement (via a filmed segment) that, 'My pyramids are an optimistic edifice in the time of turmoil.' As a further explanation, Denes says in the exhibition publication that 'art exists in a dynamic, evolutionary world where objects are processes and forms are dynamic patterns, where measure and concepts are relative, and reality is forever changing.'
Part of the experience, and the fun of Desert X, is driving around searching for the artworks. Waze and the DesertX app led me on drives through parts of the valley I'd never seen, including high mountain roads, and old downtowns in Desert Hot Springs and corners and canyons I'd never been to before.
Installation view Sanford Biggers, DesertX 2025
The other artworks I saw included: Sanford Biggers whimsical clouds that appear in the sky in Palm Springs; Jose Davila's uncanny marble blocks that make you think you are walking in a Roman ruin; Raphael Hefti's simple and elegant work, in a horizontal material is stretched across a canyon so that it twists in the wind and reflects light at different places when it does; Ronald Rael who used a solar-powered robot to 3D print an adobe maze making a statement about the marriage of indigenous knowledge and current tech in ways that are cheap and environmentally sound; and Cannupa Hanska Lugerm who created a nomadic desert vehicle and mobile home as part of a post-apocalyptic futurist narrative, which will see the vehicle exhibited at three different locations in the Coachella Valley.
There are always plenty of reasons to go out to Palm Springs and other destinations in the Coachella Valley. DesertX 2025, however, presents a different way to experience the landscape, support not just the land but the people and the artisans who live there, You Should you want to support DesertX, there are ways to get involved and be a sponsor or donor or make a tax-deductible contribution. And, yes, there is also Merch, very cool T-shirts, hoodies, stickers etc….
If Art is about seeing, then DesertX 2025 challenges us to think about the desert, its past, its future, the wind, the ground, the indigenous plants, and ourselves and the world in new ways.
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Newsweek
3 days ago
- Newsweek
Exclusive: TMNT Co-Creator Kevin Eastman Reflects on 40 Years of Turtle Power
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Entertainment gossip and news from Newsweek's network of contributors Back before the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles became a household name, it started off as a dark and gritty comic for Mirage from co-creators Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. More news: Exclusive: 'TMNT' Spinoff Series 'Casey Jones' Set for Release This Fall Eastman has been a beloved comic creator for decades on end, and he sat down with Newsweek to discuss the creation, history, and longevity of the turtles — and he divulged some new updates on the current massive hit, "The Last Ronin." Initially, Eastman and Laird were messing around with one another regarding the creation of the animal equivalent of Bruce Lee, a world-renowned martial artist. Lee, known for his speed and skills in martial arts, was transformed into a ninja turtle. "And so I thought to myself, if Bruce Lee was an animal, what would be the stupidest animal, mammal, creature, reptile, and so fast-moving martial artist, slow-moving turtle. It just made me laugh out loud." Though the idea of a turtle being a martial artist began with a laugh, Eastman and Laird would lean on their comic fandom to turn the one turtle into four. "And then we said, well, if one, why not a group of them, maybe four? Like the Fantastic Four or X Men kind of thing. So I penciled a sketch all four turtles, each with different weapons, and I put this comic bookie Ninja Turtles logo above them, and when Pete did the inking on it, he added a Teenage Mutant to the title. And we just laughed out loud, and it was something we said, 'enough rejection letters.' "Besides, we really love this idea. We're going to keep this one for ourselves, and let's just come up with a story that tells how the turtles got to be Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. And that was in 1984, and the first issue came out in May of 1984." A cover of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1, by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. A cover of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1, by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. IDW The comic was meant to be a one-shot, or singular issue, but the impact of the first issue was undeniable. Eastman borrowed money from his uncle to fund the first issue, and a 3,000-copy run would soon sell out. "We borrowed money from my uncle Quentin. We put together a little business proposal. It was around $1,200 if I recall. All correctly, and that was enough to print 3,000 copies. We thought that we would have most of those 3000 copies for many years to come. It was a one-shot. So, you know, again, we did it, the creation of it and the writing of it was written for ourselves, because we really didn't think it would sell that well. But it sold out pretty quickly, and to our surprise and my uncle ... he was actually going to get paid back." The popularity of the comic would turn into a 6,000-copy run, and eventually, the comic world was begging for the second issue. Eastman and Laird would continue their original run, but the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles would turn into a global sensation shortly thereafter. Though the turtles would come out as a comic that showcased a far darker outlook, Eastman and Lair licensed out the turtles to Playmate Toys, leading to the original cartoon series being released in 1987, a series of video games, and the ever-popular original live-action films. Headshot of Kevin Eastman with the cover for the 1990s TMNT movie. Headshot of Kevin Eastman with the cover for the 1990s TMNT movie. IDW Despite the fact that the turtles were turned into more of the pizza-eating and radical variation that many fans grew up with and loved, Eastman reveals that he and Laird still had creative control over how the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were conveyed. "We were lucky, you know. I mentioned Jack Kirby, who was a big hero of Peter and I and the nature of the business that he grew up in, working for Marvel in DC. It was commonplace for the corporation that you worked for owned all the rights to your characters and anything you created was owned by them. So we were well aware, even around the time that Peter and I started, there was a lot of challenges to industry professionals trying to get Kirby more credit for his rights ownership profits from the characters he created. So we knew how lucky we were that we created something we owned fully." Eastman would eventually sell his share of the turtles to Laird, who in turn sold the rights to Viacom. Despite not having creative control any longer, Eastman has remained a creative voice for the franchise, including in the most recent movie, "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem." "My position as being kind of the OG, you know, the co-creator, Nickelodeon, who's always been really wonderful, very kind. And they, because they don't have to bring me in on anything, but they always reach out and ask my opinion. Or, you know, like I did a voice as I was a good human and 'Mutant Mayhem,' or I've done voices in the cartoon show I worked on, you know, different aspects of different productions. But with that, it was something that Seth and Jeff and Evan and everybody at Point Grey and that whole team had a very specific vision. And it was one of those that had they invited me, and I would have been happy to join him, but they had a vision that they wanted to tell, and I could not be more happy and more proud." Eastman did not bow out of creating new and exciting stories for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. In fact, he became a chief writer when IDW Publishing launched a new turtles comic series in 2011. Inks done by Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles writer and co-creator Kevin Eastman. Inks done by Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles writer and co-creator Kevin Eastman. IDW The monthly-released comic began in August 2011 and has been running ever since. However, IDW chose to relaunch the series in July 2024, with Jason Aaron taking over as the chief writer. Eastman worked with Tom Waltz while at IDW, and they paired together to revive and work on a story back in the 1980s that was initially developed by Eastman and Laird. The idea was about what the world of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles would look like if all but one perished. That idea would be transformed into the massive hit, "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin." "The Last Ronin" follows the tragic fall of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, save for one, Michaelangelo. Michelangelo is distraught over the loss of his brothers and seeks revenge against Oroku Hiroto, the grandson of the infamous Shredder. Cover art for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin, drawn by Kevin Eastman. Cover art for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin, drawn by Kevin Eastman. IDW "It's an idea that Peter and I wrote way back in 1987, set 30 years in the future. And it was 31 years later that Tom waltz and I, when I dug out the original script and materials that Pete and I developed for that in 1987 and adapted into The Last Ronin. We just felt like this is kind of our love poem to all things, you know, dark night, the edginess, the darkness, and some important things leaning, you know, quite heavily on the original Mirage series in this kind of universe of its own." Eastman referred to the reception as "mind-blowing," which has certainly been the case. "The Last Ronin" led to a prequel called "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin - Lost Years," which follows Michelangelo and his quest for answers after the death of his brothers, and the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin II - Re-Evolution," which follows a brand-new set of turtles. Cover art for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin II Re-Evolution, drawn by Kevin Eastman. Cover art for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin II Re-Evolution, drawn by Kevin Eastman. IDW "The Last Ronin" universe is also expanding into a video game, and Eastman revealed that there will be a third sequel for the comics as well. "We are working on a part three. So we feel like, just funny that when I'm looking at your posters behind you, get the 'Empire Strikes Back.' And so we feel like, you know, 'Last Ronin, the first one is kind of 'A New Hope.' 'Re-Evolution' is 'Empire Strikes Back,' and so three is going to be our best shot at, you know, 'Return of the Jedi' kind of concept. So, we're excited to dig into that this year." Eastman also revealed that the third "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin" series is set to start in 2026. "So 2026, is what we're looking at. And so we're all working. We're kind of rolled off series two, almost right into series three. So we're excited." Since creating the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in 1984, the characters and stories have gone on to inspire and entertain fans for over 40 years. What has surprised Eastman through 40 years of writing and drawing, what was initially a joke? "That there are still stories to tell, sincerely." To listen to the entire, watch the video above. Eastman goes into depth on the history of the turtles and their many iterations, the original comic, how "The Last Ronin" was developed, the sequels, and what creating the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles has meant to him for 40 years. For more on comics, head to Newsweek Comics.
Forbes
28-05-2025
- Forbes
Fifty Years Of LA Louver in Venice, CA: A History
LA Louver on N. Venice Blvd in Venice, CA LA Louver, the Venice, California art gallery known for its exhibition of such well-known artists as David Hockney, R. B. Kitaj, and Ed and Nancy Kienholz, as well as contemporary artists such as Alison Saar, Gajin Fujita, and Rebecca Campbell, is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Gallery founding director Peter Goulds with artist David Hockney, 2015. 'It's been a fabulous incredible journey,' LA Louver's founder Peter Goulds told me recently. Long devoted 'to showing Los Angeles based artists in an international context,' LA Louver is commemorating this landmark with an exhibition of artists they have shown and who have inspired them (on view until June 13), from Terry Allen to Tom Wudl, as well as Marcel Duchamp, Wallace Berman, George Herms. John Cage, Nick Cave, Leon Kossoff, and Ed Moses, among many others. It is a museum-worthy retrospective housed in a familiar gallery space with wondrous surprises at every turn. Don't miss it! Recently, I sat down with LA Louver's triumvirate of Peter Goulds, Kimberly Davis, and Elizabeth East, to hear their personal stories as well as their roles in the gallery's history. Born in London, in Islington, Goulds, who as a youngster always won his school's Art Prize as well as its Religion Prize, passed his A levels at the precocious age of 15, which would be impressive if you didn't learn that Liz, his wife, had achieved hers at 14. They met at the Walthamstow School of Art, which he attended before leaving London to attend the Coventry Art School, and then the Manchester School of Art, all along developing his interest in information design and audiovisual communication. Goulds's teenage years also included starting a car cleaning business, becoming a card-carrying member of Ronnie Scott's Jazz club, and working at theaters in the West End, building sets, painting scenery, moving scenery and props. All experiences that would prove invaluable in a gallery owner. In 1971, Goulds, as the recipient of a Leverhulme Fellowship, met Mitsuru Kataoka of UCLA's Dickson Art Center design center at a conference in Vienna; then decided to spend four months traveling around the US, visiting universities teaching Video arts and communication. From the moment he arrived in Los Angeles, Goulds began his love affair with the city. 'I remember going up Laurel Canyon and I saw those houses on stilts and right then I began my romance [with Los Angeles].' Goulds met many Americans, and 'encountered philanthropy at a level I couldn't have imagined [and] as a bedrock of this society.' While in LA he went to see UCLA 'to see what it was all about.' Goulds returned to the UK to teach at the Leeds Art School, while continuing research on creating audiovisual content at Manchester. After only a few weeks, he received a call from Kataoka, asking Goulds to fill in for him at UCLA while he was away in Japan on sabbatical. At UCLA, Goulds created a very popular course on structuralism in 20th Century Art for which he projected films, showed slides, and which he taught for three years. In 1975, as his time at UCLA was coming to an end, Goulds, who was now married to Liz, had a decision to make: 'We both wanted to stay on because we really got enthralled by this iconoclastic place and met so many artists' Gallery directors Peter Goulds & Kimberly Davis, pictured at 55 North Venice Boulevard, 1991. Goulds presented two ideas to Liz: The first was to start a textile manufacturing company. Liz was happy being a fabric designer working for Lanz, (famous for their nightwear) but she couldn't stand the manufacturers. The other idea was to start a gallery, something Goulds would have never have thought to do in the United Kingdom. During their time in California, Goulds had managed to save $15,000 thanks to grant funds and a quirk of the British Tax Code that didn't tax their earnings abroad. So that was their investment in the gallery. The history of contemporary art galleries in LA was checkered. The Ferus Gallery opened in 1957, with the involvement of Walter Hopps and Irwin Blum and a coterie of artists. Nick Wilder opened his gallery in 1965. However, in the 1970s both would close. At that time, most contemporary art was shown at universities rather than galleries or museums. However, Los Angeles Institute of Contemporary Art (LAICA), LA's first nonprofit exhibition space founded by Robert L. Smith and his wife Toby Smith, had a wonderful archive where artists could leave slides of their work on file, with details about the artists. Goulds was able to study these to really become familiar with many LA artists. He also contributed a visual essay to their publication, Journal, that was a manifesto of sorts, declaring 'freedom from all heroes, past, present, and to come.' Goulds was living in Venice and decided to open his gallery there, in part because he couldn't compete with the galleries on decorator's row on La Cienega; and because many artists were living nearby between Ocean Park and Washington Blvd, and between the Ocean and Lincoln Blvd. Gallery founding director Peter Goulds with his artwork L.A. Louver, Eros it is the mirror, 1976, 2025. Marcel Duchamp had created a work called 'Fresh Widow' which was a window whose panels of glass were covered with black leather. Goulds had created his own take on it for a film he wanted to make, that was a louvered window whose slats were mirrors. In tribute to Duchamp's French heritage, Goulds called it 'La Louver.' At Liz's suggestion, this became the name of the gallery (you can see the actual item at the current LA Louver show). 'I thought if you open a halfway decent place, you have something to say, open it where artists live and work, then artists visit other artists, curators visit, collectors visit, critics visit, writers visit. There was a built-in audience. So you just had to gamble that your program was going to encourage others to come by. And it worked.' From the first day, important curators such as Betty Turnbull and Betty Asher came by, and they brought their fellow curators including a young Stephanie Barron, and the LACMA legend Maurice Tuchman. Local artists often walked in, some hoping to exhibit, some hoping to get work doing construction or installation work. Lili Lakich, Mona, 1981, Photostat on Masonite, plexiglass, glass tubing with argon and neon gasses, crackle tube, transformer, 54 ½ x 39 ¼ x 7 in. At first, Goulds had trouble getting artists to show at LA Louver. He approached Lili Lakich who was doing works with neon (She eventually opened the Museum of Neon). Among the first shows was George Herms, who brought along Wallace Berman. Berman didn't want gallery representation but allowed Goulds to keep a few works in his back office to deal. Tom Wudl, and a Kate Steinitz retrospective followed. Ed Moses would rebuild the gallery and install his work. LA Louver did a couple of shows with Ed Ruscha and published some prints. 'He had no means whatsoever in those days,' Goulds recalled. Goulds figured that he would give it two years, after which if there were no sales, he wasn't sure how they'd survive. 'But I had a hunch,' Goulds said, 'And luckily, we made sales in the first year, actually $29,000. Next year we made $80,000; and the third year over $200,000. And it sort of went on like that.' At Art Basel in 1977, he met Paul Cornwall Jones whose Petersburg Press was creating fine art prints with artists such as a young David Hockney. A few years later, Jones needed $250,000 to undertake a large new project, and Goulds borrowed the money to participate, having slowly built up his own credit rating by taking and repaying small loans. Goulds was involved in the exhibition of Jasper Johns illustrations for Samuel Beckett's Foirades / Fizzles. And that led to an edition where he got to meet David Hockney. Installation of David Hockney: Looking at Landscape / Being in Landscape at L.A. Louver, 1998. Pictured at right: David Hockney, A Bigger Grand Canyon, 1998, Oil on sixty canvases, 81 ½ x 293 in., National Gallery of Australia, Purchased with the assistance of Kerry Stokes, Carol and Tony Berg and the O'Reilly family 1999. In London, R. B. Kitaj had mounted The Human Clay, his exhibition making the case for a 'School of London' figurative painting. Inspired by this, Goulds decided to assemble an exhibition, This Knot of Life, that would feature ten British painters. He went to Hockney who agreed to participate who introduced him to Kitaj , and eventually the exhibition included work from Lucian Freud, Frank Auerbach, Leon Kossoff, Francis Bacon, Michael Andrews, and Howard Hodgkin. This cemented the direction of the gallery having an international viewpoint. And, over the years, LA Louver has mounted many beautiful shows of Hockney's ongoing experimentation and exploration of various landscapes, perspectives, media, and his studio. Gallery director Kimberly Davis with a sculpture by Deborah Butterfield, 2020. The story now turns over to Kimberly Davis, who was born in California, grew up in Detroit, and attended a year at Wayne State before transferring to Pratt in Brooklyn. 'I always wanted to be in New York,' she told me recently. Initially attracted to the fashion world, after working in all aspects of the industry, including making hand-painted silk fabrics, she decided, 'This is no world for me. I just hated it.' She had a lot of friends who were artists, so she decided to go to Hunter College to get a Master's in Art History. However, she was stymied by the German language requirement. 'So I started working in the art world.' Her first job was with Alanna Heiss at the Clocktower, whom she helped with the opening of PS One in 1976, after which Davis got an internship at the Guggenheim Museum. However, none of those jobs paid enough to live on. Davis babysat in exchange for an apartment and worked as a bartender and a waitress two nights a week. Finally Davis got a paying job with Judith Selkowitz who did corporate art consulting for clients such as IBM, Xerox, and Prudential. 'It taught me a lot about how to hang art, because we would go into a building on the weekend in Westchester and we would have 300 works we would have to hang,' Davis said, adding, 'That was very useful, but it was boring.' A friend told her about a job in California working for British art dealer Bernard Jacobson. She moved to LA with $5000 and a lot of inventory, of works by Howard Hodgkins and David Hockney, and prints from Brooke Alexander and Bob Feldman from Parasol Press. 'Start selling the inventory,' Davis was told, 'Then you can pay yourself. It was really hard.' Davis had met Graham in New York, and he followed her out to LA, where they married. To expand her circle of friends, acquaintances, and buyers, she started to host dinner parties at her apartment. Often, she called a person she didn't know but invited them saying someone else would be there and then called that person saying the first couple was coming. That first year, Davis made dinner for 300 people, and she adds, laughing, 'no one ever invited me back to their homes.' But it was at one such dinner that she met Peter and Liz. Davis opened a Bernard Jacobson Gallery in a space in the parking lot of Ma Maison that had been Patrick Terrail's mother's boutique. She put together shows from Jacobson's inventory as well as some of the British artists he represented. However, she discovered that it was less expensive to have the artists come to LA for three months and create new work than to ship it from England. The gallery was barely surviving and Davis, who was paying all the gallery's bills, was owed a lot of money. She decided that what she needed was a job. 'I left with some inventory that I could own myself and ultimately did okay with it.' Davis had been to LA Louver to see This Knot of Life, which exhibited artists she knew from working with Jacobson, such as Hockney, Kossoff, and Hodgkin. Peter and Liz had come to her house for dinner, and she had worked with Peter on a Howard Hodgkin exhibit, so Davis joining LA Louver made sense, and allowed Goulds to travel to art fairs while Davis managed the gallery and its sales. The next piece in the puzzle was Chris Pate, a young artist who. while continuing to work in his own studio, helped prepare the exhibitions. Today, he manages and is in charge of the collections. Over the years, beyond the story of artists and exhibitions, Goulds threaded his way through labyrinthian real estate arrangements up and down his block of N. Venice Blvd, moving to a space next to his original location that resulted in the gallery building LA Louver has occupied since 1987; as well as the parking structure across the street which makes visiting the gallery simple. At one point, there was a New York branch of the gallery that created its own problems and which Goulds eventually decided to close, Doing so was costly which, luckily, they could weather. At the same time, there were vexing situations of employees who went off to start their own gallery trying to take artists and collectors with them, and one trusted employee's financial skullduggery. Fred Fisher was the architect for the new gallery building on N. Venice Blvd. Goulds had a rather precise vision for the height of the rooms and how art might be moved in and around the building. For example, Goulds went to visit Riko Mizuno in her gallery. The whole time they talked, Mizuno was crocheting; after which, she stood up and put on the pants she'd just made. But what was more striking was that Ed Moses had taken the roof off her studio to build a sky room. The story Goulds was told was that Ed's friend had helped him make the perfect hard edge to frame the space. That friend: James Turrell. So, when Goulds built his new space for LA Louver, inspired by Mizuno and Turrell, he built his own sky room, which he says is 'The most popular, really successful room there.' Gallery director Elizabeth East with artist Matt Wedel with his sculpture Fruit Landscape (2017) at the Korean International Ceramics Biennale, Gwangju, South Korea, 2024. In 1998, Elizabeth East joined LA Louver. East, who is also British, received her first degree in business. 'I thought I would spend my life in advertising,' she said. After being an account executive at an ad agency in London, she joined an art consultancy that was looking for a marketing executive. She worked there until her personal life took her to Washington D.C., where she worked at the Hollis Taggart Gallery for eight years. However, the gallery was focused on historic American painting, such as the Hudson Valley School. East decided that her passion was for contemporary art, and to get a job in that marketplace, she needed a Masters. As far as East was concerned, at that time, 'the place where artists get educated was Goldsmiths in London.' After her year's course, East came to Los Angeles, and seeing shows of Joe Goode and Leslie Wayne, she understood that LA was a developing home for contemporary art and artists. She wrote to several galleries inquiring about employment opportunities. She received a call to visit LA Louver. Davis gave her a tour of the gallery, 'I couldn't believe it, because when I came up the stairs, I saw a Hockney, which I'd seen six months before in an exhibition in Manchester, England. ' As she proceeded through the gallery she saw work by British artist John Virtue, and then a Leon Kossoff, which is when she knew LA Louver was the place for her. East had timed doing her degree at Goldsmiths to being able to see the Kossoff exhibition at the Tate. East, who had no direct connection to LA artists, collectors, and institutions, spent a year as Goulds's assistant, learning the practical aspects of the gallery. 'The business background of Elizabeth comes out quietly, in various ways,' Goulds told me. 'And it's a decisive part of what we do.' Gallery managing director Lisa Jann, 2025. Courtesy of L.A. Louver, Venice, CA. When Elizabeth decided to find her replacement as Goulds' assistant, she produced two candidates, the first a wonderful person who would take care of Peter, and the other, who was a dynamo that if Peter could keep up with, would be an incredible addition to the gallery. Goulds chose the latter, Lisa Jann, who has been with the gallery for 20 years and is now its managing director. Over the course of its 50 year history, LA Louver has presented many memorable exhibitions and each of the trio has their favorites. For each, the gallery is a stage set, its proportions rationalized by Goulds. to offer up a variety of exhibition spaces that optimize seeing what's on display. Among the early shows that Davis recalls as 'one of the most powerful we've done,' was a 1996 installation by Doris Salcedo, Atrabiliarios, her first on the West Coast, described in the LA Louver press release as 'shoes have been collected in a line along the wall and have been covered with a translucent layer of cow's bladder which has been sewn onto the wall.' At first, they endeavored to sell the pairs of shoes individually. Then they realized, that 'If they could find one buyer for the whole thing, that's the way to do it.' Davis found a home for the work at a museum. Which Goulds cited as 'a great piece of art dealing.' Alison Saar, Little Big Sister, 2023-24, Cast stainless steel with patina, Collection of the Joselyn. Davis also treasures her relationship with artists over the years such as with Deborah Butterfield and Allison Saar. Davis has worked with Saar for close to 20 years, which, she says, 'has allowed me to not only expand what she's doing, but curate a show that traveled to 12 museums and played a role in finding all those venues… I've worked with Jordan Schnitzer extensively and putting together a book that he published.' Davis adds that 'it's been a very rewarding relationship with her and her family, and all of that has been really great.' East, whose own curatorial debut, the 2023 summer 'Flower Show' exhibition is among my personal favorites, listed a few of hers that included: 'Rebecca Campbell 'Poltergeist' in 2009; Alice Neel in 2010; Frederick Hammersley in 2017; David Hockney always…And the energy of our Rogue Wave exhibitions.' In 2001, Goulds and Pate began a program, Rogue Wave, to have solo and group exhibitions of Southern California's diverse, emerging and mid-career artists. LA Louver has always marched to the beat of its own drummer. 'If you chase fashion,' Goulds said, 'You're finished.' He added that, 'For a long time through the nineties, we were probably better known in Europe than we were known here.' Gajin Fujita, Angel's Eye View, 2024, Spray paint, 23.75K gold leaf, 12K white gold leaf and paint markers on five wood panels, 72 x 110 in., Private collection. There is a magic to LA Louver that is the reason artists such as David Hockney, Alison Saar, Gajin Fujita, and the estates of Ed and Nancy Kienholz and R. B. Kitaj, continue to call the gallery home. To an outsider, such as myself, each of the three has their persona: Peter radiates bonhomie, Kimberly seems formidable, and Elizabeth appears serious and studious. In truth, they are all that as well as its opposite: Peter knows exactly what he is doing, Kimberly is warm and nurturing to artists and friends, and Elizabeth has a great sense of humor and, from her perch on the main floor knows every person who comes to the gallery. 'We do not operate on a commission structure,' East told me. 'So we don't have a kind of classic sales competitive environment, which some galleries do have. And also, we have engagement directly with artists as well as clients… And I personally love that.' 'One of the things that ties us all together is that we share an aesthetic of liking the same artists,' Davis said, 'which is amazing, actually.' 'I've never allowed myself the luxury, honestly, of self-praise or congratulatory moments,' Goulds told me, '[But] I have to say now, as I look back, first of all, that the decision to stay in Los Angeles was the very best thing I ever decided… We have been a part of this community through the largest period of its cultural growth... To watch all that, and to somehow, [in] some small measure to have contributed to that, gives me great joy.'
Associated Press
12-05-2025
- Associated Press
HIGH MUSEUM OF ART NAMES ALISON SAAR RECIPIENT OF 2025 DAVID C. DRISKELL PRIZE
Saar to be honored at 20th annual Driskell Prize Gala on Sept. 20, 2025, with John Legend set to perform ATLANTA, May 12, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The High Museum of Art today announced artist Alison Saar as the 2025 recipient of the David C. Driskell Prize in recognition of her contributions to the field of African American art. Saar will be honored at the 20th annual Driskell Prize Gala at the High on Saturday, Sept. 20, at 6:30 p.m., featuring a performance by EGOT-winning, critically acclaimed, multiplatinum musician John Legend. Celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, the $50,000 prize demonstrates the High's ongoing dedication to furthering artistic innovation and promoting research of African American artists and scholars. The announcement took place during an exclusive event hosted by The Fifth Avenue Hotel in New York City during New York Art Week. Saar, based in Los Angeles, is widely celebrated for her sculpture, installation and mixed-media works, which tell stories about the African American experience through references to American history, literature and mythology. Her works have been featured in hundreds of solo and group exhibitions worldwide, including at the High, which presented one of her first solo museum exhibitions, 'Fertile Ground,' in 1993. She has work in collections at renowned institutions including the High, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Detroit Institute of Arts, the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and the Whitney Museum of American Art, among many others. In 2024, she was selected by the International Olympic Committee and the city of Paris to create 'Salon,' a sculpture commissioned in honor of the 2024 Olympic Games, which is now permanently displayed in the Charles Aznavour Garden on the Champs-Élysées. Her installation 'Soul Service Station' was featured as part of Desert X 2025 in Coachella Valley, California. 'Saar's work delves deeply into the histories of the African diaspora and its artistic traditions, exploring how they influence and connect to cultural identity today. Her sculpture 'Tobacco Demon' has been a fixture in our galleries for decades,' said High Museum of Art Director Rand Suffolk. 'We are honored to recognize her distinguished practice and myriad contributions to African American art with the 2025 Driskell Prize.' Established by the High in 2005, the Driskell Prize is the first national award to celebrate a scholar or artist whose work makes an original and significant contribution to the field of African American art or art history. It was named for the renowned African American artist and scholar David C. Driskell, whose work on the African diaspora spanned more than four decades. Over its 20-year history, the Driskell Prize has recognized artists including Ebony G. Patterson (2023), Amy Sherald (2018), Mark Bradford (2016) and Rashid Johnson (2012). Proceeds from the Driskell Gala support the David C. Driskell African American Art Acquisition Restricted and Endowment funds, which have supported the acquisition of 52 works by African American artists for the High's collection since the prize's inception. The selection process for the 2025 recipient of the Driskell Prize began with a call for nominations from a national pool of artists, curators, teachers, collectors and art historians. Saar was chosen from among these nominations by review committee members assembled by the High: artist and 2006 Driskell Prize recipient Willie Cole; Dr. Kellie Jones (2005 Driskell Prize recipient and professor in art history and archaeology and the Institute for Research in African American Studies at Columbia University); and two High Museum of Art curators, Kevin W. Tucker (chief curator) and Maria L. Kelly (assistant curator of photography). 'I am honored to have been chosen as the 2025 recipient of the David C. Driskell Prize,' said Saar. 'At a time when many of the civil rights milestones achieved by previous generations—by our mothers and grandmothers—are being threatened or dismantled, the Driskell Prize empowers Black artists and art historians to push back. When our art is removed from museum exhibitions or our shows are canceled, this prize offers not only validation, but also the support to continue making work that is courageous and truthful work that is often stifled by the limitations of mainstream institutions.' In addition to the Driskell Prize, Saar has received many other grants and awards, including an American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Art (2018), an Excellence in Design Award from the New York City Art Commission (2005) and numerous art fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, among others. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Scripps College (Claremont, California) and her Master of Fine Arts degree from the Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles. The 2025 Driskell Prize Gala Chair is Charlene Crusoe-Ingram. Those interested in tickets for the formal gala may email [email protected]. About the David C. Driskell Prize Established by the High in 2005, the David C. Driskell Prize is the first national award to honor and celebrate contributions to the field of African American art and art history. Past recipients include Naomi Beckwith (2024), Ebony G. Patterson (2023), Adrienne L. Childs (2022), Jamal D. Cyrus (2020), Dr. Huey Copeland (2019), Amy Sherald (2018), Naima J. Keith (2017), Mark Bradford (2016), Kirsten Pai Buick (2015), Lyle Ashton Harris (2014), Andrea Barnwell Brownlee (2013), Rashid Johnson (2012), Valerie Cassel Oliver (2011), Renee Stout (2010), Krista A. Thompson (2009), Xaviera Simmons (2008), Franklin Sirmans (2007), Willie Cole (2006) and Dr. Kellie Jones (2005). A cash award of $50,000 accompanies the prize. Proceeds from the High's annual Driskell Prize Gala support the David C. Driskell African American Art Acquisition Restricted and Endowment funds and other ongoing African American initiatives and expenses associated with the David C. Driskell Gala. The current balance of the David C. Driskell African American Art Acquisition Endowment Fund is $2 million. Through the David C. Driskell African American Art Acquisition Restricted Fund, the High has acquired works by artists including Radcliffe Bailey, Romare Bearden, Mark Bradford, Nick Cave, Willie Cole, William Downs, Rashid Johnson, Kerry James Marshall, John T. Scott and Renee Stout. About David Driskell David Driskell (American, 1931-2020) was an artist and scholar whose work on the African diaspora spanned more than four decades. The High's relationship with Driskell began in 2000 when the museum presented the concurrent exhibitions 'To Conserve a Legacy: American Art from Historically Black Colleges and Universities' and 'Narratives of African American Art and Identity: The David C. Driskell Collection,' which examined African American art in the broad historical context of modern and contemporary art. In 2021, the High organized the survey exhibition 'David Driskell: Icons of Nature and History,' which traveled to the Portland Museum of Art and The Phillips Collection after its presentation at the High. Born in Eatonton, Georgia, Driskell became a distinguished professor emeritus at the University of Maryland, College Park, where he established The David C. Driskell Center for the Study of the Visual Arts and Culture of African Americans and the African Diaspora. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Howard University in 1955 and his Master of Fine Arts degree from the Catholic University of America in 1962. He also attended the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Maine in 1953 and studied art history at the Netherlands Institute for Art History in The Hague, Netherlands, in 1964. More information about Driskell is available at About the High Museum of Art Located in the heart of Atlanta, the High Museum of Art connects with audiences from across the Southeast and around the world through its distinguished collection, dynamic schedule of special exhibitions and engaging community-focused programs. Housed within facilities designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architects Richard Meier and Renzo Piano, the High features a collection of more than 20,000 works of art, including an extensive anthology of 19th- and 20th-century American fine and decorative arts; major holdings of photography and folk and self-taught work, especially that of artists from the American South; burgeoning collections of modern and contemporary art, including paintings, sculpture, new media and design; a growing collection of African art, with work dating from prehistory through the present; and significant holdings of European paintings and works on paper. The High is dedicated to reflecting the diversity of its communities and offering a variety of exhibitions and educational programs that engage visitors with the world of art, the lives of artists and the creative process. For more information about the High, visit Media contact: Marci Tate Davis Manager, Public Relations [email protected] 404-733-4585 View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE High Museum of Art
