Latest news with #HammerMuseum
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
It's time for seaside fashion and city strolls. Here are the hottest drops and events this summer
The Hammer Museum presents the first United States institutional survey of figurative painter Noah Davis, highlighting his perceptive blend of realism and dreamlike imagery. The chronological exhibition features over 50 pieces spanning painting, sculpture and works on paper that explore themes of identity, family, architecture and media-driven racism. The retrospective also honors his enduring legacy with the Underground Museum, which he co-founded with his wife and fellow artist Karon Davis, reflecting his commitment to community engagement and accessible art. June 8–Aug. 31. 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. L.A.-based lifestyle brand Simon Miller's first ever retail store brings a splash of chartreuse and sculptural flair to the Arts District. Designed and curated by creative director Chelsea Hansford, the store channels a tropical, pop-deco aesthetic, with bold, abstract body sculptures created by artist Leonard Urso. As silver sandals and fish-shaped purses sit next to surrealist ceramics by Peter Keil, Simon Miller blurs the line between retail space and gallery. 821 Traction Ave., Los Angeles. Summer romance gets a chic upgrade in Prada's newest collection, where handwoven raffia accessories meet a sunny summer palette. The crocheted bags channel retro beachwear while maintaining a modern structure, ideal for seaside adventures and city strolls. Whether you choose the mini bucket bag or the Aimée bag, each piece blends charming crochet with polished leather and enameled metal accents — because just like any great summer fling, opposites attract. The Orange County Museum of Art presents its 2025 California Biennial: 'Desperate, Scared, But Social,' featuring 12 artists exploring the rich, precocious and often awkward stage of late adolescence through multimedia exhibitions. Huntington Beach-based photographer Deanna Templeton pairs scans of her own teenage diary entries with portraits of young women she's met over the years. Riot Grrrl band Emily's Sassy Lime will have an installation of archival music videos, photographs, zines and more from the 1990s; recent teenage punk band the Linda Lindas, who draw inspiration from Emily's Sassy Lime, will also present their music videos, drawings and props. June 21–Oct. 12. 3333 Avenue of the Arts, Costa Mesa. Hauser & Wirth presents two exciting exhibitions this month at the downtown space. Luchita Hurtado: 'Yo Soy,' celebrates the Venezuelan-born, Los Angeles-based artist's vibrant and abstract self portraits. Hurtado primarily worked on the exhibition's featured pieces while living in Santa Monica in the 1970s, embroiled in the beginnings of the L.A. women's movement that shaped her artistic identity. Using oil paints to create bright, sweeping strokes and cutting canvases apart to sew them together in new ways, Hurtado questioned the abstraction of the phrase 'I am.' Additionally, look for James Jarvaise and Henry Taylor's 'Sometimes a straight line has to be crooked,' which positions Taylor's paintings in dialogue with Jarvaise, his teacher. The installation features over seven decades of work by the two artists, highlighting their parallel energies and color usage. June 29–Oct. 5. 901 E. 3rd St., Los Angeles. Artist Peter Sutherland has described his work as 'a chaotic celebration of life.' Indeed, his solo show 'Cloud Painting' captures the deep beauty in fleeting moments of friction and spontaneity at Dries Van Noten's the Little House gallery. The exhibition features a new body of work Sutherland created from 2024 to 2025, including large-scale abstract paintings, collage that weaves together drawings, photographs, stickers and found images, and sculpture. On view through June 17. 451 N La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles. In honor of the iconic Intrecciato weave's 50th anniversary, luxury fashion house Bottega Veneta is spotlighting its leather woven bags. The brand has a number of effortless summer staples, whether you're heading to a gallery opening or going on a coastal getaway. Look for the Andiamo — which translates to 'Let's go!' in Italian — a slouchy leather bag with a metallic knot perfect for day-to-evening adventures, or the Cabat, a handwoven, rectangular tote that can fit more than just the essentials. Wellness agency Dive in Well and the Line Hotel L.A. are collaborating for a Day of Wellness, a restorative, community-centered retreat featuring restorative yoga, workshops and nourishment. Led by Dive in Well founder Maryam Ajayi and featuring a roster of community leaders and sustainable brands, the day invites Angelenos to connect and heal. Partial proceeds will go to Altadena Girls and Altadena Boys, with complimentary tickets for those affected by the wildfires. June 8. 3515 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. Inspired by the idyllic Highgrove Gardens in southwest England, Burberry has teamed up with illustrator Helen Bullock on a vibrant capsule collection. The line brings to life the garden's delicate wildflowers and rippling fountains in playful, painterly prints, featuring blossoming orange poppies and deep purple lily pads. And when the Los Angeles heat sets in this summer, picture yourself wandering through the English countryside instead. Gucci debuts its newly renovated boutique at Beverly Center, blending Milanese elegance with L.A. cool. Inspired by flagship designs in SoHo and Milan's Monte Napoleone, the refreshed space pairs plush maroon seating with brushed steel accents, framing an expanded offering of the house's latest collections. Customers can shop Gucci Valigeria travel pieces and handbags such as the Gucci Softbit and GG Marmont. 8500 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles. Award-winning composer and jazz saxophonist Kamasi Washington will lead the first public programming at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art's new David Geffen Galleries. The sonic experience, titled 'Harmonies of Difference,' will feature Washington conducting over 100 musicians across the 110,000 square feet of gallery space, turning the building into an acoustic instrument. Immerse yourself in the galleries for this once-in-a-lifetime event before their grand opening to the public in April 2026. June 26–28. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. Eyewear brand Gentle Monster is transporting everyone's favorite Y2K doll into the future with its newest collection with Bratz. Explore its new pop-up space on Melrose, where customers can shop the collaboration's sleek, violet-tinted glasses as well as the fiercest Bratz doll in a metallic-and-lavender-faux-fur outfit. Immerse yourself in the Gentle Monster x Bratz world, complete with a massive, interactive Bratz doll object and Gentle Monster's ultramodern 2025 Pocket Collection. May 30–June 15. 8552 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood. Loewe Perfumes' newest candle collection is fresh yet gothic, perfect for setting a cinematic mood as summer days turn into long nights. The statuesque candlesticks come in honey yellow and golden bronze, or choose the ribbed, three-wick candle for a more casual look on your coffee table. Let the scent of floral, earthy honey fill your space with a quiet richness — it's giving equal parts garden bloom and antique library. Embody the Mediterranean way of life from the comfort of Los Angeles with Gohar World's newest collection, inspired by Byzantine mosaics, the ports of Marseille, Egyptian fishing villages and spice markets in Istanbul. Whether you're inspired by the dragonfly-shaped pearl and coral necklace or the mother of pearl serving pieces, Gohar World has you covered for jewelry, tableware and linens that will make you feel like you're relaxing along the lush coast of the Mediterranean Sea. It's sweet treat season for Tory Burch. The luxury brand has teamed up with viral Swedish candy store BonBon on its newest limited edition collaboration, bringing the sensation to the West Coast. Look for the Kira Sport sandal in Strawberry Marshmallow and mini Fleming hobo bag in Sugared Licorice, or wear a bracelet featuring charms inspired by BonBon's classic pick and mix candy, such as Swedish fish and sour skulls. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
It's time for seaside fashion and city strolls. Here are the hottest drops and events this summer
The Hammer Museum presents the first United States institutional survey of figurative painter Noah Davis, highlighting his perceptive blend of realism and dreamlike imagery. The chronological exhibition features over 50 pieces spanning painting, sculpture and works on paper that explore themes of identity, family, architecture and media-driven racism. The retrospective also honors his enduring legacy with the Underground Museum, which he co-founded with his wife and fellow artist Karon Davis, reflecting his commitment to community engagement and accessible art. June 8–Aug. 31. 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. L.A.-based lifestyle brand Simon Miller's first ever retail store brings a splash of chartreuse and sculptural flair to the Arts District. Designed and curated by creative director Chelsea Hansford, the store channels a tropical, pop-deco aesthetic, with bold, abstract body sculptures created by artist Leonard Urso. As silver sandals and fish-shaped purses sit next to surrealist ceramics by Peter Keil, Simon Miller blurs the line between retail space and gallery. 821 Traction Ave., Los Angeles. Summer romance gets a chic upgrade in Prada's newest collection, where handwoven raffia accessories meet a sunny summer palette. The crocheted bags channel retro beachwear while maintaining a modern structure, ideal for seaside adventures and city strolls. Whether you choose the mini bucket bag or the Aimée bag, each piece blends charming crochet with polished leather and enameled metal accents — because just like any great summer fling, opposites attract. The Orange County Museum of Art presents its 2025 California Biennial: 'Desperate, Scared, But Social,' featuring 12 artists exploring the rich, precocious and often awkward stage of late adolescence through multimedia exhibitions. Huntington Beach-based photographer Deanna Templeton pairs scans of her own teenage diary entries with portraits of young women she's met over the years. Riot Grrrl band Emily's Sassy Lime will have an installation of archival music videos, photographs, zines and more from the 1990s; recent teenage punk band the Linda Lindas, who draw inspiration from Emily's Sassy Lime, will also present their music videos, drawings and props. June 21–Oct. 12. 3333 Avenue of the Arts, Costa Mesa. Hauser & Wirth presents two exciting exhibitions this month at the downtown space. Luchita Hurtado: 'Yo Soy,' celebrates the Venezuelan-born, Los Angeles-based artist's vibrant and abstract self portraits. Hurtado primarily worked on the exhibition's featured pieces while living in Santa Monica in the 1970s, embroiled in the beginnings of the L.A. women's movement that shaped her artistic identity. Using oil paints to create bright, sweeping strokes and cutting canvases apart to sew them together in new ways, Hurtado questioned the abstraction of the phrase 'I am.' Additionally, look for James Jarvaise and Henry Taylor's 'Sometimes a straight line has to be crooked,' which positions Taylor's paintings in dialogue with Jarvaise, his teacher. The installation features over seven decades of work by the two artists, highlighting their parallel energies and color usage. June 29–Oct. 5. 901 E. 3rd St., Los Angeles. Artist Peter Sutherland has described his work as 'a chaotic celebration of life.' Indeed, his solo show 'Cloud Painting' captures the deep beauty in fleeting moments of friction and spontaneity at Dries Van Noten's the Little House gallery. The exhibition features a new body of work Sutherland created from 2024 to 2025, including large-scale abstract paintings, collage that weaves together drawings, photographs, stickers and found images, and sculpture. On view through June 17. 451 N La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles. In honor of the iconic Intrecciato weave's 50th anniversary, luxury fashion house Bottega Veneta is spotlighting its leather woven bags. The brand has a number of effortless summer staples, whether you're heading to a gallery opening or going on a coastal getaway. Look for the Andiamo — which translates to 'Let's go!' in Italian — a slouchy leather bag with a metallic knot perfect for day-to-evening adventures, or the Cabat, a handwoven, rectangular tote that can fit more than just the essentials. Wellness agency Dive in Well and the Line Hotel L.A. are collaborating for a Day of Wellness, a restorative, community-centered retreat featuring restorative yoga, workshops and nourishment. Led by Dive in Well founder Maryam Ajayi and featuring a roster of community leaders and sustainable brands, the day invites Angelenos to connect and heal. Partial proceeds will go to Altadena Girls and Altadena Boys, with complimentary tickets for those affected by the wildfires. June 8. 3515 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. Inspired by the idyllic Highgrove Gardens in southwest England, Burberry has teamed up with illustrator Helen Bullock on a vibrant capsule collection. The line brings to life the garden's delicate wildflowers and rippling fountains in playful, painterly prints, featuring blossoming orange poppies and deep purple lily pads. And when the Los Angeles heat sets in this summer, picture yourself wandering through the English countryside instead. Gucci debuts its newly renovated boutique at Beverly Center, blending Milanese elegance with L.A. cool. Inspired by flagship designs in SoHo and Milan's Monte Napoleone, the refreshed space pairs plush maroon seating with brushed steel accents, framing an expanded offering of the house's latest collections. Customers can shop Gucci Valigeria travel pieces and handbags such as the Gucci Softbit and GG Marmont. 8500 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles. Award-winning composer and jazz saxophonist Kamasi Washington will lead the first public programming at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art's new David Geffen Galleries. The sonic experience, titled 'Harmonies of Difference,' will feature Washington conducting over 100 musicians across the 110,000 square feet of gallery space, turning the building into an acoustic instrument. Immerse yourself in the galleries for this once-in-a-lifetime event before their grand opening to the public in April 2026. June 26–28. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. Eyewear brand Gentle Monster is transporting everyone's favorite Y2K doll into the future with its newest collection with Bratz. Explore its new pop-up space on Melrose, where customers can shop the collaboration's sleek, violet-tinted glasses as well as the fiercest Bratz doll in a metallic-and-lavender-faux-fur outfit. Immerse yourself in the Gentle Monster x Bratz world, complete with a massive, interactive Bratz doll object and Gentle Monster's ultramodern 2025 Pocket Collection. May 30–June 15. 8552 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood. Loewe Perfumes' newest candle collection is fresh yet gothic, perfect for setting a cinematic mood as summer days turn into long nights. The statuesque candlesticks come in honey yellow and golden bronze, or choose the ribbed, three-wick candle for a more casual look on your coffee table. Let the scent of floral, earthy honey fill your space with a quiet richness — it's giving equal parts garden bloom and antique library. Embody the Mediterranean way of life from the comfort of Los Angeles with Gohar World's newest collection, inspired by Byzantine mosaics, the ports of Marseille, Egyptian fishing villages and spice markets in Istanbul. Whether you're inspired by the dragonfly-shaped pearl and coral necklace or the mother of pearl serving pieces, Gohar World has you covered for jewelry, tableware and linens that will make you feel like you're relaxing along the lush coast of the Mediterranean Sea. It's sweet treat season for Tory Burch. The luxury brand has teamed up with viral Swedish candy store BonBon on its newest limited edition collaboration, bringing the sensation to the West Coast. Look for the Kira Sport sandal in Strawberry Marshmallow and mini Fleming hobo bag in Sugared Licorice, or wear a bracelet featuring charms inspired by BonBon's classic pick and mix candy, such as Swedish fish and sour skulls.
The Guardian
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
‘Tragedy to transcendence': Alice Coltrane exhibit honors jazz legend's sonic and spiritual legacy
Om … Om … Om … Sita Coltrane always opens with three oms. It's a practice she inherited from her mother, Alice Coltrane, also known as Swamini Turiyasangitananda or Turiya, who used the mantra as part of her Hindu-centered practice to induce a state of calmness and connection. 'From tragedy to transcendence', Sita said regarding how her mother's work should be remembered in a conversation about the art exhibition named after her published diary, Monument Eternal, at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles. The exhibition spans 10,000 sq ft across four rooms featuring three major themes: sonic innovation, spiritual journey and architectural intimacy. It showcases tributes and interpretations from 19 artists, including pre-existing and new work inspired by Alice Coltrane that was handpicked by Hammer Museum curator Erin Christovale. The saffron-colored walls throughout the exhibition is an ode to the color Turiya wore often, which signifies her soul's elevation to sadhu, who, in Hinduism, are those who underwent purification produced by heat, or tapasya. The sonic innovation room is warm. The lively color associated with the sun, fire and purity covers the 1970s-style elevated conversational couch with headsets, taking listeners through Coltrane's discography including her 1968 solo debut, A Monastic Trio, 1970's Ptah, the El Daoud, 1971's Journey in Satchidananda and her 1981 tape, Turiya Sings, later discovered by her son Ravi Coltrane and published in 2021. Her chanting voice, blistering fingers grazing her harp and stretched-out toes on the organ warm the body and invite listeners to vibrate on the highest frequency. The spiritual journey Room brings the ashram steps indoors. People are nudged to explore archival capsules of her tools such as the Wurlitzer organ, tambourines, piano, harp, sitar and voice, which are channeled through video collages such as one of Brandee Younger playing Turiya's actual harp in Ephraim Asili's 2024 film Isis & Osiris. The architectural intimacy room invites visitors to experience meditative soundscapes while sitting on the ground within a bamboo curtain. Three-dimensional expressions of Coltrane's Vedic astrology chart is materialized as a laser light show by artist Nicole Miller, its artificial solar magic creating a healing and vitality atmosphere and helping the soul remember its own higher consciousness. The first major exhibition honoring Coltrane's legacy is rooted in a call to action for those ready to dig deeper into their own purpose, and allowing her work to be an awakening force to guide it. 'People are latching on to her music in a moment where we need a sort of cathartic experience, we need a healing.' Christovale said. 'Her music provides that. It invokes a sense of possibility in people.' To understand Turiya, one has to respect her vibratory intentions, and know her legacy goes beyond her songs. Some of Coltrane's greatest wisdoms came from her books, including the Endless Wisdom series and Divine Revelations, in which she captured the depths of grief following the deaths of her husband, John Coltrane, in 1967, and their son John Coltrane Jr in 1982. Her grief pushed her into isolation and at times brought on hallucinations, a period of time that she later described as a spiritual initiation that included mediating, fasting and – at one point – going silent. 'Within a short period of time, I experienced the first rays of illumination and spiritual reawakening on the physical plane, these radiations open new avenues of awareness in the brain cells,' Coltrane wrote. 'Even subtler were the inner effects of light and the cognizance of a spiritual revelation taking place within me.' In her book Monument Eternal, she writes of how she asked to become 'an instrument of the Lord' through her suffering, said Sita, who voiced the audiobook in its republishing. Alice Coltrane grew up in Detroit, Michigan, and quickly became fluent in what she later refer to as God's language: music. 'From a very early age, Alice was marrying the sort of sonic realm and spiritual realm, and that started for her in church,' Christovale said, adding that by age seven, Coltrane was learning the piano. By the 60s, Coltrane had become the muse of American jazz, building a career of her own and also working alongside her husband's group, John Coltrane Quartet. By the 70s and 80s, only a select few aligned with her experimental, telepathic music, Christovale said. Following her spiritual awakening, Coltrane moved to California after 'the Lord gave a 'spiritual order'', said Sita, citing her mother's 1976 song Om Supreme. While in California, Coltrane opened the Vedantic Center ashram in the Santa Monica mountains of Agoura Hills, a spiritual community for connectedness to the divine. When asked years ago during a curator forum: 'if you could curate a show anywhere outside the [Hammer] Museum, where would it be?,' Christovale recalls immediately thinking of Coltrane's ashram. The center burned down in the 2018 Woolsey fire. From the ashes, a greater opportunity later materialized. Christovale, with curatorial assistant Nyah Ginwright, designed a way to artistically resurrect the ashram for the exhibit with Coltrane's estate. Christovale now feels 'nothing on this project is a coincidence', she said, believing Coltrane's spirit has guided her throughout the entire process. Alice Coltrane, Monument Eternal is on view at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles through 4 May2025
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Joan Didion and John Dunne's NYPL Archives are a Treasure Trove
At some point in the last decade, Joan Didion's famed elusiveness has evolved into a sort of dare. She has been the subject of a documentary, five biographies, and an exhibition at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles. The 2022 estate sale of Didion and her husband, writer John Gregory Dunne, auctioned off blank notebooks, seashells, and hurricane lamps for thousands of dollars. Now, as the New York Public Library opens the sprawling Didion Dunne Archive, we have another opportunity to see the world through her clear, cool eyes. A treasure trove in 336 boxes, the archive includes items dating as far back as the 1840s—when the ancestral Didions crossed the Oregon Trail—all the way to her death 2022. There is correspondence between Joan Didion and Nora Ephron, John Updike, and fan mail from Judy Blume. There are registrations for varietals of orchids cultivated in Malibu in the names of Didion, Dunne, and their daughter Quintana Roo Dunne. There are manuscripts of Dunne's book Quintana and Friends and movie contracts for Didion and Dunne's screenplay for A Star is Born (1976). It is, in a word, expansive. When the acquisition was first announced in January 2023, it was determined to be 150 feet long; it took just over two years to be catalogued. Beginning March 26th, however, anyone with a New York Public Library card will be able to schedule a visit with the Didion Dunnes in the Manuscripts and Archives Division of the Schwartzman Building on Fifth Avenue. Per a librarian, the library has already reported a high number of appointments. Visitors can reserve up to five boxes at a time for two-hour appointments in the library's Brooke Astor Russell Reading Room. The transparent enormity of the archive, from videos to Quintana's artwork to Didion's Presidential Medal of Freedom, explains the years it took for the archive to become public. Following Didion's death in 2021, her literary executors formed the Didion Dunne Literary Trust, which now manages the couple's intellectual property. In 2023, the New York Public Library announced that it had acquired Didion and Dunne's sprawling archives through the trust, which spokesperson Paul Bogaards called an 'ideal home for their archive.' He went on to declare, 'The archives provide detailed documentation of their writing and creative process and an intimate window into their lives. They will be a welcome and essential resource for future generations of readers, students, and scholars of Joan Didion and John Gregory Dunne.' After visiting the archive, researchers and fans will expand our understanding of Didion and Dunne, but it is unlikely that anything will finally resolve Didion's elusiveness. As a writer, she was a sharpshooter sending dispatches from the Sea of Tranquility. Her appeal is in the downbeats of the passive voice. As a cultural icon, that same appeal is in her minimalist packing list, first published in The White Album (1979). In the archives, we're gifted her typed (and later annotated) inventory from the family's Los Angeles home at 7406 Franklin Avenue. For all that minimalist imagery and style, though, there is a maximalism in her cultural and literary omnipresence, which carries over into the breadth of the archive itself. You Might Also Like 12 Weekend Getaway Spas For Every Type of Occasion 13 Beauty Tools to Up Your At-Home Facial Game
The Guardian
18-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Their studios burned. Their art was destroyed. A new exhibit of the remaining works of 100 LA artists devastated by fire
When Jeffrey Sugishita visited the burned-down husk of the house where he has been living, flames were still smouldering inside. For about 30 minutes, Sugishita wandered the wreckage, looking at the empty space where his room had been. 'What's burnt is burnt,' the 26-year-old artist said. 'I told myself: 'I'm going to make something new out of this.'' Sugishita went to his car, took out the helmet sculptures he had saved from the blaze, and started photographing himself, using only his iPhone and a tripod. One of those self-portraits – Sugishita, standing amidst the charred ruins, wearing a helmet of flowers – is now at the center of a Los Angeles art exhibit that opened Friday, which brings together the work of nearly 100 artists who lost their homes, studios and life's work to January's historic wildfires. Highlighting the ongoing toll of California's extreme weather, the show for artists displaced by wildfire opened as the gallery was being flooded by torrential rains. Water seeped across the gallery floor, and workers swept puddles out the door as new emergency alerts had been issued, highlighting the risk of mudslides in recently-burned areas across Los Angeles. Some of the artists who contributed to the new show are well-known, such as Ruby Neri, Kelly Akashi and Kathryn Andrews, or even, like Paul McCarthy, famous in the art world for decades. Others have mostly exhibited their work locally, or are just beginning their careers, like Sugishita, who graduated from art school in 2023. 'It felt really necessary to create a context where people who have been displaced could converge together, in an exhibit that could be as far-reaching and inclusive as possible,' said Aram Moshayedi, who serves as the interim chief curator of the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, but who put together the show independently, as part of an all-volunteer effort. A hundred percent of any sales will go to the artists, he said, inspiring the show's name: One Hundred Percent.' The thread of the exhibit is the artists' common and very recent devastation. Some of the works exhibited are ones the artists threw in their cars as they fled the fast-moving flames. One Altadena artist gently touched the chipped frame of her photo collage of a contemplative woman, which had been damaged in her escape from the Eaton Canyon fire. For the past month, 'all of my art has been in my van and in Airbnbs,' said Calethia DeConto, 44, whose Altadena rental is still standing, but so damaged by smoke and soot that she cannot return. Daniel Mendel-Black displayed a digital print of a painting that he had just finished in early January, and that had been incinerated in the Eaton fire. The original painting had been inspired by themes of social fragmentation and dystopia, he said, and it was strange to try to reconstruct it. 'A lot of things I could talk about conceptually, are now completely emotionally actualized,' he said. Some artists showed works salvaged from the ashes of their homes, like Ronna Ballister's row of slightly charred ceramic pots, which the 73-year-old found by digging through the rubble of her Altadena home. For others, their only option was creating something entirely new. Howard Goldberg lost almost everything he had made to the Altadena fire, '30 years of art turned to ash'. Without a home, studio or materials, moving from place to place, Goldberg made new work using recent copies of the Los Angeles Times, a throwback to a technique he has used before. It felt appropriate, he said: 'My own personal catastrophe is on the front page.' He rearranged the letters of the paper's name into different daily messages, Among Less EliTes, me see LosT signAl, as if the newspaper itself was speaking, or even 'blabbering', like 'an idiot that has to keep talking … has to find the story'. Displaying their work in a group show with other artists who had suffered wildfire losses inspired complicated feelings, the artists said: hope that community could be restored by coming together, but also layers of grief and anger. 'Behind every single one of these pieces is a whole history that is gone,' said Lou Dillon, 38, whose mother's home in Malibu, where their family had lived for 70 years, had been reduced to charred stones. Dillon and her mother, Victoria Franklin-Dillon, 73, displayed their two works of art side-by-side: the mother's drawing of a view from her Malibu home, and the daughter's 2015 painting of that hill on fire during a previous Malibu blaze. 'This was a climate change disaster and all of us are responsible for it,' said Camilla Taylor, whose Altadena home was destroyed. 'We are addicted to convenience, and there is a cost to that convenience.' The heat of the fire that burned their house was so great that 'the windows didn't break, they slumped–they melted,' they said. 'I had a collection of marbles. They are now a single mass.' Taylor contributed a sculpture of a blackened figure with a metallic mask that had been stored in a gallery, and thus survived. Though Taylor had made the figure before the fire, it now reminded them of what it was like picking through the charcoal of their destroyed home, and seeing an occasional rivulet of metal. 'It's going to come for all of us,' they said. 'We have to do better.' Many of the artists in the show had stories of dramatic escapes. Vincent Robbins, 87, said he had been trying to put one of his large paintings into his truck as he evacuated from the Eaton fire, but the 100mph winds picked up the canvas, and him with it. He ended up sprawled on the driveway, with broken ribs and a damaged tooth. The painting had to be abandoned, and was burned along with his home. He 'used to live' in Altadena, Robbins said, now 'it's all powder.' For the show, Robbins, who has been living with his wife in a Fema-funded motel, had made a new abstract sculpture, decorating it in part with ash he had gathered from what was left of his home, as well as with some tubes of paint brought along by accident as he evacuated. He called it: Uncertainty. Almadeus Star, 82, described being on the roof of his Altadena house, trying to save it from a tree felled by the heavy winds, when the power went out. In the darkness, he decided to evacuate and grabbed what he could, including a single precious art work, a container holding an old piece of cloth with spiritual significance that he calls Shroud of Altadena. It was, he explained, 'something I could hold in my hand'. He put Shroud of Altadena on display in the gallery, alongside a smoke-smudged glass vessel that survived the blaze. Other artists said the show itself had encouraged them to make new work, despite the many logistical hurdles of life in the wake of disaster. Right before the fire, Mary Anna Pomonis had just put what she thought was her best work on display at Altadena's Alto Beta gallery. Then the gallery, and everything in it, burned. For a while, Pomonis said, she worried that she might not be able to work again:'To lose it all gave me a fear that I couldn't come back from it.' But she worked through the fear, and was displaying a digital copy of one of her lost artworks, coupled with brand-new work. Kassia Rico-Yeh, 32, said she had been to the emergency room twice in the past month, dealing with the overlap of asthma, smoke, and Covid. But she had finally managed to finish the painting preserved in her downtown Los Angeles studio, inspired by the afternoon light on the foothills east of Los Angeles. She completed the last details on Tuesday morning, she said, meaning the painting was likely still a little sticky. On the exhibit's opening night, many artists' names were simply written in pencil on the walls next to their pieces, and some works were not labeled at all. But as the artists who had contributed work wandered through the gallery, some said that–almost to their surprise – they thought the hastily-assembled show was good, perhaps even better than a typical group show in Los Angeles. 'It's high and low and outsider and insider,' said Molly Tierney, whose Altadena home and studio were destroyed. 'There's a lot of interesting work.' Moshayedi said the show aimed to be 'non-hierarchical', bringing together artists who work inside and outside the commercial art world. 'Hopefully, the visibility of some artists can help other artists who are in more perilous states of displacement,' he said, noting that the works on display ranged from $50 to $50,000 in price. While some of the artists who contributed work had lived in areas affected by the Palisades fire, an area by the Pacific Ocean north-west of the city, the majority came from Altadena, a town nestled in the foothills east of Los Angeles. Once relatively affordable, Altadena attracted a racially diverse and close-knit community of creative residents. It's a particular loss, said DeConto, one of the Altadena artists, 'when you've found that magical place and then that place is completely destroyed'. Artist Devin True, 49, her partner, said and his Altadena neighbors spent the morning of the Eaton fire working to put out spot fires with garden hoses, in order to protect the houses still-standing on their block. When the water in their hoses ran out, they filled buckets from a neighbor's hot tub. Now, with Altadena badly damaged, and rents rising across Los Angeles after the fires, 'We're not sure where we can afford to live,' True said. What was clear, many artists said, was that they would find a way to keep creating. 'I'm beginning a new life's work, that's the way I see it,' said Robbins, the 87-year-old artist who lost his home in Altadena. 'We'll see what we can do.' One Hundred Percent is on view through 22 February at 619 N Western Avenue in Los Angeles. It is open from Tuesday through Saturday, 11 am to 6pm
