Shana Nys Dambrot
An in-person artist-forward fair, a documentary on a modern dance icon, in-person theater, outdoor mural, sculpture and photography events in Long Beach and Venice, a meditative forage walk and weaving workshop in Hollywood, conversations on the future of arts leadership in L.A., and avant-garde film about ecological justice.
Anna Marie Tendler, Spring (The Other Art Fair)
Thursday, September 23
The Other Art Fair at Barker Hangar. A showcase of 140 independent and emerging artists, special guest artists, interactive art installations and murals, live DJ sets, hosted Bombay Sapphire cocktails, food trucks, guided tours and programming. Guest artists include Brandon Boyd — the world-renowned singer-songwriter of platinum-selling rock band Incubus, who will unveil new artwork onsite; and Anna Marie Tendler — a multidisciplinary artist who will debut a new photography series at the fair entitled Rooms in the First House. 3021 Airport Ave., Santa Monica; Opening night party: Thursday, September 23, 6-10pm; Fair hours: Friday, September 24, 4-10pm; Saturday, September 25, 11am-8pm; Sunday, September 26, 11am-6pm; $15-45; theotherartfair.com/la.
Still from In Balanchine’s Classroom (Photo by Martha Swope)
Friday, September 24
In Balanchine’s Classroom at Laemmle Theaters (IRL & Streaming). Travel back to the glory years of George Balanchine’s New York City Ballet through the remembrances of his former dancers and their quest to fulfill the vision of a genius. Opening the door to his studio, Balanchine’s private laboratory, they reveal new facets of the groundbreaking choreographer: taskmaster, mad scientist, and spiritual teacher. Filled with never before seen archival footage of Balanchine at work during rehearsals, classes, and in preparation for his most seminal works, along with interviews with many of his adored and adoring dancers and those who try to carry on his legacy today, this is a film for anyone who loves ballet and the creative process. Opens Friday, September 24 at Laemmle locations and on its virtual platform; laemmle.com.
Our Man in Santiago at Theatre West
Our Man in Santiago at Theatre West. Intrigue and laughter, bodies and mayhem. A comic spy thriller inspired by the true story of a spectacularly failed U.S. attempt to overthrow Chile’s democratically elected leader. In this new political farce by two-time Emmy nominee and WGA award-winner Mark Wilding (Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, Good Girls, Charmed), the CIA enlists an inexperienced, somewhat guileless agent to follow up with a last-ditch, poorly conceived and wildly dangerous effort to hasten the 1973 Chilean coup d’état. 3333 Cahuenga Blvd. West, Hollywood; Performances Friday & Saturday at 8pm, Sunday at 2pm, September 24 – October 24; $30; theatrewest.org.
Adrian Cox, The Spectral Brotherhood Harvesting New Histories (Corey Helford Gallery)
Saturday, September 25
Adrian Cox: Dream Country at Corey Helford Gallery. The studio practice for the Los Angeles-based artist and compelling storyteller involves crafting an intricate and epic mythology with his paintings, in which he explores themes of otherness and monstrosity. In creating his work, he draws inspiration from art history, science fiction, mythic archetypes, and his own experience of growing up in a closeted queer family. Cox writes, “My paintings chronicle the lives of the Border Creatures, a group of hybrid beings that live in the verdant wilderness of the Borderlands. This personal mythology draws on a myriad of references and blends elements of art history, science fiction, mythic archetypes, and my own experience.” 571 S. Anderson St., downtown; September 25 – October 30; free; coreyhelfordgallery.com.
Henry Diltz, The Doors, 1969 (Venice Heritage Museum)
Venice Heritage Museum: Boardwalk Through the Ages, at Vice HQ (Outdoors). A group photo exhibition & silent auction fundraiser for the Venice Heritage Museum project that will transport viewers through the many eras of Venice’s famed Boardwalk, from the city’s founding at the turn of the century through the present day. A silent auction of large format gallery images will accompany the exhibition, featuring Gerry Beckley, Henry Diltz, Josh “Bagel” Klassman, Paulo Freire Lopez, Estevan Oriol, Dotan Saguy, David Scott , and Pep Williams. Proceeds benefit The Venice Heritage Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to creating an inclusive museum that preserves, showcases, and nurtures Venice’s historical legacy. 589 Venice Blvd., Venice; Saturday, September 25, 3-9pm; free-$100; veniceheritagemuseum.org.
Tiffany Alfonseca at The Mistake Room
Tiffany Alfonseca: De las manos que nos crearon, at The Mistake Room. The solar brightness of Alfonseca’s palette, color-blocked inside radiantly reductive genre painting, depicts simple moments of joy in scenes of Black life. Directly inspired by characters and experiences from her own diasporic Afro-Latinx upbringing, Alfonseca’s work is also in dialog with the folkloric styles of both North and South America as well as Africa and the Caribbean, while at the same time planting its presence within the continuum of New York’s post-war avant-garde and later Pop-infused abstractionists. This will be the first Los Angeles solo presentation for the Bronx-based artist, whose deeply personal visual language tells universal family stories, forming a more perfect and complete portrait of America. 1811 E. 20th St., downtown; Opening reception: Saturday, September 25, 2:30-4:30pm; on view through December 11; free; tmr.la.
Jenny Yurshansky at Bridge Projects
Sunday, September 26
Workshop: Back and Forth: Weaving Through Stories of Time and Place, at Bridge Projects. Many of us are aware of — and in awe of — the beauty and diversity found in nature on hikes, but how many of us consider that the plants and flowers we see in our yards or by the side of the road are also a part of an ecosystem? Not only that, but they are a living record of human history in the place where they can be found. Exhibiting artist Jenny Yurshansky leads an in-person foraging walk and weaving workshop — an opportunity to focus on the histories of the plants present in California, considering them as sites that mirror migration history and migrant stories. The workshop offers a sensory experience along with the chance for participants to share and discuss their own relationship to place through the landscape. 6820 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood; Sunday, September 26, 3-5pm; free (see list of workshop materials); bridgeprojects.com.
POW! WOW! Long Beach
Tuesday, September 28
POW! WOW! Long Beach Mural Festival & Art Renzei Sculpture Walk (Outdoors). POW! WOW! Long Beach is a week-long, city-wide event and is part of the POW! WOW! Worldwide series of street art events, which since 2010 has brought murals to public spaces in cities like Honolulu, Seoul, Washington DC, Taipei and Tokyo. Participating artists for POW! WOW! include Andrew Hem, Edwin Ushiro, Brendan Monroe, Noelle Martinez aka ‘BusyBirdy’, Bryan Blue The Great, Nat Iosbaker, Brittney Price, Shak Smart, and Tang-Wei Hsu. Art Renzei is a self-guided outdoor sculpture exhibition which blurs the line between natural and man-made realities by highlighting ethereal backdrops with contemporary installations. Participating artists for Art Renzei include Daigo Daikoku, Wan-Jen Chen, balloonski, Olga Lah, and Spenser Little. September 28 – October 5; various locations throughout Long Beach; free; powwowlongbeach.com.
Art Share L.A. Open House
Open House at Art Share L.A. An evening to give the public an inside look at Art Share L.A.’s programs, including a tour of our building and unique residential loft space, as well as two exciting exhibitions on view—a survey of prints from the Modern Multiples family, and an eclectic group show about vessels of organic memory and truth, both curated by Associate Director, Badir McCleary. Later in the evening, attend the conversation Ecology of the 1% Art Program, a lively panel moderated by Executive Director, Cheyanne Sauter and featuring civic art experts including Evonne Gallardo, Benjamin Ball, and Howard Kozloff who will discuss how the 1% Art Program works for Angelenos. Wine and light snacks will be served. 801 E. 4th Place., downtown; Tuesday, September 28, 5-7pm; free; artsharela.org.
Zocalo Public Square: Jia Yi Gu, Cameron Shaw, Frances Anderton, and Shelby Williams-González (Illustration by Hännah Foote)
Wednesday, September 29
Zócalo Public Square: Will a New Generation of Leaders Shake Up L.A.’s Culture? at Helms Bakery District. Over the past year, directors of cultural institutions across Los Angeles have announced their retirements, which means a new generation of cultural leadership is upon us. But despite a desire for change that seems nearly universal, new directors must still answer to many of the same funders and face the same pressures as their predecessors — to raise money or sell tickets, to scale up, to stay relevant — all while navigating post-pandemic reopenings and reckonings around race and inclusion. California African American Museum executive director Cameron Shaw, Inner-City Arts president and CEO Shelby Williams-González, and MAK Center for Art and Architecture director Jia Yi Gu visit Zócalo to discuss the change they plan to be and want to see in one of the world’s most vibrant cultural capitals. Moderated by Frances Anderton. 8745 Washington Blvd., Culver City; Wednesday, September 29, 6:30pm; free; zocalopublicsquare.org.
Julie Weitz, Prayer for Burnt Forests (TIOH)
Julie Weitz: Prayer for a Burnt Forest at Temple Israel of Hollywood (Virtual). With humor and ritual, the centuries old legend of the golem is being revitalized by queer Ashkenazi video and performance artist Julie Weitz. Part of Weitz’s ongoing “My Golem” project, Prayer for a Burnt Forest is a compelling performance-prayer calling for action around social justice, climate change, and progressive wildfire management. Weitz’s futuristic, folkloric golem traverses the recently-charred landscape of Tongva land in Southern California framing fire’s potential for both ecological catastrophe and hope. Watch the short film and join Weitz in conversation about how traditional ecological knowledge combined with ancient Jewish practices can be a powerful means of healing and addressing the inextricable wildfire and climate crises. Wednesday, September 29, 7pm; free/donation; arts.tioh.org.
Tristan Eaton at LBMA (Photo by Jack Muramatsu / Vinyl Pulse)
Ongoing
Extended: Tristan Eaton: All at Once at Long Beach Museum of Art. Among the hundreds of unique objects, prints, and treasures of ephemera on view are classic concert flyers and vinyl prototypes, several of which are the first Eaton ever made, tracing 1996-2008 from those heady early KidRobot days to legendary projects from Thunderdog Studios. Through a beguiling site-specific mural wall requiring 3D glasses for proper viewing, like some kind of analog AR, and a room dedicated to samples from some of his most popular mural projects, the viewer begins to understand the artist’s evolution. His amped-up pop-infused language splicing and recombining interpretive citations from comic, horror, headlines, advertising, music, art history and cinema comes into roaring focus. The operatic simultaneity of visual cues perfectly mirrors the post-internet zeitgeist, even as Eaton does more than mimic and assemble, but rather transforms and reimagines the pictographic shorthand of modern culture. Long Beach Museum of Art, 2300 E Ocean Blvd., Long Beach; on view through October 31; $12; lbma.org.
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