Los Angeles Times, Thursday, April 14, 2005 2005-04-19 - By rowdyboybrian
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Hi,
This article appeared prior to the LACDA opening last Thursday.
Check out the Open Call for Digital Art and Photography on the
website:
http://www.lacda.com
Location:
Los Angeles Center for Digital Art
107 West Fifth Street
Los Angeles, CA 90013
contact@(protected)
Los Angeles Times, Thursday, April 14, 2005
Scruffy? Yes. Stuffy? No.
Diverse galleries and an edgy vibe give Downtown Art Walk a
growing
appeal.
By Liane Bonin, Special to The Times
It's 8 o'clock on a Thursday night, and the Bert Green Fine Art
gallery
is quietly bustling as art aficionados soberly inspect the first L.A.
showing of Valerie Jacobs' politically charged paintings. A block
away,
a crowd of creative types nibbles on cheese and crackers at the
626
Gallery, where the vibrant work of African American artists
Synthia St.
James and Charles Bibb is on view. A little farther down the
street,
the Iron Eyes Gallery has amped up the volume. The owners are
holding a
party, complete with a DJ and a cluster of twentysomething
revelers. "I
heard Drew Barrymore came last month," one guest yells over
the music.
It could be any city's art walk, with the same hipster crowd and
hipper
artwork, but this one has a little extra, shall we say, ambience.
Situated in downtown L.A. and running since September, this
monthly
trek from gallery to gallery involves negotiating one's way around
some
gritty streets. But with 19 galleries confirmed for today's walk and
the promise of viewing some interesting works, art lovers are
willing
to overlook some big city blight.
"It's getting better," says Downtown Art Walk originator Bert
Green,
whose gallery sees upward of 200 people on most Art Walk
days. "The
businesses downtown like Pete's Cafe are getting busier, so
that's
making a difference. But when people call up and ask if it's safe
to
come here, I tell them, look, anything can happen, but anything
can
happen anywhere. If you don't feel safe, don't come. But if you
have a
sense of adventure, come with an open mind."
If you're willing to dodge a few panhandlers in your quest, the
walk is
a quick subway ride to Pershing Square. (Dedicated gas
guzzlers can
find inexpensive parking lots on the Art Walk map online.) Most
of the
stops are on Gallery Row: Main and Spring streets, between 2nd
and 9th.
Until this month, the walk included galleries east of San Pedro
Street
and south of Olympic Boulevard, but they are choosing to stay off
the
list until a rough plan kicks in to extend DASH bus hours on walk
nights. Alas, even art can't overcome a fundamental truth about
Angelenos: Sure, we'll walk, but not that far.
The artwork to be found during the March event covered a
dizzying array
of styles and mediums. At the Los Angeles Center for Digital Art
you
could soak up the satirical Bush-bashing photography of Chris
Anthony,
then wander the few blocks to Infusion to view the Mir�-esque
modernism
of Jenik. At Iron Eye there were street-tough tattoo-inspired
canvases
by Mister Cartoon, and just downstairs at Kristi Engle were
snarky
video installations by Joel Huschle. Stumbling across the
delicate
plein-air landscapes of Star Higgins at M.J. Higgins offered relief
from the sensory overload.
While much of the art was aggressive and assured, not all of the
galleries were quite so sophisticated. Though there are grand
dames
like MOCA and the Museum of Neon Art as well as veterans like
Green and
626 owner Tom Pratt, some owners are learning as they go.
Canvases lean against the walls or flop against chair backs.
One
gallery ties a curtain across a hallway to create an impromptu
lobby;
they have no choice, having dedicated their single room to a
video
installation. Another gallery isn't quite ready for Art Walk, with
owners hanging paintings and arguing over placement as
people enter to
see what the fuss is all about. In another space, the sole
observer and
her companion are tapped on the shoulder by the owner. "Look, I
have
got to go out for a bit, but just sign your name on the guest list if
you have any questions," he says with a smile. "And don't steal
anything!"
The rough-around-the-edges art school vibe means that there's
none of
the stuffiness you might expect when it comes to art. For those
with
tight budgets, there's a chance to see scads of art for free, sans
the
sales pitch.
The good feelings also extend to the gallery owners. "There's not
the
usual sense of competition. I feel like I can call any of the people
on
the Art Walk and say, 'Hey, I have a question,' " says Kristi Engle.
Like many on the Art Walk, she is a newbie, having opened her
doors in
November. "There's absolutely a sense of community here."
The hard part could be making it last. As with every other part of
the
city, the more appealing downtown becomes, the higher rents
will go,
potentially sending gallery owners scrambling for a cheaper
digs. "We
in the art world are good at that kind of thing," Green jokes. "It's
an
oversimplification, but we come into an area, fix it up, and then
get
kicked out."
Downtown Art Walk
Where: Walk is centered on Spring and Main streets, between
2nd and 9th
streets, downtown L.A.
When: Noon to 9 p.m., second Thursday of every month
Price: Free
Info: www.downtownartwalk.com
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