Maybe you’ve driven through Culver City and thought, “My word, that billboard is weird,” or been on a commute and said, “Wait, why is there a puppet show on the I-10?” Or maybe you’ve just been to one of LA><ART’s challenging and exciting shows within their space. But that’s the kind of programming LA><ART does — wild, woolly, experimental pubic engagement.
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It’s hard to believe the organization is 10 years old already. Founded in 2005 in the then burgeoning La Cienega gallery row in Culver City by curator Lauri Firstenberg, LA><ART quickly established itself as force in the L.A. art world. This year, the non-profit alternative art space moved to Hollywood, again in the middle of the new hotbed of contemporary art activity. On Sunday night, it raised $800,000 in the LA><ART Benefit Presented by Distinct held in the new location and at their next-door neighbor, Siren Studios.
Guests milled about and bid on silent auction items for the first portion of the evening, which featured a tray pass of In-N-Out burgers and Green Truck paleo bowls. (This resulted in a lot of guests hiding in corners, scarfing down burgers and hoping not to drip on their freshly pressed suits and cocktail dresses. “This is why I don’t wear suits to these things,” a gallerist told me.)
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LA><ART board members Darren Romanelli and music exec Ron Handler hosted the evening. “I’m not bidding on anything tonight, mainly because I’m so tired,” said Romanelli, who had landed on a redeye from Tokyo earlier in the day, with a yawn. “Otherwise, I’d be all over some of these pieces.”
The event moved across the road to Siren where artist Mark Bradford introduced the honoree of the evening, 82-year-old artist John Outterbridge, a community activist and a leader in the California assemblage movement in the ’60s and ’70s. Firstenberg then presented artist duo Slanguage (Mario Ybarra Jr. and Karla Diaz) with a 10-year anniversary grant in honor of Noah Davis, a popular young L.A. artist who passed away from cancer in August.
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Viveca Paulin-Ferrell, the Swedish actress and wife of Will Ferrell who is on LA ><ART’s curator’s council, called the live auction. She livened up the night with a gag about the first lot being the podium. But bidding got serious over a piece by Los Angeles legend Charles Gaines, who had a solo show at The Hammer Museum this spring. Fred Savage and his wife Jennifer Stone looked on in awe as Paulin-Farrell hammered on the Gaines piece at $41,000. “Charles Gaines; we’ll have to remember that name,” Savage whispered.
Jeffrey and Catherine Soros nabbed a Glenn Ligon work for $7,000, while artist José Parla picked up a Brian Bress video for $14,000. Another bidding war took place on the final lot, a coveted Mary Weatherford painting, which sold to a mysterious bidder in the back of the room for $205,000.
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“Mary Weatherford saved the day,” said Handler.
“It was an exciting finale,” said Weatherford.
In all, the $800,000 haul was a huge boost for the non-profit.
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“We are so grateful for the tremendous support from the artist community,” said Firstenberg. “We were touched by our angel Mary Weatherford, honoring legendary artist and community organizer John Outterbridge with a beautiful introduction by Mark Bradford, and granting Slanguage in the memory of the late Noah Davis — a 10-year anniversary grant for $10,000 dollars, which was supported by the Marciano Family Foundation for emerging artists supporting the community.”
Firstenberg took a moment to reflect on the 10 years since she broke ground on the non-profit. “When I founded LA><ART in 2005, it was a flexible radical organization to support artistic and curatorial freedom,” she said. “A decade later, it is now an independent arts institution dedicated to the creation of a sustainable space for the next generation of artists and curators.”
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The event was presented by Distinct, a new social networking app, which produced a video featuring Slanguage’s win, directed by Lance Drake.
The entertainment industry was represented by LA><ART supporters Alan Hergott, David Hoberman, Phil Lord and Chris Miller, Marc Foster, Peter Friedlander, Lisa Edelstein, Mara Brock Akil, Dana Delany, Julian Morris and celebrity chef Candace Nelson.
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Artists who came out to show their support included Brian Bress, Rosson Crow, Alex Israel, Mary Weatherford, Jonas Wood, Mark Bradford, Gary Baseman, Warren Neidich and Dwyer Kilcollin.
