Well, I guess you could say I did. Saturday night, I drug my friend K with me on a whirlwind downtown art adventure. We didn’t really know where we were going or what we were doing, but we ended up at two exhibits that night.
LALA Presents: LA Freewalls
On my trip to NYC last month, while ex bf and I were waiting for my hometown bff and her man to get home, we wandered the streets of Williamsburg, Brooklyn. We were able to capture a lot of great photos of insane murals- some would call graffiti art- but I like the word muralist, as the artwork is very deliberate and methodical (and probably a bit time-consuming to execute).
When I saw that LALA was hosting some of these artists indoors, I thought it might be kind of fun to check out.
The building was covered in outdoor murals, however, I couldn’t get a good photo, since we arrived just after sunset. The interior was light, bright and simple… we were definitely in the fringes of Industrial LA… far far from the South Bay.
One of my favorite artists there was Chris Brand. His series of made-up women eating, painted on velvet, was fascinating and gross and cool all in one.
There were several rooftop murals and these glass heads were up top as well. In an amateur move I didn’t bring my tripod, so many of the darkened murals I was unable to capture due to the lighting.
If you are curious about learning more about LA Freewalls, here is an awesome comprehensive video on the cause.
Transmission LA: AV Club – Curated by Mike D
You had me at Mike D.
This 90’s teenager went to her fair share of Beastie Boys concerts in the day, so if any one of the holy three were to touch something, you better believe I’d want to see it.
The result is Transmission LA: AV Club. A studio filled with light, sounds, music djs, and wonky finds. It appeared to be fairly popular this opening weekend, considering we arrived an hour before it was closing, and it was still pretty busy. We did manage to see it all (although we sped through!).
I had two favorites at this exhibit- the first was the spinning wheels exhibit by Jim Drain and Ara Peterson. The spinning wheels stopped everyone who walked by for its sheer visual appeal and size. It resembled the same idea as those windsock dudes who come alive with a fan in front of your neighborhood Jiffy Lube. It is a moving, interactive, colorful display of pattern. Humans cannot resist… I… can’t… help… but … look … at …. it.
I couldn’t help but take a picture of the Psychedelic Samurai.
My other favorite installation was the video game simulation… it was peaceful, yet nauseating at the same time. Not because of the content, but because of the motion sickness one may develop standing in this insane room!
All in all, a fun night in downtown. K and I capped off the night with some Japanese food (we were in Little Tokyo, come on!) and good convo. It was a nice reminder of a complete subsection of LA I don’t get to see every day. Nothing like ticklin’ the ol’ right-brain.
Transmission LA is open daily except Tuesday, with DJs on Thurs, Fri and Sat nights through May 6 at The Geffen Contemporary in Little Tokyo, LA.
Life, Love and Yoga 