art walk foreshadows downtown’s vibrant urban scene
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Last night I popped my Art Walk cherry. It was a more amazing experience than I could have ever imagined!
Who knew this Thursday night gallery crawl would be such a huge event? The streets were teeming with countless art and comedy lovers. The energy in the air snapped, crackled and buzzed like the glowing neon signs at MONA.
Damn, what have I been missing? Am I completely ignorant and cloistered away in South Park, or does this rush of activity only happen the second Thursday every month?
Whatever the circumstances, it was an eye opening experience, and I gained a whole new appreciation for Downtown.
Thursday night was happening, baby!
Recounting the Night of Art
We began the evening on the south end of Gallery Row, home to Infusion Gallery and The Hive Gallery. Particularly impressive was the latter, with its cleverly laid floor plan of mini compartments (similar to an actual beehive), displaying a stunning array of artwork to maximum effect.
I discovered a couple new favorite artists by the names of Melissa Moss and Jimmy Bleyer (aka “the penguin dude”). Both are resident artists of The Hive Gallery, giving me a reason to visit often.
On our way out, we got the bejeezus scared out of us by, of all things, a tree. Actually, it was a stilt-enhanced performance artist dressed in brown body paint and foliage, looking like some sort of Tree Beard-satyr love child. The performer stood very still and blended right into a real tree waiting for unsuspecting dupes like me to pass by.
Next, we hopped on the free Art Walk DASH for all of two blocks and got off at 5th and Main where we were immediately greeted by large crowds and live music. I didn’t realize street performers were part of Art Walk night, but this pleasant surprise made the atmosphere much more festive.
Our last gallery stop was Crewest, a venue dedicated to skater and graffiti art on Winston and Main. I find this unique style of self-expression (closely associated with the city of Los Angeles) to be intriguing and refreshing. It deserves its place in the art world, and Crewest helps contribute to the diversity of galleries Downtown is home to.
After checking out seven or eight art houses, I was particularly excited to see the new Museum of Neon Art exhibits, but upon arriving was told there was a fee to see the complete collection. I felt disappointed, but c’est la vie. The museum may want to reconsider the choice to charge for entry.
So Much to Enjoy, So Little Time
After strolling through exhibit after exhibit, my brain hurt from contemplating so much art.
I needed a reprieve and was looking forward to attending the Comedy Walk event. Even with my pre-printed free tickets tickets in hand, I soon realized there just wasn’t enough time. Maybe next month. The few hours available after work just aren’t enough to enjoy all the evening’s festivities and attractions, especially if you plan on having dinner then as well.
Many hungry gallery-goers flood the few restaurants sprinkled throughout the Old Bank District. One of the most convenient and popular eateries is the Vietnamese eatery Blossom, situated right on Gallery Row. There was a wait because the place was packed, causing servers to jump about as if their shoes were on fire.
When asked if they are always this busy at night, they said it gets this way during Art Walk. No kidding.
When our turn came around, the food was every bit as fresh and tasty as advertised. I’ll have to go back when things are calmer so I can fully enjoy the vegetable crepe and shrimp & lemongrass beef rice vermicelli.
Looking back, my virgin Art Walk experience was thrilling and left me wanting more.
Art, food, music, comedy… Downtown’s culture and nightlife is certainly coming into its own, if these special nights are any indication.
Hook photo courtesy of Arash in LA via flickr.
-blossom lacks the frills but packs in a crowd
-new comedy walk to amuse gallery-goers tonight
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14 comments
Thank you thank you thank you for coming to the Art Walk. Last night was amazing. We had the best attendance ever, probably surpassing 5,000 people. Main and Spring were full of people, and some of the galleries had 1,000 visitors. Fantastic.
I know that in the past 4 years the Art Walk has contributed to changing downtown, and last night someone told me that they believe that this new, changed downtown has in turn changed Los Angeles. Now people realize that in fact, Los Angeles does have a center. It is the beating heart that is our downtown.
Who is this MONA of which you speak?
Yeah, last night was awesome. At one point while I was walking down Main, it actually felt like I was in a REAL city! I mean, how great would it be if every day had people walking around and hitting up restaurants and galleries and shops? Like say.. most other cities! The businesses are here - the people are here, we’re close. Once a month is ok for now.. but I think we should do artwalk or something similar every week, and then up it to every day from there. We can do better than once a month!
MONA = Museum of Neon Art
Yes, Matt, that is the idea. The Downtown Art Walk is also a proof of concept “demonstration project” of what downtown can be. When I started it in 2004, most people said it would never work. That we would leave downtown in a few years because Los Angeles would NEVER embrace downtown. Well, they were wrong.
The Comedy Walk has future plans to spin off to a different night. I would love to see the restaurants band together and offer a special dining night, theatres do the same, the stores all stay open late, either all the time or one night a week, etc, etc, etc.
We WILL get there, and we are light years ahead of where it was just 2 years ago.
The opening photo is easily the best shot ever taken of me…
Thanks, Ira, for providing an on-location report of the art walk. Yours is one of the most thorough — or almost only one, period — I’ve seen online since the monthly event first began.
And thanks to gallery owner Bert Green for providing back-up coverage. The success of businesses like yours, and events like the art walk — and, for that matter, blogs like angelenic — make my day.
“When I started it in 2004, most people said it would never work.”
I guess you have the last laugh Bert. People lack vision, and it really sucks. Angelenos tend to lack vision even more when it comes to urban revitalization. Pathetically so. It is great to show those lemmings that LA can be urban and still maintain the CA lifestyle.
Best of all. DTLA hasnt been overrun by the douchebags that flock to other faux urban areas.
Really well written article. The “community based” Angelenic was a great idea.
Thank you for the complements! It’s my pleasure to report for Angelenic as I’ve been a huge fan for a while. It’s an excuse for me to go out and play too.
Someone mentioned theaters in the comments above. My friend and I were just talking about how big shows like “Lion King” or “The Producers” go to Hollywood or the Wadsworth Theater in Westwood. Anything of that caliber here in DT other than at the Dorothy Chandler Pavillion? Seems like there is potential with all the old-school theaters around here.
There is the potential, but some of the theaters would need work to fit the large backstage needs of a big show. I see downtown as having a great potential for experimental and small-scale theater. We already have the Latino Theater Company and the Company of Angels, and soon the Son of Semele Company will be moving downtown. In addition, there is also the occasional show at a temporary venue. In Little Tokyo there are several performing arts and theater groups as well.
Downtown could easily become the “off-broadway” for LA. We have the venues for the smaller scale prodcutions, mostly ready to go.
I would love to hear more about the budding theater culture in Downtown. Please write an article about it!
As for the whopping 5,000 people who attended the Art Walk, I’m assuming they come from all parts of LA. Does Art Walk promote taking the Metro to get here or indicate where various parking lots are located? Perhaps a special metro or parking discount would further intice people to attend. But I am thrilled Art Walk is already a success!
The Art Walk map and website give Metro and parking information, but makes no specific recommendation to certain lots. Actually, we have not received a single complaint from visitors about getting here, they seem to do fine figuring it out with the information provided.
The map also indicates the Gold and Red Line stops. The Blue Line is just outside the scope of the map, and we also indicated the Art Walk shuttle route.
Bert, if you’re not familiar with them, you should check out Cornerstone Theatre Company. These guys are phenomenal. Their methodology is remarkable. Their work is full of humanity. The writing is vital without being manipulative or false. I’ve been busy having babies the past couple of years. So I haven’t kept up.
I still recall seeing their re-working of Jean Anouilh’s ‘Antigone’ in the basement of the old Red Car Terminal Building at Hill & 4th in the late 90’s. Some images still stick in my mind. I can still feel the chill up my spine from a key moment. This despite the fact I think they got it wrong!
(The beauty of Anouih’s version is the utter ambiguity of the two protagonists’ arguements. Who is right? Who is wrong? Creon or Antigone? Each make compelling case. Yet, each can honestly be accused of absolute cynacism. Besides, anything which can make it past Nazi sensors in occupied France and still be true to itself is something special.)
Clearly, I digress. Who cares? Downtown theater lovers, you must check out Cornerstone Theater. http://www.cornerstonetheater.org
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