Westsiders, Explore a new neighborhood on June 5! Historic West Adams — just a short drive from the Westside — is a new hotbed for fine art, with a growing number of established and emerging artists who live and/or work in the community. Now, the public is invited to visit a collection of West Adams’ most interesting historic places, showcasing works by some of West Adams’ most talented contemporary artists.
On Saturday, June 5, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Art in Historic Places: West Adams’ Creative Canvas tour opens the doors to more than a dozen architecturally diverse historic venues throughout West Adams, presented by West Adams Heritage Association (WAHA). Visit Victorian, Craftsman, and Spanish homes and artists’ studios, a 1920s French Norman Revival apartment, an Adams Boulevard mansion, and the Union Theater, a WWI-era movie theater now home to the Velaslavasay Panorama.
The art on tour will be equally eclectic, pairing historical architecture with bold, cutting-edge works and more traditional contemporary art alike, from landscapes to portraits, to abstract paintings, to sculpture, photography and ceramics.
Among the participating artists are Aaron Morse, whose work has been exhibited at the Hammer Museum and noted local gallery Acme; Marina Moevs, whose paintings have been on view at the Autry; internationally famed ceramicist Mas Ojima; artist-curator-gallery director Steve Irvin; Max Miceli, who has exhibited at such galleries as Klasky Csupo and La Luz De Jesus Gallery and is currently represented at Milo Gallery; abstract painter Jenny Hager, whose work is included in the Riverside Museum of Art Permanent Collection; and photographer-sculptor Taidgh O’Neill, who recently launched the NTBA alternative artist space in West Adams. (Visit www.WestAdamsHeritage.org for a complete list of participating artists.)
The self-guided Art in Historic Places tour begins at Gramercy Housing Group (former Majestic Pharmacy, 1824 South 4th Avenue), a classic 1920s commercial building that will be converted into an art gallery space for this event.
The tour will encompass a collection of neighborhoods in the Historic West Adams District. In Arlington Heights, visitors will tour artist-owned Craftsman homes and studios. In Wellington Square they will visit a 1932 Spanish Colonial Revival, also artist-owned. The Briggs Mansion on Adams Boulevard will open its doors on a curated showcase for several West Adams artists. In Lafayette Square, visitors will discover a 1923 villa once owned by a famous singer, now home to another West Adams artist. Western Heights will showcase three homes: a Craftsman Bungalow, a Victorian-era residence and an English Revival manse, all exhibiting neighborhood artists. And, in University Park, the doors swing open on a landmark Victorian (home to two artists) that is a Contributor in a National Register Historic District.
Advance tickets for Art in Historic Places: West Adams’ Creative Canvas are $25 (paid no later than May 31), available at www.westadamsheritage.com. General admission is $30, paid at the door on day of tour. This is a self-guided, driving tour. For additional information, call 323-732-4223, write tours@westadamsheritage.org or visit www.WestAdamsHeritage.org. The last ticket will be sold at
1 p.m., and tour properties will close promptly at 4 p.m. Visitors tour at their own pace, but should set aside several hours to enjoy the Art in Historic Places tour.
Tour visitors will receive tickets, brochure and map at Check-in/Will Call (Gramercy Housing Group, 1824 S. 4th Avenue, located on the northeast corner of Washington Boulevard, Los Angeles 90019).
The tour will raise funds for the West Adams Heritage Association, a nonprofit organization that was founded in 1983 to support preservation of the community’s architectural and cultural heritage. WAHA has grown from a small resident support group to a recognized preservation voice with hundreds of members who live in the many neighborhoods of the Historic West Adams District.
