At Art + Film gala, LACMA celebrates coming ‘unstuck,’ with new building 50% done
The Art + Film gala, presented by the LACMA Foundation, took place in December. Photo: LACMA | Courtesy of LACMA
When art, film and design meet, it is usually only in a good sense. These three disciplines, like many others, share many characteristics, and LACMA has a long and proud history of having worked with all three fields. In fact, the museum’s founding in 1965 was, somewhat provocatively, the result of an agreement between film and art lovers to hold a single show in its galleries.
But despite a long history, the LACMA Foundation, an independent nonprofit dedicated to preserving the institution’s artwork, has grown more ambitious about its role. The LACMA Foundation’s mission is to fund projects that elevate the value of the museum collection through new initiatives and partnerships, and to support the museum’s growth by increasing the number of programs it runs and the number of visitors it sees.
To meet these challenges, the LACMA Foundation has recently acquired a new building and, just five months later, finished one-quarter of its work on this new building, which will double the size of the museum. The first exhibit in the new space, “The Unfolding of Time Continuum,” a project with artist and video director Martin Schoeman, opened on Dec. 9 and will close Dec. 22. In addition to the new building, the museum’s Art + Film program, which has always featured more events than programs, has expanded its lineup with a new slate of programming. These include a new annual film festival in 2019; the opening of “Art + Commerce: A Journey to the Global Marketplace,” a special exhibition on the arts and culture of the Middle East, with artists and activists from the region; a new group show featuring the work of LACMA artists; and an initiative encouraging students to discover the museum’s collection by engaging audiences in immersive learning adventures.
Art + Film has already become a vital component of the museum’s programming, with its
