In 2006, the Musée National d’Art Moderne in Paris organized a large exhibition on the visual arts in Los Angeles from 1955 to 1985, which
presented artworks by over 80 Los Angeles artists. This show took place in the “Grande Galerie” on the top floor of the Centre Pompidou, and opened
to the public on March 8th and closed July 17, 2006.

This ambitious exhibition was the first ever of this scope devoted to the arts in Los Angeles, and it showed the significance and originality of an art
scene that was largely undiscovered. The art scene in the Greater Los Angeles area has been unique, because of its multiple facets ranging from
the Beat culture to the Hollywood movies, from underground movements to Disneyland. In the last few years, it has proven to be a significant alternative
to the New York scene, an effervescent place in many different media that has become a stimulus for creators worldwide.

With a wide selection of paintings, sculptures, installations, photographs, films and videos, the show retraced the history of this particular scene with
its many art forms from the beginning in the late fifties up to the year 1985. The exhibition presents a selection of over 80 artists and 300 art works
encompassing movements and media such as Assemblage, California Pop Art, Minimalism or “Finish Fetish,” Light & Space, Conceptual Art,
Performances, Feminism, Installation Art, Video and Experimental Movies.

Although giving a large place to internationally renowned artists such as Edward Kienholz, Allan Kaprow, Ed Ruscha, James Turrell, John Baldessari,
Paul McCarthy, and Mike Kelley, this exhibition also permitted the discovery of a dynamic and fertile experimental circle whose key figures are mostly
unknown to the European public.


To purchase the Catalogue of the exhibition "L.A. from 1955-1985: The Birth of an Art Capital"

Art Catalogues
phone: 310-289-5223,
E-mail:artcatalogues@moca.org

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