The director of Photo LA on What she Loves About her Hometown
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Photo LA returns for its 27th year as the longest-running photographic art exposition on the West Coast, and this year it’s in a new home, the Barker Hangar. With soaring vaulted ceilings and arched steel trusses, the 35,000-square-foot former airplane hangThe director of Photo LA on What she Loves About her Hometown
Photo LA returns for its 27th year as the longest-running photographic art exposition on the West Coast, and this year it’s in a new home, the Barker Hangar. With soaring vaulted ceilings and arched steel trusses, the 35,000-square-foot former airplane hangar will house a roster of 50 – 65 local and international galleries and dealers, collectives, leading nonprofits, art schools, and global booksellers. The 2019 edition will also feature lectures, round-table discussions, special installations, and docent tours by industry leaders.Claudia James Bartlett, director and owner of Photo LA, spoke to Blouin Artinfo about the fair and some of her favorite aspects of her hometown.How long have you been living in Los Angeles and what do you like best about it?I have lived in Los Angeles for most of my life, but I went to art school at the University of Seattle. What I like best about Los Angeles is that it can be what you want it to be. There is so much opportunity. There is a lot of room to carve out and invent.How has the art scene evolved in the past few years?I have worked in the arts in Los Angeles since the ’80s. The art scene used to be a cozy situation where you knew almost everyone. You could go to every show in town every month! Now, there are so many more artists, galleries and museums. We used to talk about it being like this….and Wow… now it is competitive internationally.What do you find the most exciting in Photo LA this year?This year is really a huge re-brand for us and I couldn’t do it without our team, but of course the galleries and private dealers that have come forward early. There are many that have been very supportive. If I had to name a few they would be The Etherton Gallery, Paul Hertzmann Inc, Monroe Gallery of Photography, Nino Mier Gallery, Danziger Gallery, Peter Fetterman, Joseph Bellows Gallery, Galerie XII, Daniel Miller Gallery and Richard Moore Photographs. I am also excited that we have 10 galleries coming from China. This is a huge cultural exchange that I am very proud and excited about.Capturing various aspects of human life via photography, several Chinese galleries and organizations participating in Photo L.A. 2019 will represent different photographic styles and features, including Cipa Gallery, specializing in classic photography artworks; View Art Gallery, focusing on Contemporary photography artworks; Yingshang Photobook Collection, collecting domestic and overseas photography books and historical materials; Cube Art Gallery, dedicated to organizing academic exhibition and implementing art projects; MINO Gallery relying on the Dali International Photography Exhibition; Pan-View Gallery offering extensive operation experience; 9 ART, concentrating on new and emerging photographers, SIPA USA, a famous international photography brand, and SoPhoto Gallery, a professional photographic gallery belonging to sophoto.com.cn, a Chinese cultural and geographic photography bank. In addition, CAC International helps individual Chinese photography artists travel to the United States of America for international exhibitions.Beyond this... our programing is outstanding. Carter Mull, director of Programing Photo L.A. 2019 has done a fantastic job bringing together artists, photographers, curators and critics such as Weston Naef, curator emeritus, Department of Photography, J. Paul Getty Museum; Ryan Linkof, curator of Film at the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art; Britt Salvesen, department head and curator, Wallis Annenberg Photography Department and the Department of Prints and Drawings, LACMA; Paul Martineau, associate curator in the Department of Photographs at the J. Paul Getty Museum [and many others].In what ways has living in Los Angeles changed your ways of seeing — about art or anything else?Los Angeles has always seemed like there is room. It is the West…. It is spread out and that allows you to develop your own way of seeing. Plus, I think people here are very open to new ideas and that always changes how you look at things, in life and art.Do you have a favorite Los Angeles artist, whom you think more people should know about?There are so many… Carter Mull who does the programing for Photo L.A. Siri Kaur, Heather Rasussen & Phil Chang who I have worked with while I was directing a gallery, and, just recently, Photo L.A. went to Brian Bress’s studio (My husband showed him in his gallery in the early 2000s). They and so many others are all doing incredible work.What is your favorite time of the year to enjoy Los Angeles and why?The Fall. There is just something in the air.What are the places/venues in Los Angeles that you would recommend all visitors to not miss, even if they are coming for a short trip?Our beaches, Venice and Santa Monica. I grew up going to the beach almost every day… I miss doing that! And of course our museums of late have become really terrific: LACMA, The Getty, The Broad.Is there a local cuisine? What are the best restaurants serving local cuisine?I can’t help myself, I love Italian: Angelini Osteria… The best Italian in the city as far as I am concerned. Then there is Escuela Taqueria. I love their burritos.What are the ideal spots to see live music?The Hollywood Bowl in the Summer. It old and yet it’s new.What are the best streets to hang out at to get an idea of the city’s night life?Sunset Boulevard and Hollywood.Who, among present-day writers, do you think describes Los Angeles best in his/her works?To my best knowledge, Joan Didion’s writings inhabit the very essence of Los Angeles. It still holds up.Any activity that one must participate in to get the feel like a local?Take a hike in the Santa Monica Mountains or a drive along the PCH (Pacific Coast Highway).What museums or galleries you would recommend one must definitely visit in the city, even if short on time?The Getty, LACMA, the Broad, the Marciano Foundation, galleries that show photography — Peter Fetterman, Nino Mier, Gallerie XII, De Soto Gallery, Lapis Press, Rose Gallery, Duncan Miller Gallery, KP Projects Gallery, Kopeikin Gallery, Fahey Klein Gallery & Joseph Bellows and Susan Spritus (in the South Bay).Any walking trail you would recommend visitors to check out in the city and/or the surrounding areas?Runyon Canyon Park.Where would you recommend people stay when they visit?The Standard in Hollywood or Downtown.https://www.blouinartinfo.com/ Founder: Louise Blouin Read more