Downtown Exhibits Its Eclecticism
Downtown Los Angeles turned into a canvas dabbed with colorful contrasts Saturday as old-school art found itself combined with the new -- and well-heeled suburbanites found themselves mixing with down-and-out street people.
A self-guided "art walk" along an eight-block section of the center of the city drew some 3,000 visitors to two dozen independent galleries.
Most have popped up over the last two years in long-neglected storefronts to tap into downtown's burgeoning residential loft scene. The concentration, centered at the corners of 5th Street and Spring and Main streets, has prompted city officials to designate the area Gallery Row.
The variety of the art and the sophistication of its display surprised many -- some of whom were paying their first visit to the 90-year-old business district that now separates downtown's high-rise district from skid row.
Works ranged from the eclectic mix of art and smokes at 2nd Street Cigars and Gallery to avant-garde photography at the L.A. Center for Digital Art on 5th Street.
Visitors were stopped in their tracks by the glass-topped table at the entrance to M.J. Higgins Fine Art and Furnishings on Main Street. Beneath the glass was a sculpture made by artist Jericho Woggon from what appeared to be rusty fenders and hubcaps from an old Hudson nestled on a bed of 22 hammered-into-shape vintage license plates.
"Where would you put your feet if you sat around that table?" asked Randy Kahn, a Calabasas teacher.
Replied his friend, Valencia audiologist Suzanne Holowecky: "My dad would love that. He'd appreciate it -- you should see his garage."
On Winston Street, a trio of once-mundane retail storefronts have been combined to create Crewest Gallery. Its crisp, whitewashed walls displayed mixed media celebrating L.A.'s gritty street culture and works by local graffiti painters and "underground artists."
Gallery owner Alex Poli of Rosemead, known professionally as Man One, said he opened on Gallery Row after outgrowing a gallery he operated for nearly four years in Alhambra.
"We're focusing on bringing street art into the gallery to show it's a respectable art form," he said.
In an alley next to Crewest Gallery, an artist who calls himself Kofie One was painting a portrait on canvas. Next to him, a spray-painter with the moniker Eye One was applying angular lines on a large piece of particle board.
