Art and Black Los Angeles
The Hammer Museum – Santa Monica, CA
10/2/11 thru 1/9/12

The Hammer Museum proudly presents Now Dig This! Art and Black Los Angeles 1960–1980, a comprehensive exhibition that examines the vital legacy of the city’s African American visual artists. Now Dig This! comprises 140 works from 35 artists that have rarely been shown in a museum setting and includes early pieces by now well-established artists.

The exhibition expands the art historical record by presenting an array of artists, some not widely recognized by a broad public, and connecting their work to the movements, trends, and ideas that fueled the arts in Los Angeles during this period. The work of these African American practitioners was animated to an extent by the civil rights and Black Power movements reflecting the changing sense of what constituted African American identity and American culture.

David Hammons, "America the Beautiful" (1968)

Artists featured in the exhibition include Melvin Edwards, Fred Eversley, David Hammons, Maren Hassinger, Senga Nengudi, John Outterbridge, Alonzo Davis, Dale Brockman Davis, Noah Purifoy, Betye Saar, and Charles White.

Now Dig This! is presented as part of Pacific Standard Time, a collaboration of more than sixty cultural institutions across Southern California. For six months beginning in October 2011 these institutions large and small will tell the story of the birth of L.A.’s art scene and how it became a new force in the art world. Organized by the Hammer and curated by Columbia University professor Kellie Jones, Now Dig This! chronicles and celebrates this nuanced and multicultural history of Los Angeles.

OPENING DAY PUBLIC PROGRAMS (FREE)

Museum Free Day
Sunday, October 2, ALL DAY

Through the generosity of Bank of America, the Hammer is pleased to offer complimentary museum admission on Sunday, October 2, to celebrate the opening day of Now Dig This! Art and Black Los Angeles 1960–1980.

Exhibition Walkthrough
Sunday, October 2, 1PM
Exhibition curator Kellie Jones will lead a walkthrough of the exhibition.

Hammer Presents Opening Day Performance: Kiss
Sunday, October 2, 2PM

Artists Senga Nengudi and Maren Hassinger perform a collaborative project with Ulysses Jenkins in which they reimagine their works in the exhibition galleries.

William Pajaud, "Holy Family" (c. 1965)

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For more info on Hammer events, visit: http://hammer.ucla.edu/