If These Walls Could Talk…

The Robert Berman Gallery Takes Over Historic Gallery Space with its

Third Pacific Standard Time Exhibition

By Kathy Leonardo

Santa Monica, CA(Hollywood Today)11/18/11/-–Lost and Found/Abstracting Los Angeles 1945-1980 is the perfect Pacific Standard Time exhibition for the Grand Opening of The Robert Berman Gallery’s newest space at Bergamot Station.

This new gallery (B-7), along with this very special show will be celebrated this Saturday, November 19^th. It is a fitting coincidence that the grand opening will occur simultaneously with an exhibition which celebrates the same iconic artists as part of Pacific Standard Time. Since within the same walls legendary artists gathered in the late 70’s when this exact space was once the famed Patricia Faure Gallery.

Lost and Found explores the work of obscure and renowned artists who helped spark the art movement in Los Angeles during the 1950s. This exhibition honors the legend of the Cool School days, born out of the famous Ferus Gallery on La Cienega. The focus of this exhibition is post-war works up to 1980.

Transformation, which just enjoyed a successful opening, is part of Pacific Standard Time: Art in L.A. 1945 – 1980. Pacific Standard Time is a collaboration of more than sixty cultural institutions across Southern California, coming together for six months beginning in October 2011 to tell the story of the birth of the Los Angeles art scene and how it became a major new force in the art world.

Tranformation is part two of the Paid to Play exhibit which opened in September. Paid to Play focused on overlooked artists, rooted in illustration, who created legendary imagery designed for commerce such as albums, magazines, advertisements, et al. Transformation, on the other hand, explores commerce which later evolved into symbolic art.

Transformation offers conceptual photography from Robert Heinecken and Victor Landweber, appropriating magazine imagery (the former) and paint chip color cards (the latter) as a companion show to the Robert Berman Gallery’s September exhibit, Paid to Play – an overview of California illustrators from 1945-1985.

Lost and Found includes select works by Elsa Wagner, Stanley Tschopp, Ted Gilien, Jules Engel, Russ Tamblyn, John Grillo, Ben Talbert, Hans Burkhardt, James Gill, Paul Bruch, Norman Zammitt, Agnes Kellog, William Tunberg, Henrietta Berk, Joe Goode, Oskar Fischinger, Frank Lobdell, Billy Al Bengston, John Baldessari, Ed Kienholz, Bruce Conner, Craig Kauffman, Carlos Almaraz, Llyn Folkes, Rico Lebrun, Larry Bell, Eric Orr, Man Ray, Don Sorenson, John Altoon, and Robert Graham.

November 19^th is the official grand opening of the newest Robert Berman Gallery (B-7) and its latest Pacific Standard Time exhibition entitled Lost and Found/Abstracting Los Angeles 1945-1980. It is fitting that Lost and Found will be the first exhibition to open in this legendary gallery where so much has transpired. It brings to life and rekindles the artistic expression of the past while honoring the Getty Foundation’s initiative, Pacific Standard Time. The opening reception runs from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m.

Paid to Play (C-2) and Transformation (D-5) will remain open though December 1^st. Gallery hours are 11:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday.  http://www.robertbermangallery.com/

About Pacific Standard Time: Art in L.A. 1945 – 1980

Pacific Standard Time is a collaboration of more than sixty cultural institutions across Southern California, coming together for six months beginning in October 2011 to tell the story of the birth of the Los Angeles art scene and how it became a major new force in the art world. Each institution will make its own contribution to this grand-scale story of artistic innovation and social change, told through a multitude of simultaneous exhibitions and programs. Exploring and celebrating the significance of the crucial post-World War II years through the tumultuous period of the 1960s and 70s, Pacific Standard Time encompasses developments from L.A. Pop to post-minimalism; from modernist architecture and design to multi-media installations; from the films of the African American L.A. Rebellion to the feminist activities of the Woman’s Building; from ceramics to Chicano performance art; and from Japanese American design to the pioneering work of artists’ collectives.

Initiated through $10 million in grants from the Getty Foundation, Pacific Standard Time involves cultural institutions of every size and character across Southern California, from Greater Los Angeles to San Diego and Santa Barbara to Palm Springs.

About the writer

Kathy Leonardo has been working as freelance writer for the past 13 years. She writes about art, fashion, food and more on her blog and event listing site www.laartparty.com. Some of her articles have been featured in The California Chronicle, Campus Circle, The Examiner, Hollywood Today, The Santa Monica Daily Press, The Santa Monica Mirror, The Santa Monica Observer, Santa Monica Patch, Singular City Magazine, Venice Patch The Venice Beachhead, and others.

For more info, contact Kathy Leonardo at 310 428-1109 or email at kathyleonardo@ymail.com