LA Dreams

A Soul-Expanding City

A bit dreamy, perhaps, but that’s why we live here. We all came here or stay here because of some dream. You can say the same about America in general perhaps, but dreams of Los Angeles have a specific space to them. And the artists who came here, though most of them are hardly so literal in their workings, you can see these dreams still shimmer in their work. Whatever Los Angeles is, and it is so many things both good and bad, there is still space here and that space is full of possibility.

These words are taken from writer and art critic Andrew Bernardini’s beautiful piece on Los Angeles as the city of artists. Despite all the challenges this city has faced (pollution, ugly dying strip malls, distances, a fragmented city centre, water shortages, and crime), it nonetheless seems to be blessed somehow. People talk about it in a very particular way. They mention the heat, the light, and the creative, permissive atmosphere. There’s definitely something to it, because if you consider the depth of the art scene–which tends to be a significant measure of the attractiveness of a place–there doesn’t seem to be a city around that measures up to Los Angeles. And the same is true of the quality of the art. After all, the galleries, fairs, and, recently, museums that have sprouted from this dry soil are merely a consequence of the city’s great concentration of gifted artists.

LA Dreams represents CFHILL’s first foray into the lively art scene of Los Angeles. The exhibition includes six artists born in the 70s and 80s who have all contributed to the art world in unique and significant ways through their various lifestyles and artistic practices. We feel privileged to be collaborating with Shanghai and LA based curator Melanie Lum on this exhibition and selection of works, which possess such outstanding aesthetic and intellectual qualities. What an honour it is to be granted yet another opportunity to realise our vision of working with the finest international curators of our time!

We would also like to extend our thanks to our six fantastic artists: Math Bass, Lauren Davis Fisher, Aaron Garber-Maikovska, Parker Ito, Becky Kolsrud, and Joshua Nathanson.

Michael Elmenbeck
Anna-Karin Pusic
Michael Storåkers