LA/LA Announces Free Public Launch Party 9/14 in Grand Park

Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA (PST: LA/LA) announced a free, daylong party for the public in downtown L.A.'s Grand Park on Thursday, September 14, 2017, to celebrate the arrival of PST: LA/LA. The party runs from noon to 10pm and features music, food, drink, activities, giveaways, and a chance to plan an itinerary for Southern California's largest arts experience.

The celebration kicks off at noon with an exciting lineup of music and dance performances organized by The Music Center's Grand Park team. First up is a performance by Ori, presenting an exploration of ancestral and modern folk music from Latin America, with an emphasis on Afro-Cuban and Brazilian dances. Ori's performances tell intimate stories of loss, hope and triumph in the Americas. The performance features dancers Cristina Lucio, Rachel Hernandez and Kati Hernandez, singer Dana Maman, and musicians Alberto Lopez, Gabriel Osuna, Kahlil Cummings, and Gerardo Morales.

The party continues with a pop-up interactive installation, the PST: LA/LA Mobile, delicious fare from local food trucks, and a themed bar.

The pop-up installation and social space will offer the public an opportunity to learn more about PST: LA/LA's vast array of exhibitions and programs from museums, performing arts organizations and other partnering institutions across Southern California. Visitors of all ages are invited to explore the book nook with exhibition catalogues highlighting Latin American and Latino art, participate in hands-on workshops, engage with PST: LA/LA ambassadors, and relax with friends.

In addition, guests can explore the PST: LA/LA Mobile, which will feature an interactive selfie station and a touch-screen that will aid in designing personal itineraries for visiting the many PST: LA/LA exhibitions and programs. Inside this state-of-the-art vehicle, visitors can use technology to get a sneak peek at the many cultural institutions and works of art to be discovered during PST: LA/LA.

The musical entertainment heats up again as the sun comes down, when DJ Cee Brown takes the stage at 6pm, accompanied by Aponte. Inspired by Afro-Caribbean sounds, Cee Brown is one of the co-creators and resident DJs of BODEGA, a warm and welcoming dance party focused on Latin heavy vibes. Most recently, he has appeared as part of Flowers RDM, which stands for Rhythm, Delight and Music. He is joined by his fellow Flowers RDM co-creator Aponte, an Official Latin Percussion (LP) sponsored musician who has been called the future of Latin sounds: Salsa, Hip-Hop, Reggaeton, Soul and Jazz.

Quantic takes the Grand Park stage at 8:30pm, with the Quantic Soul Orchestra. A multifaceted, truly global artist, Quantic leads the way in blending the sounds of Global Dance music with the powerful, iconic rhythms of Tropicalia. The time he spent traveling in Latin America-especially his years living in Colombia, where he founded the Sonia del Valle studio-immersed him in many of the traditions of Latin music. His global travel brought him to Los Angeles for many years, where his "Quantic" moniker was born. His sound embodies L.A.'s unique role as the crossroads of Latin, Electronic, and global dance music.

"We invite people to join us in this great public celebration to get a taste of the excitement and learn more about how they can experience Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA through next January," said Jim Cuno, president of the J. Paul Getty Trust, which is leading the far-reaching and ambitious exploration of Latin American and Latino art in dialogue with Los Angeles taking place from September 2017 through January 2018.

Visit pacificstandardtime.org for more information about Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA and the launch party at Grand Park.

The Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA Launch Party is a collaboration between Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA, Grand Park, The Music Center, Community Arts Resources (CARS), Spinagu, and Zynger Events.

Support for Pacific Standard Time:
Pacific Standard Time is an initiative of the Getty. The presenting sponsor is Bank of America.

Lead Sponsors
Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA Leadership Council, California Community Foundation, Design Miami, The James Irvine Foundation, Jose Cuervo Reserva de la Familia, Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board, Montage Beverly Hills, The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., South Coast Plaza, Terra Foundation for American Art

Additional Support Provided By
Accenture, GRoW @ Annenberg, The Herb Alpert Foundation, Mr. and Mrs. James Ukropina, The Rose Hills Foundation, Weingart Foundation

Media Partners
Jezebel/Fusion, Los Angeles magazine

About Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA:
Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA is a far-reaching and ambitious exploration of Latin American and Latino art in dialogue with Los Angeles taking place from September 2017 through January 2018 at arts institutions across Southern California.

Through a series of thematically linked exhibitions and programs, Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA highlights different aspects of Latin American and Latino art from the ancient world to the present day. With topics such as luxury objects in the pre-Hispanic Americas, 20th-century Afro-Brazilian art, alternative spaces in Mexico City, and boundary-crossing practices of Latino artists, exhibitions range from monographic studies of individual artists to broad surveys that cut across numerous countries.

Supported by more than $16 million in grants from the Getty Foundation, Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA involves more than 70 cultural institutions, from Los Angeles to Palm Springs, and from San Diego to Santa Barbara.

Pacific Standard Time is an initiative of the Getty. The presenting sponsor is Bank of America.

About Grand Park:
A vibrant outdoor gathering place, Grand Park is a beautiful public park for the entire community in Los Angeles County. With expansive green space for gatherings large and small, Grand Park celebrates the county's cultural vitality and is host to community events, cultural experiences, holiday celebrations, and many other activities that engage and attract visitors from all communities. The 12-acre Grand Park stretches from The Music Center on the west to City Hall on the east and is easily accessible by Metro via the Red/Purple line to the Civic Center/Grand Park station. The park was named one of American Planning Association's 10 "Great Public Spaces" in the U.S. for 2013. Working closely with the county, The Music Center is responsible for all operations and programming for the park. For more information, visit grandparkla.org. Follow Grand Park on Facebook (GrandParkLosAngeles), as well as Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat (@GrandPark_LA).

About The Music Center:
As L.A.'s performing arts destination, The Music Center is L.A.'s home to the world's greatest artistic programs and events. With four iconic theaters and four renowned resident companies - Center Theatre Group, the LA Master Chorale, the LA Opera and the LA Philharmonic - and recognized for its illustrious dance programming, Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at The Music Center, The Music Center is a destination where audiences find inspiration in the very best of live performance, as well as nationally recognized arts education and participatory arts experiences. The Music Center also programs and manages Grand Park, a 12-acre adjacent greenspace, with year-round free programming. For more information, visit musiccenter.org. Follow The Music Center on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat (@MusicCenterLA).

About Community Arts Resources (CARS):
Community Arts Resources (CARS) is a diverse collective of creatively minded planners and producers engaged in the changing dynamics of the urban environment. Based in Los Angeles, our work is centered on urban planning, event planning and production, public engagement and marketing. We partner with neighborhoods, nonprofits, foundations, cities, cultural institutions, developers and designers to create public programs and events that highlight the unique character and untapped potential of a particular place. With more than a quarter of a century of experience in activating the urban realm, CARS creates unique experiences where arts, culture, community and civic life collide.

CARS founders Katie Bergin and Aaron Paley and their dedicated staff have created, produced and promoted some of Los Angeles' most innovative cultural programs and events in public space, including CicLAvia, Chinatown Summer Nights, the Santa Monica Festival, Pop-Up Broadway, GLOW and the Getty Museum Family Festivals. CARS has also been instrumental in planning, designing and programming some of Los Angeles' most popular cultural and community spaces, including Grand Park, California Plaza, Greystone Mansion and La Plaza de Cultura y Artes. We call upon our years of experience as event producers to develop plans that are flexible and attractive to a varied audience.

About Spinagu:
Spinagu is a practice dedicated to architecture, formed of Jia Gu and Maxi Spina. The studio produces traditional architectural objects, such as follies, houses, and towers, alongside non traditional objects, such as chess sets, exhibitions, and text. Their work is invested in formal exercises and thought experiments. They are interested in architecture as a speculative medium through which to explore technology, history, materiality and form.

About Zynger Events:
With more than 25 years of combined experience, Zynger Events is one of the premier full service event planning companies in Los Angeles, California, and across the United States for corporate and non-profit events. We pride ourselves on creating interactive, highly engaging and professional events that are planned down to the very last detail.

Our team of experienced professionals can handle any and all aspects of your event planning needs from consultation to venue sourcing, unique branding opportunities, logistics, staffing and volunteer management, entertainment, auctions, vendor management and theming.