DCA and LAMAG Present ARCHIVE MACHINES, An Online-Only Juried Exhibition Of SoCal Artists

The City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA) and the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery (LAMAG) are presenting ARCHIVE MACHINES, an online-only juried exhibition that brings together recent works by Southern California artists, that examine the archive as a conceptual vehicle to de-center singular narratives and encourage plural perspectives through the activities of revisioning, resisting, rewiring and relating. Following in line with LAMAG's mission to respond to the diversity of human experience that shapes Los Angeles, as well as LAMAG's historical precedent of fostering a space for local artists to address social critique and discourse with contemporary matters; Los Angeles artists were invited to activate archives by submitting works in response to themes of critical histories, peoples archives, memory and institutional critique. Through this exhibition, LAMAG strives to engage with various modes of artistic production that explore the ways in which archival structures and materials are interpreted, appropriated, and interrogated: https://www.lamag.org/portfolio_page/archive-machinesjuly-30-november-1-2020-2/

The juried exhibition brings together 44 artists selected by a jury comprising of Olivian Cha, Curator and Collections Manager, Corita Art Center, Los Angeles; Kerstin Erdmann, Director, Galería OMR, Mexico City; and Rita Gonzalez, Terri and Michael Smooke Curator and Department Head Contemporary Art, LACMA, Los Angeles.

ARCHIVE MACHINES will debut a format distinct from LAMAG's typical web content, featuring highlights of individual artists' work, as well as organizing artworks into four thematic sections: revisioning, resisting, rewiring and relating. Following the structure of "living archives", the release of each section will take a cumulative course, growing throughout the duration of the show. The developing nature of the exhibition will also introduce opportunities for visitor participation through the launch of new, educational salon-style series of topical prompts as a source for community interaction and virtual convening. Subscribe to LAMAG's newsletter and follow on social to stay up to date on all programming @LAMAGBarnsdall, #ARCHIVEMACHINESatLAMAG and #LAMAGallery. Additional support for Archive Machines is provided by the Barnsdall Art Park Foundation and the City Los Angeles Department on Disability.