CalArtians in Third Annual LA Art Book Fair

From Jan. 30-Feb. 1, with a preview on Jan. 29, art book enthusiasts and artists gather in The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA and environs for the third annual LA Art Book Fair. Presented by New York City-based publisher Printed Matter, the weekend-long event features over 250 international presses, booksellers, antiquarians, artists and independent publishers.

More than a dozen CalArtians will be present at the fair, doing everything from book signings, to film screenings and making art books on location. 

Among the exhibitors are East of Borneo, the online magazine of contemporary art in Los Angeles published by the School of Art, independent publisher Insert Blanc Press, founded and edited by CalArts alumnus Matthew Timmons (Critical Studies MFA 05), Golden Spike Press, a collaborative publishing project founded at CalArts, Roy and Edna Disney/CalArts Theater (REDCAT), CalArts’ downtown center for contemporary arts, and X-TRA, a quarterly art journal co-founded and edited by CalArts faculty Ellen Birrell and designed by alumnus Brian Roettinger (Art BFA 04).

Below are some of the CalArtian-related events:

Thursday, Jan. 29 (Preview)

7-8:30 pm: Black Radical Imagination Mixtape, The Geffen Contemporary

CalArts alumnae Akosua Adoma Owusu’s (Art-Film/Video MFA 08) Split Ends, I Feel Wonderful and Vashti Harrison’s (Film/Video MFA 14) Field Notes are among five films being shown at the Black Radical Imagination Mixtape. The screening, curated by motion picture artists Amir George and Erin Christovale, is part of a touring program of visual shorts that delve into the worlds of new media, video art, and experimental narrative.

Saturday, Jan. 31 

2-4 pm: 1 Image 1 Minute

Inspired by French filmmaker Agnès Varda’s television series Une minute pour une image, X-TRA and Project X presents fifty artists, curators, writers and members of the art-book community who will each give a one-minute lecture on a single image of their choosing. Among the artists are CalArtians Andrea Bowers (Art MFA 92), Travis Diehl (Art MFA 10), Audrey Chan (Art MFA 07) and Fiona Connor (Art MFA 11).

2:30 pm: Johnnie JungleGuts, The Geffen Contemporary Courtyard

Johnnie JungleGuts (Art BFA 12) performs onstage as part of live programming curated by KCHUNG Radio.

5-6 pm: K-HOLE Research Presentation, The Geffen Contemporary

REDCAT joins the trend forecasting group K-HOLE in presenting research about the current state of communication in America, looking from interpersonal messaging online to how we engage with broad scale social and political campaigns. K-HOLE co-founders Dena Yago and Sean Monahan present the report. 

8:30 pm: DL: Los Angeles We’ve Only Just Begun, François Ghebaly Gallery

Dirty Looks, a New York City-based roaming screening series and publishing platform for queer experimental media and performance, launches its Los Angeles arm DL: Los Angeles. The event features film and video by Aykan Safoğlu, Pauline Boudry + Renate Lorenz and My Barbarian, a collective comprising of Jade Gordon, Alexandro Segade and School of Theater faculty Malik Gaines (Critical Studies MFA 99).

Sunday, Feb. 1

1:30-3:30 pm: Artist Books and Cookies: Celebrating LA, Japanese American National Museum (JANM)

ForYourArt invites LA artists to bring their favorite artist books to The Geffen Contemporary, in celebration of the great artist book tradition of Chouinard alumni John Baldessari (59) and Ed Ruscha (60). Cookies will be served and attendees will receive a free copy of the ForYourArt Guide to Los Angeles, an art book containing personal and satirical tours of Los Angeles by the artists Kathryn Andrews, Aaron Curry, Alex Israel, Matthew Monahan, Sterling Ruby, Ryan Trecartin, and Kaari Upson (Art MFA 07). Karen Marta and Roettinger are also available to sign books. 

3-4:30 pm: Come Together: The Rise of Cooperative Art and Design, JANM

Francesco Spaminato, the author of Come Together: The Rise of Cooperative Art and Design, is joined by Fallen Fruit’s David Burns (Art BFA 93), Slanguage’s Karla Diaz, Temporary Services’ Marc Fisher, Paper Rad’s Ben Jones, and Project Projects’ Prem Krishnamurthy to talk about a new generation of artists working together in small groups and large collectives to explore new ways of making art, design, performance, and activism. The panel will discuss the motivations, logistics, and objectives that drive artists to embrace anonymous and shared endeavors.

4-6 pm: Book Machine, JANM

In Book Machine, Twenty CalArts designers work together to conceive, design and complete book projects in 3.5 hour sessions. On Sunday, a panel of invited guests will present and discuss their favorite book projects among the completed books. Book Machine, an ongoing initiative by onestar press, connects emerging graphic designers and the public through the creation of books.

CalArtian designers at the event include Eline Mul (Art MFA 15), Jenny Song (Art MFA 15), Brian Thompsen (Art BFA 15), Jacob Halpern (Art MFA 15), Christine Shen (Art BFA 15), Hayden Smith (Art MFA 15), David Chathas (Art MFA 15), Sara Biersteker (Art MFA 16), Kennis Wong (Art BFA 16), Jimin Kim (Art MFA 16), Karen Hong (Art BFA 16), Iris Chung (Art MFA 16), Jessica Kao (Art MFA 15), Margaret Andersen (Art MFA 16), Dasol Jung (Art MFA 16), Miyu Shirotsuka (Art BFA 16), Cassandra Cisneros (Art MFA 15), Jessica Lee (Art MFA 16), Jessie Zo (Art BFA 15), Lu Feng (Art MFA 16), Angela Bac (Art BFA 15) and faculty Michael Worthington.