CalArtians Featured in LAMAG’S COLA 2019 Exhibit

The exhibit at LAMAG celebrates the 11 COLA Fellowship recipients who are making exciting contributions to Los Angeles’ art community | Image: Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery

From May 23 through July 14, the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery (LAMAG) presents COLA 2019, an exhibit of work from recipients of the 2019 City of Los Angeles (COLA) Individual Artist Fellowship.  

This annual fellowship allows accomplished artists to create new work with increased freedom to innovate and experiment. Among the fellows are several CalArts alums: 

• Sandy Rodriguez (Art BFA 97);
• Enrique Castrejon (Art MFA 06);
• Olga Koumoundouros (Art MFA 01); and
• Alice Könitz (Art MFA 99).

These artists work across a number of mediums, including painting, video, drawing and sculpture. Other recipients of the fellowship are Juan Capistrán, Kim Fisher, Sabrina Gschwandtner, Stephanie Taylor, Katie Grinnan, Peter Wu and Jenny Yurshansky.

Each year, winners are selected by a panel comprising curators, educators, museum directors and past COLA Fellows. The fellowship provides each artist with $10,000 to produce a new body of work, which premieres at the COLA Exhibit. The program is spearheaded by the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, who organizes the exhibit as well as a performing arts showcase and an online catalog to document and market the selected artists and their new works.

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For COLA 2019, #EnriqueCastrejon (@quiquegr8) has made a series of sculptures representing male bodies, annotated with data relating to HIV infection rates. As Enrique describes, "I’m interested in producing work that creates a dialog about HIV and how it affects Black and Latinx men at greater rates, reflecting how healthcare encourages advocacy within our communities, to empower ourselves and to help those in need." • Pictured here is the artist putting the finishing touches to his new work. See the complete version (and more) for yourself at the opening reception of COLA 2019! The reception is this Sunday, May 19 from 2 – 5pm. It’s free and open to all. • #COLA2019atLAMAG #LAMAGallery #ContemporaryArt #LosAngeles

A post shared by LAMAG (@lamagbarnsdall) on May 14, 2019 at 6:17pm PDT

“COLA Fellows are the types of unique civic entrepreneurs that we need in this city,” says Danielle Grazell, general manager of the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs. “DCA is proud to honor these creative visionaries and nurture their symbiotic relationships with LA and other artists and the city’s history and identity as an international arts capital.” As a progressive arts and cultural agency, DCA aims to empower LA’s vibrant communities by providing access to quality arts programming, managing cultural centers, preserving historic sites, creating public art and funding organizations and artists.

Established in 1954, the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery is the longest-running institution in Los Angeles devoted solely to exhibiting art. The gallery’s exhibitions, educational and public programs aim to inspire conversation about contemporary issues.

Entrance to the exhibit is free of cost and more information can be found on the LAMAG website.