In Los Angeles for Frieze L.A. and not sure where to start? Check out Whitewaller‘s list of top things to see and do while you’re in the city.
FAIRS
1. Frieze Los Angeles
Frieze Los Angeles returns for its second iteration, once again hosted at the iconic Paramount Pictures Studios. This year’s edition features initiatives like the returning Frieze Projects (a program of performance, installations, and sculpture co-curated by Pilar Tompkins Rivas and Rita Gonzalez) and Venus Lau’s Frieze Film program, as well as an expanded Frieze Week roster of city-wide exhibitions and events, which coincides with the run of the fair.
Photo by DYLAN + JENI Courtesy of Bavel.
2. Felix LA
The second edition of Felix LA, which will be held in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, returns to the city with a new layout. Co-founded by Dean Valentine and brothers Al and Mills Morán, the fair puts a focus on creating an intimate, flexible atmosphere that prioritizes connoisseurship, community, and collaboration as a means of creating a relaxed setting for collectors, dealers, and artists to connect.
EXHIBITIONS
3. Shirin Neshat at The Broad
Currently on view at The Broad, celebrating this year its fifth anniversary with a series of exhibitions, installations and events, is Shirin Neshat’s “I Will Greet the Sun Again.” It is the largest survey of the artist’s work to date and her first major exhibition in the western U.S. Viewers will find around 30 years of Neshat’s work, including videos and photography that showcase the artist’s engagement with Iranian history, the human impact of political revolution, and the experience of living in exile. Beginning with her well-known “Women of Allah,” the exhibition arranges chronologically a selection of nearly 240 works dating from 1993 to the present day.
Courtesy of E.P. & L.P.
4. Huma Bhabha at David Kordansky Gallery
Huma Bhabha is best known for her humanoid creations, made from multiple processes and traditions to embody an ethereal blend of the passion, beauty, and conflict that shape our world. In Bhabha’s first solo exhibition at David Kordansky Gallery, viewers will find a group of her sculptures, constructed from materials like cork, wood, metal, foam, and paint. Inspired by a wide range of art histories, Bhabha’s works can often be categorized by the traditional poses in which they are formed—seen in works like the seated figure Mask of Dimitrios and a standing body reminiscent of art found in an ancient temple, entitled Ground.
5. Anish Kapoor at Regen Projects
Regen Projects’ latest showing of work by Anish Kapoor is centered around the monumental stainless-steel Double S-Curve, which expands on a piece that was originally exhibited at the gallery in 2006. Appearing to be at once solid and liquid, the work creates an illusory sense of reality as it snakes through the center of the space. Also featured in the show is a new series of wall-mounted mirrors, which play with the viewers’ perception as they subtly shift between convex and concave.
6. Cyprien Gaillard at Sprüth Magers
Sprüth Magers is presenting new sculptures and photographs by Cyprien Gaillard, along with a film that first debuted last year at the 58th Venice Biennale. The exhibition includes a series of wall-based sculptures made of thin veneers of marble and stone, embedded with fossils and stainless steel New Jersey Transit logos. The works relate to the film Ocean II Ocean (2019), capturing fossils found in the marble walls of subway stations in Russia and the former Soviet Union, along with archival footage of New York’s MTA subway cars being dumped into the ocean, set to a soundtrack of steel drums.
HOTELS
7. The West Hollywood EDITION
Marking the tenth EDITION property and the brand’s first on the West Coast, The West Hollywood EDITION captures the stimulating energy of Sunset Boulevard for the modern age. With a holistic approach and a focus on inner health, the hotel features 140 glamorous guest rooms, 48 suites, two penthouses, 20 luxury residences, a signature restaurant, a lobby lounge, a basement club, a rooftop pool, and a stunning six-treatment room spa.
8. NeueHouse Bradbury
NeueHouse—the private workspace and cultural home for creators, innovators, and thought leaders—opened its first location in Los Angeles in 2015 in Hollywood. For its second West Coast expansion, Design Agency has revived the iconic Bradbury Building—an architectural landmark completed in 1893 that was L.A.’s first-ever commercial office building. Available to NeueHouse’s creative community is 25,000 square feet of shared gallery workspace, atelier desks and private studios, a bar, café, conference and meeting spaces, a meditation room, and curated weekly cultural programming.
BARS & RESTAURANTS
9. E.P. & L.P.
E.P. is a multilevel modern Asian restaurant, featuring Filipino-California food led by new Head Chef Sabel Braganza. L.P. is the venue’s large-format rooftop deck, which boasts breathtaking views of Hollywood Hills, alongside Melrose Rooftop Theatre. And adjacent to L.P. is Frankie’s—a private bar welcoming guests to a bespoke handcrafted cocktail program.
10. Bavel
In April 2018, husband and wife chefs Ori Menashe and Genevieve Gergis opened Bavel to showcase their Middle Eastern roots in Israel, Morocco, Turkey, and Egypt. Utilizing slow cooking techniques with aromatic woods, spices, and pickling, the restaurant offers a new perspective on the complex cuisines, joining the owners’ first restaurant, Bestia.
SHOPPING
11. Just One Eye
In October 2019, Just One Eye opened its latest two-floor shop, immersing visitors in a 13,000-square-foot space that uniquely mixes fashion, art, and design. Guests are wowed with works by Andy Warhol, Damien Hirst, and Takashi Murakami before moving on to exploring things like high-end ready-to-wear pieces, fine jewelry, perfume, vintage furniture, and Jorge Serrano’s salon. For founder Paolo Russo, it’s all about a luxurious experience in an inspiring environment.
12. Arcana: Books on the Arts
In Culver City since 1984, Arcana: Books on the Arts has specialized in new, rare, and out-of-print books, catalogues, and ephemera on 20th- and 21st-century photography, art, design, architecture, fashion, and cinema. With more than 100,000 exclusive items, the store welcomes visitors to a Mecca of curiosities.
