On behalf of everyone at LACMA, thank you to the tens of thousands of Angelenos, artists, performers, community members, and supporters who joined to celebrate the Grand Opening Weekend of the David Geffen Galleries! We were thrilled to mark the museum’s latest chapter and the completion of our transformative new building last weekend with five unforgettable days of art, music, dance, food, and community spirit.
A highlight of the celebration was the LACMA Block Party on Saturday, June 20, when we welcomed more than 60,000 of you to our free campus-wide celebration. Families, friends, neighbors, and first-time museumgoers filled the galleries, gathered for performances, and enjoyed a vibrant atmosphere that transformed every corner of LACMA.
During the Block Party, visitors received free admission to all our galleries while our campus was activated with all-day programs that included family-friendly art activities and live music and DJ sets by Xica Soul, Mo0d, Heidi Lawden, Dahi, DJ Harvey, and Flying Lotus. Los Angeles’s own Roosevelt Cordova, known worldwide as “El Presidente de la Salsa,” also performed as part of the Latin Sounds concert series. There was food and drink from pop-ups by restaurants representing L.A.’s diverse food culture, as well as some complimentary VERY LACMA popsicles to help cool things down.
A highlight of the Block Party was the first Los Angeles edition of The Art Parade, presented in collaboration with Jeffrey Deitch. The eclectic lineup featured 146 projects and more than 1,600 participants marching along Wilshire Boulevard. These included a cotton candy–themed activation by Meow Wolf, giant inflatable characters by FriendsWithYou, and other multi-sensory spectacles by notable artists and organizations like the Bob Baker Marionette Theater, Marcel Alcala, Michelle “Mr B Baby” Guerrero, Volta Collective, Gary Baseman, Madeline Hollander, Kenny Scharf, Shepard Fairey, HOLA, CalArts, OTIS, Wonzimer Gallery, Tierra del Sol, USC, and The Artist’s Gallery.
LA Metro was also on hand with their Metro Art Bus, a mobile gallery featuring portraits of Metro riders by local artists, and free guided Metro Art tours of the new Wilshire/Fairfax station, where you can now take the D Line to get to the museum.
From June 18 through June 22, we hosted an array of events, including an edition of The Genesis Talks with Thelma Golden in conversation with Michael Govan, the SPIRITS Summer Solstice Dance with Richie Hawtin and john gerrard, a talk with celebrated photographer Annie Liebovitz, a site-specific performance by L.A. Dance Project’s City of Dance, World Cup soccer watch parties, mindfulness programs, and more. In total, nearly 80,000 of you came to LACMA over five days!
Thank you to everyone who participated, danced, explored, learned, and celebrated with us. The David Geffen Galleries were created as a place for people, cultures, and art to come together, and seeing so many of you experience the new building was inspiring. We can’t wait to see you again at LACMA soon.
