Paint brush not camera

The focus of a new exhibition in Salzburg, Austria, is young art from Los Angeles. HangART-7 Edition 11 was opening on September 20.

Los Angeles may have been built in the desert. For artistic types of all kinds, though, it’s quite a breeding ground. If you’re creating art on the West Coast, in an area of conflict between art and commerce and completely free of history, traditions and conventions, you really need strong arguments in order to get the attention for the fruits of your work. And all the more so when your production tools are a paint brush and paint and not a camera and a roll of film.

Eleventh HangART Edition

‘L.A. Potential’ takes a look at contemporary painting from the movie city LA. On show are sixty works of art that are as diverse as the city and the inhabitants themselves. ‘There is no specific style; there are no definable schools [in LA],’ the Californian art critic Andrew Berardini writes in the exhibition’s catalog. The themes of the works on display revolve around the West Coast lifestyle and its glamour – but also expose its dark sides.

Nine artists, 60 paintings

As with the last ten Hangar-7 shows, the pieces were chosen by curator Lioba Redekker. At her side this time were Los Angeles-dwelling artists Hubert Schmalix and Roger Herman, who have been supporting young art since the Nineties. The following artists will be exhibiting their work in Salzburg: Allison Schulnik, Bart Exposito, Elisa Johns, Jacob Tillman, Raffi Kalenderian, Allison Cortson, David Deany, Eric Yahnker and Jasmine Little.

Free entry

The exhibition in Hangar-7, Salzburg Airport, runs from September 20 through November 9; daily from 9 am until 10 pm. As usual, entry is free.