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  • The Discussion Begins (2011)

    AR550 The Experimental Impulse

    This is not a work of art but the record of a process.

    Courtesy of CalArts Photograph by Larissa Brantner James and Fiona Connor.

  • Charting the Ideas (2011)

    AR550 The Experimental Impulse

    This is not a work of art but the record of a process.



    Courtesy of CalArts

  • Diana Zlotnick in Conversation with Orlando Tirado (2011)

    AR550 The Experimental Impulse

    This is not a work of art but the record of a process.



    Courtesy of CalArts Photograph by Larissa Brantner James

  • Al's Grand Hotel (1971)

    Allen Ruppersberg



    Courtesy the artist and Margo Leavin Gallery, Los Angeles Photograph by Gary Krueger

  • An Outdoor Confab at CalArts (ca. 1971)

    Unknown Artist



    Courtesy of the CalArts Archive

  • A Performance at CalArts (date unknown)

    Unknown Artist



    Courtesy of the CalArts Archive

  • House of Dust (early 1970s)

    Alison Knowles

    A film screening takes place inside the House of Dust at California Institute of the Arts in Valencia.


    Courtesy of the CalArts Archive

  • An Intermedia Performance at CalArts (1983)

    Unknown Artist



    Courtesy of the CalArts Archive

  • Lemming Leap (1972)

    Scott V. Martin



    Courtesy of the CalArts Archive

  • California Institute of the Arts: Prologue to a Community (1970)

    Sheila Levrant de Bretteville

    A special issue of the journal Arts in Society, which presented the conceptual framework for the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia.



    Courtesy of the CalArts Archive

  • Quick City (1972)

    Unknown Artist

    A temporary community of alternative structures built in one day on the California Institute of the Arts campus, one of several instant communities built simultaneously nationwide.



    Courtesy of the CalArts Archive

  • Quick City (1972)

    Unknown Artist

    A temporary community of alternative structures built in one day on the California Institute of the Arts campus, one of several instant communities built simultaneously nationwide.



    Courtesy of the CalArts Archive

  • Invitation to the Opening of Womanhouse (1972)

    Unknown Artist



    Courtesy of the CalArts Archive

  • Womanhouse Catalogue (1972)

    Sheila Levrant de Bretteville


    8 7/16 x 8 1/2 in
    Courtesy of the CalArts Archive

  • Nurturant Kitchen at Womanhouse (1972)

    Robin Weltsch, Susan Frazier and Vicky Hodgett



    Courtesy of the CalArts Archive

  • The Women's Design Program at CalArts (1972)

    Unknown Artist



    Courtesy of the CalArts Archive

  • KPFK Antenna, Mt. Wilson (1976)

    Close Radio



    Courtesy of the Close Radio Archive Photograph by Paul McCarthy

California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) / REDCAT

The Experimental Impulse

Experimental Impulse explores the pivotal role of experimentation in artmaking in L.A. during a time when the city was emerging as an important artistic center. Conceived from the perspective of artists who currently live and work in Los Angeles, this exhibition offers new insights into the understanding of developments in the art world between 1945 and 1980, and in doing so bridge the distance between earlier developments and current practice. Operating from a position that context informs content, Experimental Impulse examines critical moments of artist-initiated/organized convening and exchange that were responses to the lack of opportunities in mainstream institutions within the relatively young artistic landscape of Los Angeles. The exhibition identifies and focuses in on key moments that represent crucial experiments in art making and presenting: the Feminist Program at CalArts and the WomanHouse; the short-lived School of Design program at CalArts that merged ideas of environmental design, humanistic psychology and art (1969-75); self-published zines/journals such as Semina (1958-64), Wet (1976-81), High Performance (1978-97) and LAICA Journal (1974-87); the radical convergence of art, music and publishing within the Los Angeles punk scene; and Studio Z, a weekly gathering of artists at David Hammons' studio on Slauson Avenue.
11/18/2011 01/15/2012
California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) / REDCAT
631 West 2nd Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012