First published in the April 21 print issue of the Pasadena Outlook.
The Pasadena Art Alliance, a contemporary visual arts support organization, has awarded $293,500 in grants to 27 Los Angeles-area nonprofit arts organizations.
The grants will support contemporary art exhibits and projects in the San Gabriel Valley and throughout Los Angeles County. The alliance has been fostering the appreciation of contemporary visual art in Southern California for more than 65 years.
Complete descriptions of the funded projects, which will run from March 2022 to March 2023, are available on the alliance’s website pasadenaartalliance.org.
“We are so pleased to support these impressive visual arts exhibitions and projects,” said Carolyn Siegal, the alliance’s grants chair. “The resilience and creativity of nonprofit arts organizations in reopening after pandemic shutdowns, as well as expanded virtual offerings is a bright light after a dark period. We look forward to gathering in person to honor the grantees in late April, the first such reception in three years.”
The alliance will host its annual grants reception in honor of grantees on Thursday, April 28, at a private residence.
“We’re honored to receive this support from the Pasadena Art Alliance for scholarships to help fine artists realize the dream of a first-rate professional education,” said Lorne M. Buchman, president of ArtCenter College of Design. “Additionally, the generous support for our upcoming exhibitions of work by extraordinary artists Victor Estrada and Devin Troy Strother will allow us to reach and inspire new audiences about the power of art to influence change.”
“The Pasadena Art Alliance’s longtime commitment to the Fowler has enabled us to shine a spotlight on important global contemporary artists,” said Matthew Robb, chief curator at the Fowler Museum. “At a moment when museums around the world are engaging with the colonial legacies of their collections and their obligations to the future, Gala Porras-Kim’s [artwork] will offer a thoughtful and timely institutional critique, including potential solutions to longstanding challenges. The Fowler is pleased to host Porras-Kim’s first solo museum exhibition in her home state of California. It will also be a homecoming for her to UCLA, where she earned her bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in Latin American Studies.”
This year’s grantees include established and emerging nonprofit visual arts organizations, including American Museum of Ceramic Art, Angels Gate Cultural Center, Armory Center for the Arts, ArtCenter College of Design, Benton Museum of Art-Pomona College, CSU Dominguez Hills-University Art Gallery, Kleefeld Contemporary-CSU Long Beach, Clockshop, Coaxial Arts Foundation, Craft Contemporary, Craft in America Center, Feminist Center for Creative Work, Fowler Museum-UCLA, Fulcrum Arts, Hammer Museum, Institute of Contemporary Art Los Angeles, Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles Nomadic Division, Museum of Contemporary Art, Pasadena City College, Pitzer College Art Galleries, Project X Foundation for Art & Criticism, Scripps College-Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery, Self-Help Graphics & Art, USC Pacific Asia Museum.
The Pasadena Art Alliance’s biennial art auction will be held online and in person on Saturday, May 7, to help fund next year’s grant and award programs. For more information, visit pasadenaartalliance.org.
