At Loft at Liz’s, gallerist Liz Gordon, above, presents an annual exhibition that is dear to her heart, one that is pivotal both in terms of the art itself, and as an aesthetic for the LA art community.
The 11th annual Diverted Destruction exhibition, now at the La Brea gallery through August 20th, is a continuation of this popular, provocative, and ultimately profound concept. Gordon offers her reasons for the exhibition – and more reasons for you to visit.
She originally conceived of the show from her “other” life as an antique dealer.
“Throughout my 40 year career, I have had to decide on the value of millions of pieces that have come across my path. It has always been a struggle when I know it is impossible for me to sell an item because it is broken or perhaps too new, or not my specialty, as to what to do with it,” she explains. “I have always had a section in the store labeled the ‘Artist Boxes,’ these items were always sold at a fraction of their price in order to encourage artists to use them,” she notes.
Once Gordon became a curator and gallerist, she began to accumulate these items and store them, ultimately conceiving the idea of her Diverted Destruction show.
“This happened within the first year of starting the gallery,” she reports. “I have always had an affinity for found object, assemblage art. I think now more than ever, we need to rethink how we deal with our garbage, and artists are the perfect people to inspire us. We need to keep as much as we can on the land, In lieu of in it.”
This show is a little different than previous incarnations. Gordon curated the show with only female artists this time around.
Her reason? “We continue to live in a ‘man’s world’….and look what they are doing and have done,” she exclaims. “It’s time we give women the platform and maybe, just maybe, the approach would be humanity first,” she states. “In addition the women are from a variety of cultural backgrounds: Mexican, Iranian, African American, Philippines, Chinese and American.” That inclusiveness reflects a larger theme for the exhibition.
“This year, the theme within the medium is a sociological one dealing with the current human condition. The show has evolved throughout the years to encompass specific mediums,” she explains, as in past iterations, titled Diverted Destruction: The Paper Edition or The Fabric Edition
The work is always done with materials that are destined for, or found in the trash.
“This show is relevant for all of us if you look at the materials, and realize that each of us walks to the garbage with things that can be reused,” Gordon enthuses. “Take the mesh bags that fruits and vegetables come in. Instead of ripping it open, cut it cleanly and it can be reused for so many purposes. This is one small example.”
Gordon says her close personal connection to this exhibition makes it easy to curate. “It is an extension of what I do everyday in the store. My appreciation for objects extends to the garbage.”
However, she is strongly aware of finding an underlying theme to add meaning and depth to these exhibitions. “This year, that took seeing Hai Wei Wei’s documentary Human Flow to inspire the theme The Human Condition.”
For Gordon, the film resonated on a number of different levels. “Those people who have found the courage to leave their homeland with virtually nothing but the shirt on their backs have no choice but to live on what is thrown away,” she asserts. “They have to have enormous resilience and resourcefulness in order to survive.”
The feedback for this year’s show as well as for past exhibitions has always been positive; her generous offering of art materials from discarded items she’s collected over the course of a year is a highlight for many art-makers and those simply interested in finding treasure in another’s trash.
“I used to just throw all the items on a table in a huge melange, but as of last year, I created an installation that is virtually a mini Liz’s Antique Hardware, equally as organized. Because of this order, the items resonate as something other than garbage. I believe people are inspired and see their potential and their beauty. We hang a sign in the store window saying ‘Free Art Materials.’ It literally stops traffic, so many young people are coming up to the gallery and taking things.” Gordon continues to add items and change the installation throughout the run of the show. “It continues to inspire me and those that partake in the offerings,” she adds.
Gordon finds a link between the use of found objects, recycling, and creating new forms from old, with the mission of the artists she chose for this year’s show.
Above and below, the work of Ching Ching Cheng.
Above and below: haunting images from Camilla Taylor.
“Each artist deals with the theme from their perspective, using recycled items to express their idea of the Human Condition. Ching Ching Chen deals with motherhood. Linda Vallejo did her work 10 years ago with images that continue to confront the same issues today: ecology, genocide, war. Marjan Vayghan’s installation of a found-dollhouse represents the death sentence Iranian women are given upon marriage.
“Alexandra Dillon’s portraits of refugee women (above) subjected to cruelty beyond our imagination, and Kathi Flood’s collage all deal with the current immigration issues,” Gordon attests.
Diane Williams, above, also offers a strong invocation of the immigrant experience.
Gordon suggests that to learn more about the artists and their use of materials, the upcoming Artist Talk this Wednesday the 8th, and a free Adult Workshop on the 11th, will both offer deeper insight into the meaning of the exhibition.
Upcoming Events:
Artist Talk, August 8th, 7-9pm
Free Adult Workshop, August 11th 1-4pm
Free Youth Workshop, August 18th 1-4pm
Closing Day August 20th
Loft at Liz’s is located at 453 S. La Brea in mid-city.
- Genie Davis; photos: Genie Davis
