How Do Artists See the Next L.A.?

As Los Angeles emerges from pandemic and tumult, Angelenos are looking for new and bigger visions of the city’s future. But where will we find ideas and practical methods for transforming institutions, reimagining public policy, or reinvesting in communities? Business leaders are consumed with recovery. Elected officials aren’t trusted, because they have long failed to deliver on their biggest plans and promises. So why not turn to L.A.’s most creative visionaries, and tap our abundance of artists? The pandemic and racial reckoning of the past year have changed how artists work, and how they see L.A. What aspirations and dreams do artists—professional and youth, visual and performing—have for a more resilient and inclusive Los Angeles? How are they putting those dreams down on canvas, on walls and sidewalks, and on our screens?

LA Commons CEO Karen Mack, artist and designer Rosten Woo, and John Malpede, artist and founding director of Los Angeles Poverty Department, visit Zócalo to discuss the change they want to see in Los Angeles, and how they might lead it.

Image Credit: Panels, left to right: “Kareem” (Artists: Dominique Moody, Dezmond Crockett, S. Pearl Sharp, Halline Overby); “Luna” (Artists: Dominique Moody, Kayla Shelton, S. Pearl Sharp, Halline Overby); “Rose” (Artists: Dominique Moody, Floyd Strickland, S. Pearl Sharp, Halline Overby). Images courtesy LA Commons.