Roberts Projects is pleased to announce our participation in Frieze Los Angeles 2022, Booth A12. New and recent works by gallery artists engage with themes of diversity and inclusivity. Featuring paintings by Amoako Boafo, Dominic Chambers, Daniel Crews-Chubb, Lenz Geerk and Kehinde Wiley, mixed media works by Alexandre Diop and Brenna Youngblood, and a major mural project by Betye Saar. All the presented artists—whether born or currently in Los Angeles—began their studio practice, developed their signature aesthetic, and/or opened their inaugural exhibitions in the City of Los Angeles.
In an ode to the ceaseless creative energy and spirit of Los Angeles, the highlight of our presentation will be a recreation of Betye Saar’s monumental 1983 public mural. Betye Saar: L.A. Energy (1983/2022) reinterprets the symbolism and ideas of the artist’s prolific practice through a multiplicity of techniques and intersectional narratives.
In July 1983, Betye Saar was commissioned to create a large-scale public art initiative for the city of Los Angeles. Titled L.A. Energy, the joyful mural incorporated several key motifs of Saar’s practice, including collaged elements and the interplay of varying hues to highlight a decidedly West Coast color palette. Located downtown on 5th Street between Grand Avenue and Flower Street, its location was highly visible due to immediate proximity to the former headquarters of the Southern California Edison Co.—known as One Bunker Hill—which reigned as the dominant structure at the base of Bunker Hill for decades. L.A. Energy was destroyed in 1987 to make way for new construction.
I am very excited to have the opportunity to re-create my 1983 mural — L.A. Energy — for Frieze Los Angeles 2022. The colors and shapes of the original mural were intended to showcase the vitality and spirit of the city of L.A. and my hope is that this iteration, 39 years later, will bring that same feeling of joy and energy to those who visit Frieze. – Betye Saar, January 2022
A catalogue featuring historic images, text and archival materials will be published by Roberts Projects in conjunction with the Frieze Los Angeles 2022 presentation of L.A. Energy.
