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Datebook: A photo archive, experiments from Yale MFAs, an architecture of columns

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A photographic archive covering two decades comes to life in Culver City. Yale MFAs get a show in West Hollywood. And an L.A. architect plays with the idea of the column. It’s Fourth of July, so openings are limited. (Be sure to check ahead for gallery hours over the weekend since many places may be closed or have limited hours.) In the meantime, here are four shows worth a look:

A.L. Steiner, “Come & Go,” at Blum & Poe. The noted photographer and installation artist, who often turns arrangements of images into wild, immersive environments, will show selections from her extensive photographic archive, which covers the two decades beginning in 1995. An archivist will be on hand to help viewers sort through the images, and there will be regular performances over the course of the exhibition (check the website for dates and times). Through Aug. 22. 2727 S. La Cienega Blvd., Culver City, blumandpoe.com.

“Lovely Dark: 2015 Yale Photography Graduates,” at Regen Projects. A special exhibition organized by sculptor and installation artist Jack Pierson brings together the work of 10 artists who graduated from Yale University’s photography MFA program, a crew that is evocative of many young artists working today — shredding the boundaries between genres, materials and ideas. The show received some good press from none other than critic Hilton Als in the New Yorker when it was exhibited in New York. Through Aug. 1. 633 N. Almont Drive, West Hollywood, regenprojects.com.

“Heather Roberge: En Pointe,” at the SCI-Arc Gallery. A group of connected columns standing delicately on blade-like tips compromises this installation by architect Heather Roberge of the L.A. firm Murmur. Bound together, they form a stable structure. Yet separate them, and it all falls apart. An interesting exploration of balance and union. Through Aug. 2. 960 E. Third St., downtown Los Angeles, sciarc.edu.

“Rafa Esparza: I Have Never Been Here Before,” at Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions. Over the course of several week, Esparza will transform the galleries of this Hollywood space with thousands of adobe bricks that he made with his father. He will use these to create an elliptical structure that will obscure the corners of the venerated white box. Opens at 7 p.m. July 8 runs through Sept. 13. 6522 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, welcometolace.org.

ONGOING EXHIBITIONS

Liza Ryan, “Wind(Shield),” at Kayne Griffin Corcoran. A series of photographs by the L.A.-based artist examines that fragile membrane that protects the average 2-ton vehicle barreling around at 65 mph: the windshield. Images of wrecked and abandoned cars capture reflections of sky over webbed cracks and fractured glass. Through July 11. 1201 S. La Brea Ave., Mid-City, Los Angeles, kaynegriffincorcoran.com.

Andrew Dadson, “Painting (Organic),” at David Kordansky Gallery. Intensely layered abstractions feature breadth as well as depth, with paint manipulated into three-dimensional forms right on the surface of the canvas. The show also includes ink-jet paintings and an installation involving spray-painted plants. Through July 11. 5130 Edgewood Place, Mid-City, Los Angeles, davidkordanskygallery.com.

Paula McCartney, “A Field Guide to Snow and Ice,” at Kopeikin Gallery. When McCartney moved from San Francisco to Minneapolis, she not only embraced the freezing weather, she made it part of her work, shooting frozen waterfalls, snowdrifts and other icy forms in ways that often rendered them abstract. These images are mixed with others that contain snow-like elements: stalagmites at Carlsbad Caverns or piles of ghostly white sand at White Sands National Monument. Through July 11. 2766 S. La Cienega Blvd., Culver City, kopeikingallery.com.

Richard Ankrom, “The Curio Shop,” at Charlie James Gallery. Ankrom works with appropriated bits of kitsch that he transforms in strange and bizarre ways, such as creating mini-bondage gear for odd bits of decorative detritus. Demented as it is irresistible. Through July 11. 969 Chung King Road, Chinatown, Los Angeles, cjamesgallery.com

Jimena Sarno, “Homeland” and “Mediations on Digital Labor: xtine burrough,” at the Grand Central Art Center. A pair of new shows explore the nature and history of surveillance in the United States as well as questions of cheap labor on Amazon.com’s Mechanical Turk. Through July 12. 125 N. Broadway, Santa Ana, grandcentralartcenter.com.

Rachel Harrison, “Three Young Framers,’ at Regen Projects. With all the talk about selfie sticks in the world of art, it seemed right that an artist would take the subject on — both in concept and in material form. Harrison, who is known for her bulbously weird sculptures made from Styrofoam and cement, has a show at Regen that employs both the concept of the selfie (the framing of oneself) and the sticks themselves. Through July 18. 6750 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood, regenprojects.com.

“Vernon Fisher: A Retrospective,” at Mark Moore Gallery. Since the 1970s, Fisher has been making mixed media works that fuse references to language and literature, mapping and various aspects of pop culture. This includes painted works on unusual canvases (cylindrical drums) and others that have been entirely deconstructed (bits of canvas rendered to look like a flock of birds on a wall). Through July 18. 5790 Washington Blvd., Culver City, markmooregallery.com.

“Lost in a Sea of Red,” at the Pit. A group show gathers photography, painting and sculpture by 10 Los Angeles artists, including photographer John Divola, painter Annie Lapin and sculptor Jedediah Caesar, who often works with detritus. Through July 18; open by appointment. 918 Ruberta Ave., Glendale, the-pit.la.

“Johanna Breiding: Epitaph for Family,” at Human Resources L.A. A multimedia installation of film projections and audio explores notions of family and love by queer-identified individuals, while a related film, made in collaboration with artist Jennifer Moon, employs footage from home movies to tell a story about memory and the meaning of home. Through July 19. 410 Cottage Home, Chinatown, Los Angeles, humanresourceslas.com.

Broken Fingaz, “Journey Galactiko,” at Howard Griffin Gallery. This four-artist street art crew from Israel is erecting a wild temple, made out of wood and found objects, in the middle of this downtown gallery space. The structure will be covered in the group’s pop-saturated imagery, some of which was inspired by a recent trip to India. Through July 25. 410 S. Spring St., downtown Los Angeles, howardgriffingallery.com.

Nao Bustamante, “Soldadera,” at the Vincent Price Art Museum. A new multimedia installation by the well-known performance artist investigates the role of women in the Mexican Revolution — incorporating a variety of objects, including bulletproof dresses. Through Aug. 1. East L.A. College. 1301 Cesar Chavez Ave., Monterey Park, vincentpriceartmuseum.org.

“Ed Moses: Drawings From the 1960s and ‘70s” at the L.A. County Museum of Art. The drawings of this prominent Los Angeles abstract artist have historically served as the backbone of his work: intensely detailed graphite floral patterns as well as his later diagonal grids, which come together to evoke both natural and machine-like landscapes. Through Aug. 2. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Mid-Wilshire, Los Angeles, lacma.org.

“Ha Ha! Business,” at Luis De Jesus Los Angeles. Playing off of the Ha Ha! Business! Internet meme, which shows a businessman smiling maniacally, this group show brings together artists exploring our current moment — a time in which corporations do their thing as the world burns all around us. The exhibition features work by Deb Sokolow, Zackary Drucker, Ramiro Gomez and Joe Scanlan. Through Aug. 8. 2685 S. La Cienega Blvd., Culver City, luisdejesus.com.

“Flat World,” at David Kordansky Gallery. A group show brings together artists who are playing with ideas of depth and flatness. This includes works by figures such as Richard Artschwager, whose three-dimensional renderings of chairs are composed of flat images, and Tauba Auerbach, whose abstract canvases appear to be full of texture, only to become flat upon close inspection. Through Aug. 15. 5130 W. Edgewood Place, Mid-City, Los Angeles, davidkordanskygallery.com.

“Kahlil Joseph: Double Conscience” at the Museum of Contemporary Art. A 15-minute, double-screen film tells a nuanced story of life, death and moments of magic in Compton — all set to the poetic, often abstract lyrics of native son Kendrick Lamar. Joseph is blurring the boundaries among cinema, fine art and music video. Do not miss. Through Aug. 16. 250 S. Grand Ave., downtown Los Angeles, moca.org.

“The New Creativity: Man and Machines,” at the Mak Center for Art and Architecture. Organized by UCLA architecture critic and historian Sylvia Lavin, this show examines the ways in which technology has been employed (and not) in the world of design — a show that will be staged in the historic Rudolph Schindler House, which the architect designed with the aid of a drafting machine. Through Aug. 16. The Schindler House, 845 N. Kings Road, West Hollywood, makcenter.org.

“Oaxaca – Immigration and Cultural Memory,” at the Duron Gallery. Two dozen works by artists from around the Mexican state of Oaxaca who deal with personal questions of immigration in their work. This includes video, painting, photography, prints and murals both inside and out the gallery space. Through Aug. 29. SPARC, 685 Venice Blvd., Venice, sparcinla.org.

“Light, Paper, Process: Reinventing Photography” at the Getty Museum. Photography isn’t just about the image on the paper. It’s also about the processes that led those images to appear. This group show features seven contemporary artists who are all experimenting with ways in which light and chemicals form what we see on the page. Through Sept. 6. 1200 Getty Center Drive, Brentwood, Los Angeles, getty.edu.

“Korda: Revolutionary Photographer,” at the Museum of Latin American Art. Alberto Diaz Gutierrez, better known by the nickname Korda, is the Cuban photographer who snapped the iconic photograph of Che Guevera looking heroic. He also photographed many other significant happenings during and after the Cuban Revolution. MOLAA gathers 19 vintage prints from the late 1950s and early ‘60s, when the country was in a period of great transition. Through Sept. 6. 628 Alamitos Ave., Long Beach, molaa.org.

“Chris Francis: Shoe Designer,” at the Craft & Folk Art Museum. Shoes that aren’t so much shoes as they are experimental works of art. Francis, a self-taught designer who lives in L.A., creates designs inspired by street art, Constructivism, Cubism and high fashion, in the process employing plywood, leather and leftover bits of fruit crates. Through Sept. 6. 5814 Wilshire Blvd., Mid-Wilshire, Los Angeles, cafam.org.

“Art and Other Tactics: Contemporary Craft by Artist Veterans,” at the Craft & Folk Art Museum. A group show gathers works — painting, sculpture and even ceramics — by figures whose artistic practice has been shaped by their military service. This includes haunting sculptures of bones as well as decorative porcelain plates that record the lives of women in the service. Through Sept. 6. 5814 Wilshire Blvd., Mid-Wilshire, Los Angeles, cafam.org.

“After Victor Papanek: The Future Is Not What It Used to Be” at the Armory Center for the Arts. A group show examines the legacy of the industrial designer who called for ecologically sound design and who didn’t believe in patents because he felt they stymied innovation. Runs through Sept. 6. 145 N. Raymond Ave., Pasadena, armoryarts.org.

“Tongues Untied,” at the MOCA Pacific Design Center. Exploring themes such as desire, love, loss and mourning, this show, drawn from the Museum of Contemporary Art’s collection, looks at the world of art during the dawn of the AIDS crisis. The centerpiece of the show is Marlon Riggs’s feature-length 1989 documentary, “Tongues Untied,” a semi-autobiographical look at the black gay experience. Through Sept. 13. Pacific Design Center, 8687 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood, moca.org.

“Andrea del Sarto: The Renaissance Workshop in Action,” at the Getty Museum. An exhibition jointly organized by the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles and the Frick Collection in New York brings together nearly 50 drawings and four paintings by the 16th century Italian Renaissance master known for bringing an unprecedented naturalism to art. Through Sept. 13. 1200 Getty Center Drive, Los Angeles, getty.edu.

Ave Pildas, “Hollywood Boulevard: The ‘70s, at Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions. Prostitutes, homeless and the star obsessed. For three years in the early 1970s, Pildas photographed the habitués of Hollywood Boulevard, capturing the grittiness of one of L.A.’s most famous thoroughfares. This exhibition gathers more than 50 prints from that era. Through Sept. 13. 6522 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, welcometolace.org.

“Perfect Likeness: Photography and Composition,” at the Hammer Museum. Where is the art in a medium that all of us practice relentlessly on a daily basis? This exhibition argues that part of it lies in the art of composition. Artists such as Stan Douglas, Thomas Demand, Jeff Wall and Catherine Opie all carefully consider the ways they set up and frame their subjects. Through Sept. 13. 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Westwood, Los Angeles, hammer.ucla.edu.

“The Art of Hair in Africa” at the Fowler Museum. This exhibition brings together an array of African hair ornaments made with wood, beads, copper wire and ivory — some of them embellished with delicate bas relief carvings. It will also include a film by Ghanaian American artist Akosua Adoma Owusu called “Me Broni Ba (My White Baby),” about the role that hair plays. Through Sept. 20. UCLA, North Campus, Los Angeles, fowler.ucla.edu.

Norbert Tadeusz, “Studio,” at the El Segundo Museum of Art. The German painter, known for his colorful contorted figures, often presented in surreal scenarios, is little known in this country. But this exhibition — a collaboration between ESMoA and the L.A. County Museum of Art, which curated the show — provides an opportunity to get acquainted with his work. Through Sept. 26. 208 Main St., El Segundo, esmoa.org.

Mark Bradford, “Scorched Earth,” at the Hammer Museum. In Bradford’s first solo museum show in his native Los Angeles, the artist is unveiling a dozen new works, including a new series of abstract paintings and an audio installation that riffs on the macho nature of stand-up comedy. This is one not to miss. Through Sept. 27. 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Westwood, Los Angeles, hammer.ucla.edu.

Marcia Hafif, “From the Inventory,” at the Laguna Art Museum. The artist, known for producing monochromatic installation pieces that play with color, tone and the material nature of paint, is getting her first solo museum show in her native California in 40 years. The show gathers a series of works made in her Laguna Beach studio, such as her Red Paintings and Pacific Ocean Paintings. Runs through Sept. 27. 307 Cliff Drive, Laguna Beach, lagunaartmuseum.org.

“Vitality and Verve: Transforming the Urban Landscape,” at the Long Beach Museum of Art. The museum has commissioned a series of new murals by well-known urban artists such as Saber, Greg “Craola” Simkins, Jeff Soto, Tristan Eaton and Audrey Kawasaki. These are all part of the summer arts festival Pow! Wow! Long Beach! Through Sept. 27. 2300 East Ocean Blvd., Long Beach, lbma.org.

Noah Purifoy, “Junk Dada,” at the L.A. County Museum of Art. The sculptor who turned the detritus of the Watts riots into sculpture and transformed a patch of desert in Joshua Tree into a wild assemblage museum is finally getting his due: a solo museum exhibition at LACMA. This includes work from early on in his career, as well as a dozen assemblage works that he and other artists crafted for “66 Signs of Neon,” the seminal post-riots show held at the Watts Towers Arts Center in 1966. Through Sept. 27. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Mid-Wilshire, Los Angeles, lacma.org.

“In Focus: Animalia,” at the Getty Museum. Drawn from the museum’s collection of photographs, this small show focuses on the relationship between human and animal as defined by the camera’s lens. This includes work by early 19th century photographers who captured dogs, wild felines and even taxidermy game in early photographs and daguerreotypes. Through Oct. 18. 1200 Getty Center Drive, Brentwood, Los Angeles, getty.edu.

“Someday Is Now: The Art of Corita Kent,” at the Pasadena Museum of California Art. Known for producing a groundbreaking body of work that combined faith, activism, snippets of found text and bold color, Kent was a Catholic nun who also had a prolific career as a fine art printer. Through Nov. 1. 490 E. Union St., Pasadena, pmcaonline.org.

“To Live and Dine in L.A.,” at the Central Library. The history of a place can be told through its texts: its books, its accumulated government documents and its menus, too. Critic and writer Josh Kun has pored over the L.A. Public Library’s extensive historic menu archive and put together a show that tells a layered story about L.A.’s food and design — but also stories of politics, culture, society, race and gender. See an image gallery. Through Nov. 13. 630 W. 5th St., downtown Los Angeles, lapl.org.

“Adams, Curtis and Weston: Photographers of the American West,” at the Bowers Museum. More than three dozen images produced by three of the most iconic American photographers tell the story of the American West — through dreamy images of landscape as well as the people who once inhabited it. Through Nov. 29. 2002 N. Main St., Santa Ana, bowers.org.

“Various Small Fires (Working Documents),” at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. A show that illuminates unusual bits of LACMA history: the plan to have a robot patrol the galleries or the time a dog worked as a security guard. Included in the mix is Ed Ruscha’s working sketch for his infamous mid-’60s canvas, “The Los Angeles County Museum on Fire.” Through Feb. 7. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Mid-Wilshire, Los Angeles, lacma.org.

“Islamic Art Now” at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Contemporary works from LACMA’s permanent collection by 20 artists who live in or have roots in the Middle East look at questions of society, gender and identity. Runs indefinitely. 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, lacma.org.

Find me on Twitter @cmonstah

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