Getty Joins Community Partners to Hold Free Summer Art Festivals Across Los Angeles

The J. Paul Getty Trust is partnering with community groups across Los Angeles County to launch a ten-part series of free, outdoor community art festivals this summer in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Getty Center.

Kicking off May 14 and running through August 28, these two-day festivals will feature curated experiences reflective of each community including interactive workshops, live music and performances, an artisan marketplace, food trucks, giveaways, photo booths, and more. Getty will be present with an immersive digital experience of its collections, hands-on library, gift shop, and resources for Getty’s job, volunteer, and internship opportunities. Festival materials will be available in multiple languages.

In collaboration with the community partners, the non-ticketed public festivals will be held in ten neighborhoods including Crenshaw, Inglewood, Koreatown, Lincoln Heights/East LA, Long Beach, Pacoima, Reseda, San Gabriel Valley, Watts, and Wilmington. Community Arts Resources (CARS) of Los Angeles is serving as the producing partner for the festivals.

“To say ‘thank you’ to Los Angeles for 25 years of support, we want to celebrate the joy of art throughout Los Angeles, meeting people where they live,” said Lisa Lapin, Getty vice president for communications. “We are fortunate to be able to collaborate with cultural organizations already hard at work in these neighborhoods. Together, we are creating enduring community partnerships, enlivening neighborhoods, and providing fun weekends for people of all ages.”

More than a dozen neighborhood nonprofits and cultural organizations are involved in organizing the public festivals, celebrating the art, artists, and culture of each community.

“We have had a legacy of successful collaborations with the Getty, from years of participating in its Getty Marrow internship program to creative projects like the upcoming festival at Plaza de la Raza in Lincoln Heights,” said Tomás Benítez, development director at Plaza de la Raza. “This partnership has been due in large part to the respect and mutuality between partners and has resulted in a sustained benefit to our students, artists, families, and community, which will resonate for years to come.”

“Getty 25 marks a powerful opportunity to celebrate Watts’ rich culture and history and connect across Los Angeles,” said Tina Watkins-Quaye, general manager of the Watts Labor Community Action Committee (WLCAC). “Here at WLCAC we're hopeful this will spark community growth and investment in a way that benefits the people of Watts.”

To help navigate and build strong relationships with stakeholders and residents of the ten festival locations, Getty is proud to partner with Community Arts Resources, an organization with unparalleled experience organizing a wide range of community and cultural events in Los Angeles County and beyond. One of CARS’s core tenets is to integrate culture into the built and social fabric of urban environments as a means for creative economic development and community enrichment.

“We are thrilled to be working with Getty and our amazing community partners on these unprecedented celebrations in ten communities,” said CARS co-founders, executive director Katie Bergin and president Aaron Paley. “These events bring together the richness and diversity of LA’s neighborhoods and make public spaces accessible for all, which are hallmarks of the work CARS has been creating for the past four decades.”

Festival neighborhoods and community partners include:

• May 14–15—Inglewood, Youth Orchestra Los Angeles (YOLA)
• May 21–22—Lincoln Heights/East LA, Plaza de la Raza
• June 4–5—Long Beach, Long Beach Creative Coalition: Studio One Eleven, Intertrend, Creative Class Collective
• June 11–12—Koreatown, Koreatown Youth and Community Center (KYCC)
• June 25–26—Pacoima, Pacoima Beautiful
• July 9–10—Reseda, 11:11 Projects
• July 16–17—San Gabriel Valley, Day One
• July 30–31—Wilmington, Avalon Arts and Cultural Alliance
• August 13–14—Crenshaw, Destination Crenshaw
• August 27–28—Watts, Watts Labor Community Action Committee (WLCAC)

“Partnering with the Getty for its 25th anniversary festivals is a wonderful opportunity for 11:11 Projects to strengthen Reseda’s access to the arts,” said Addy Gonzalez Renteria, co-founder and director of 11:11 Projects. “The core value that drives our work is the belief that absolutely everyone is deserving of exploring their creativity and having access to high quality arts and cultural programming. Being included in this celebration helps build direct lines of collaboration and support between the Getty and the communities 11:11 Projects serves.”

Public festival locations will be announced in coming weeks. The festivals will be held from 11am to 6pm both Saturday and Sunday. The festivals will abide by all city and county COVID-19 guidelines for outdoor events, which are subject to change.