SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA TRANSFORMS INTO A HUB OF ART AND SCIENCE WITH PST ART 2024
PST ART (formerly known as Pacific Standard Time) returned for its third edition on September 15, 2024 — uniting Southern California in a five-month-long celebration of art and science.
Image courtesy: Syd Mead, Inc.
Supported by $20 million in grants from Getty, over 60 conscientiously curated exhibitions and diverse public programs will explore the intersections of these two fields, and examine their impact on society and culture, past, present, and future. Themes range from biotechnology and artificial intelligence to sustainable agriculture and Indigenous sci-fi, provoking conversations that delve into pressing issues like environmental justice.
Photo courtesy: Shunk-Kender, J. Paul Getty Trust
PST ART 2024 brings together over 70 cultural, scientific, and community organisations across Southern California. More than 800 artists, spanning from ancient times to the contemporary era, will be featured in the exhibitions. Highlights include works by renowned artists such as Mel Chin, Olafur Eliasson, and Tavares Strachan, alongside art forms like ancient Aboriginal drawings and Mesoamerican textiles.
Photo courtesy: Henri Lacoste | Studio Olafur Eliasson, Olafur Eliasson; Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York/Los Angeles
Curators, scientists, and artists have collaborated for years to create these exhibitions, diving deep into the connections between art and science. Joan Weinstein, director of the Getty Foundation, notes that this edition goes beyond traditional expectations, pushing boundaries and addressing questions critical to our future. “What can artists and scientists do together to combat ecological destruction?” she inquires. “How can art envision scientific breakthroughs once unimaginable?”
Photo courtesy: Patricia Domínguez
PST ART 2024 isn’t just about exhibitions — it offers a high-spirited array of public programs. These include innovative performing arts commissions, rocket launches, community science initiatives, and a free outdoor family festival. Institutions such as LACMA, MOCA, Caltech, and the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County will host events that fuse art and science, engaging visitors in novel ways. From performances at the Griffith Observatory to participatory projects in local communities, the public will have numerous opportunities to immerse themselves in this exciting dialogue.
Photo courtesy: Michael Joo, Danil Krivoruchko, and Snark.art
The exhibitions will explore diverse themes like the body, ecology, global cultures, and futuristic visions. Notable highlights include:
– The Body: Site, Image, Possibility at Fathomers, delving into biological and technological transformations of the human body.
– Ecology and Environmental Justice at the California African American Museum, focusing on George Washington Carver’s impact on contemporary environmental science.
– Picturing Science at the Palm Springs Art Museum, exploring the intersection of Southern California abstraction and scientific advancements.
– Visions of the Future at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, featuring an immersive experience around the global impact of cyberpunk.
Photo courtesy: Wendy Red Star and Autry Museum of the American West
Partnering with community hubs like La Plaza de Cultura y Artes and the Lancaster Museum of Art and History, Getty hopes to involve local communities in the initiative. Additionally, the collaboration with global institutions like Frieze and Edinburgh Science ensures that the event will reverberate internationally. A major highlight is a free, three-day PST ART x Science Family Festival, set to engage children and families with hands-on workshops and interactive performances.
Photo courtesy: Alan Shaffer, Cameron Parsons Foundation, Santa Monica
PST ART 2024 positions Southern California as a dynamic centre of innovation, using art to visualise scientific ideas and address urgent global challenges. With exhibitions that span centuries and topics that range from space exploration to climate change, PST ART invites audiences to reconceptualize the possibilities of both art and science. As Tavares Strachan, one of the featured artists, aptly puts it, “Art and science share a common commitment to curiosity and a quest for the unseen.”
This fall, PST ART promises to not only capture imaginations but also inspire a more sustainable and interconnected future, solidifying Los Angeles’s status as a global cultural hub.
Text by Shalini Passi
Image Courtesy: Syd Mead, Inc., Shunk-Kender, J. Paul Getty Trust, Henri Lacoste | Studio Olafur Eliasson, Olafur Eliasson; Tanya Bonakdar Gallery, New York/Los Angeles, Patricia Domínguez, Michael Joo, Danil Krivoruchko, and Snark.art, Wendy Red Star and Autry Museum of the American West, Alan Shaffer, Cameron Parsons Foundation, Santa Monica
Find out more about PST ART here: https://pst.art/en/
