| View in Browser |
 |
A Message from Our Director
Transformation/Transformación by Kalli Arte Collective at Nogales Park. LA County Civic Art Collection. |
September brings us to Hispanic Heritage Month, observed nationally from September 15 to October 15—a time to honor the heritage, culture, and artistic contributions of Latino communities, which represent nearly half of Los Angeles County residents and shape our region’s creative identity. I am especially excited to highlight our upcoming collaboration event with LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes featuring a lively conversation exploring LA’s rich culinary heritage through the lens of Mexican, French, and Indigenous fusion. RSVP below!
This month we also celebrate the power of arts and culture for healing and recovery with completion of our Civic Art Division’s fourth Wildfire Conservation Clinic, held at the Altadena Library. These clinics are truly special—offering artists and community members free professional conservation care for fire-damaged artworks and belongings. We were joined by Supervisor Barger, listening to the story of each person’s object, and connecting to hope, resilience, memory, and cultural preservation.
We have some exciting opportunities and resources below as well. Our Civic Art Division is seeking artists to design a new mural for the façade of the Vermont Corridor, Site 2 building in Koreatown—the future headquarters for the LA County Department of Mental Health. This week is the final chance for arts nonprofits, municipalities, and social justice or social service organizations to apply to our Arts Internship Program for grants to hire undergraduate and community college students. And we have released a year-end look at data from our Creative Wellbeing work engaging youth and adults.
Thank you to all our cultural partners for joining us as we celebrate heritage, safeguard culture, and expand opportunities for artists and communities across Los Angeles County.
Kristin Sakoda
Director, LA County Department of Arts and Culture |
|
|
Altadena Conservation Clinic
Conservators at the September 13 Conservation Clinic. Photo by Andres Vazquez. |
| In partnership with our friends at Art Recovery LA, we hosted our fourth Conservation Clinic earlier this month—supported by Supervisor Kathryn Barger, FireAid, the Conservation Association of Los Angeles, and the Altadena Library District. Nearly 90 community members took part, bringing with them items that included books, family photographs, paintings, pottery, and sculptures damaged by the January fires. Over 60 conservators and conservation volunteers provided free cleaning, consultation, and archival storage, but the team also worked hard to create a safe, healing space—so that people could share stories about their belongings and continue to process all that they lost, but also find some hope. This series of Conservation Clinics affirms the need for cultural care and preservation services during a time of emergency, and we’re proud to have helped them take place at the Armory Center for the Arts, The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA, The Getty, and now the Altadena Library. |
|
|
Arts Internship Program Grant
Students attend the 2024 Arts Internship Program Summit. Photo by Yoko Morimoto. |
One Week Left to Apply
The Arts Internship Program provides eligible LA County arts nonprofits, municipalities, and social justice/social service organizations that offer arts programming with grants to hire undergraduate and community college students for 400 hours of paid work experience. The program will maintain a flexible timeline to be responsive to both students and organizations.
Application Deadline: October 9, 2025 | 11:59PM (PDT)
|
|
|
|
Opportunity for Artists
|
Vermont Corridor, Site 2
Our Civic Art Division invites artists to submit qualifications for the design of a mural that will be painted on the façade of the Vermont Corridor, Site 2 building in Koreatown. The site will serve as the new administrative headquarters for the LA County Department of Mental Health as well as provide office space for the Departments of Public Health, Children and Family Services, Public Social Services, and the Chief Executive Office.
NOTE: This call is for artwork design, community engagement, and associated project closeout services only. The fabrication and installation of the painted mural will be managed by the project's developer. Artists working across a diverse range of visual mediums and those new to public art are encouraged to apply.
Application Deadline: October 6, 2025 | 5PM (PDT)
|
|
|
|
NEW FINDINGS
Participants at an adult-based creative wellbeing event. |
Creative Wellbeing Data Dashboards 2024-25
Our Creative Wellbeing work uses arts-based strategies that build upon existing community strengths to enhance the capacity of adults to support young people in restoration and healing. Central to this model for supporting youth is a parallel process that supports the adults who work with them—strengthening protective factors by increasing adults’ understanding of healing-informed approaches, self-attunement, and the preventative significance of their own self-care.
Each year, we release a set of end-of-year reports that summarize the data from surveys administered to youth and adults receiving direct services and participating at some special Creative Wellbeing events. These brief reports help us know how youth and adults benefit, with a focus on improving mental health and strengthening protective factors, including social-emotional competencies and social support. |
|
|
|
Next Week
Foreground: Chef Gilberto Cetina of Holbox. |
LA Culinary Heritage: Mexico and France
Wednesday, October 8, 2025
LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes
501 N. Main Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
We’re partnering with LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes for a conversation on LA’s rich culinary heritage through the lens of Mexican, French, and Indigenous fusion! The program—highlighting food as culture in Los Angeles—features culinary stars Chef Gilberto Cetina of Holbox, Chef Fátima Juárez of Komal, Chef Chuy Cervantes of Damian and Ditroit Taqueria, and baker Arturo Enciso of Gusto. The chefs will discuss Indigenous ingredients, the Columbian Exchange, French techniques, and their impact on kitchens across LA County. Moderated by Evan Kleiman—author, chef, and host of KCRW’s Good Food.
In 2024, we collaborated with City of Paris, Le Carreau du Temple, and LA Plaza to present Chef Cetina at the Food Temple culinary festival in Paris, at the conclusion of the 2024 Paris Cultural Olympiad. The 2025 LA Culinary Heritage: Mexico and France event carries it forward. It is part of a new legacy of Cultural Olympiad artistic collaborations highlighting the role of culture in creating legacy for communities in Olympic and Paralympic Games, initiated by the Department of Arts and Culture, City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, Paris Department of Cultural Affairs, and other partners during the 2024 Paris Cultural Olympiad, with a view to Los Angeles 2028. |
|
|
|
| |
IN BRIEF
- Each year, in partnership with Supervisor Hilda L. Solis, we work with LA Opera Connects to host Arts and Health Week, which explores the connections between music, wellness, and recovery—often through collaborations with Los Angeles medical, veteran and health partners. The 2025 in-person summit was canceled due to concerns about ICE raids. In its place, LA Opera is sharing a video series with wellness resources, stories about musical bedside visits to patients at Ranch Los Amigos National Rehab Center, and free Zoom series centering creative care and the healing power of the arts. Explore the videos
- The Los Angeles County Commission on Human Relations recently released a report on how LA County priorities and operations reflect and implement internationally recognized human rights. The Department of Arts and Culture is located on page 21, and the LA City/County Native American Indian Commission on page 25. Check out the report
- The LA County Channel put together “The Art of Redemption,” which tells the story of our partnership with the Justice, Care, and Opportunities Department—and several justice system-involved women who participated in a unique healing-centered arts program. Explore the video
|
|
| |
|
