What does it mean to take up space—in this world or beyond it? 🚀 "SPACE IS THE PLACE" draws inspiration from Sun Ra, who imagined space as a site of Black liberation—both cosmic and political.
Bringing together nearly 30 artists across installation, painting, photography, and multimedia, the exhibition explores Afrofuturism, freedom, belonging, identity, and what it means to claim space within and beyond Western frameworks.
From visions of escape and freedom to questions of land, ownership, and selfhood, these works expand what “space” can mean—and who gets to occupy it.
📅 "SPACE IS THE PLACE: Selections from the Hammer Contemporary Collection" is now on view through September 6.
Save this + tell us: what does “taking up space” mean to you?
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📸 by @smgfunk
🎉🙌 IT'S OPENING DAY! All galleries are now open! Bring your friends and family, there's a lot of art to discover.
Enjoy these exhibitions now on view:
Several Eternities in a Day: Form in the Age of Living Materials
SPACE IS THE PLACE: Selections from the Hammer Contemporary Collection
Hammer Projects: Mike Cloud
Arthur Jafa: The White Album
Armand Hammer Collection
🍴After viewing artwork, grab a bite to eat downstairs at Lulu @lulurestaurantla
💐 Have a beautiful spring day here at the Hammer! 🎫 Admission is always FREE!
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📸 by Sarah Golonka @smgfunk
The Hammer is excited for the return of the Hammer Classroom Partnership Program, a FREE, yearlong partnership opportunity for 4th-12th grade classrooms at Title I schools within L.A. County.
This program cultivates students’ visual literacy and critical analysis skills through sustained engagement with artworks by Los Angeles-based artists.
The program includes two fully-funded field trips to the Hammer Museum, hands-on teacher professional development sessions, a classroom curriculum, and opportunities for further museum engagement for your school’s community.
🗓️ Apply by June 1! https://bit.ly/3Pkxr3a
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📸Photos by ashley kruythoff and Ruby Tull
Time is winding down to see Part I of "Five Centuries of Works on Paper: The Grunwald Center at 70."
Albrecht Dürer, Rembrandt van Rijn, Ansel Adams, Elizabeth Catlett, Charles White, Corita Kent, Bridget Riley, David Hockney, and Ed Ruscha are just a few of over 90 artists in this selection that reflects the collection's breath and diversity.
Enjoy nearly 100 works on paper and mark the 70th anniversary of the Grunwald Center with us! 🗓️ Part I closes this Sunday, May 17.
Before “intersectionality” was a term, it was a refusal to stay silent. ✊🏾
Kimberlé Crenshaw @kimberlecrenshaw —@UCLA Distinguished Professor of Law and one of the most influential voices in civil rights—joins us for a special conversation and reading from her new memoir, "Backtalker: An American Memoir."
From childhood moments of speaking up, to working on Anita Hill’s legal team, to shaping movements like #SayHerName, Crenshaw traces how a lifetime of “talking back” became a framework that transformed how we understand race, gender, and justice.
Hope to see you there!
🗓️ Thursday, May 14, 7:30PM
📍Hammer Museum
Ben Caldwell @kaosnetworkz was a member of the infamous 1960s and 70s Black and brown independent filmmaker group, L.A. Rebellion, that pioneered new types of film as an alternative to classical Hollywood cinema.
While studying at @UCLA , Caldwell produced, wrote, directed, filmed, and edited “Madea." Equating the Black woman's body to Earth, this film explores the development of a child's mind during gestation.
"Medea," is now on view in "SPACE IS THE PLACE" for the first time in any major Los Angeles museum. It was acquired by the Mohn Art Collective (MAC 3) as a part of the collection with Hammer Museum, @LACMA , and @MOCA .
Watch the film when you visit us next!
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"SPACE IS THE PLACE: Selections from the Hammer Contemporary Collection,"
Apr 5 – Sep 6, 2026. Gallery view, Hammer Museum, Los Angeles. Photo: Sarah Golonka @smgfunk
As the 61st Venice Biennale commences, Arthur Jafa’s @anamibia artwork stands as a powerful reminder of the exhibition’s legacy: not just showcasing art, but shaping global dialogue.
Jafa’s landmark work "The White Album," was awarded the Golden Lion at the Biennale’s 58th edition in 2019.
Constructed from cable news footage, YouTube clips, TikToks, music videos, and personal recordings, Jafa’s piece interrogates how whiteness is shaped, circulated, and reinforced in American visual culture.
Concepts of power, identity, and cultural narratives resonate as viewers are challenged to locate themselves within systems of privilege, violence, and representation.
See "Arthur Jafa: The White Album" now on view at the Hammer through August 30.
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Arthur Jafa: The White Album, installation view. Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, March 14—August 30, 2026. Photo: Jeff McLane
💐 This Mother’s Day, treat mom and the nurturing figures in your life with a relaxing visit to the Hammer Museum.
There's still time to stop by the Hammer Store @hammerstore , where you can find the perfect gift for mom. From art books to handmade jewelry and unique prints, we have something for every mother figure in your life.
And while you're here, stop by LULU @lulurestaurantla for a memorable and tasty lunch in our courtyard.
🌺 Admission to the Hammer is always FREE!
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Georg Schrimpf, Mother with Child, ca. 1915. Woodcut. Block: 8 1/4 x 6 1/4 in. (21 x 15.9 cm) Sheet: 9 5/8 x 7 3/4 in. (24.5 x 19.7 cm). Collection UCLA Grunwald Center for the Graphic Arts, Hammer Museum. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Stanley I. Talpis.
Can’t make it to Venice, Italy for the 61st Venice Biennale? Don’t fret. Experience work by Guadalupe Maravilla and Cauleen Smith, 2 of the 110 artists invited to this year’s Biennale, right here at the Hammer Museum.
🔸Guadalupe Maravilla @guadalupe__maravilla has work on view in "Several Eternities: Form in the Age of Living Materials."
Influenced by his background fleeing the Salvadorian Civil War, he uses Indigenous and contemporary systems of knowledge in his work to explore healing from intergenerational, colonial, and migration trauma.
🔸Filmmaker, multimedia artist, and @UCLA Department of Art professor Cauleen Smith @cauleen_smith has artwork on view in "SPACE IS THE PLACE: Selections from the Hammer Contemporary Collection."
Her experimental work reflects upon the everyday possibilities of the imagination and often address the African-American identity, specifically the issues facing Black women today.
This painting wasn't just made in a studio. It started outdoors and is infused with living materials.
Esteban Cabeza de Baca @estebancabezadebaca pulls from his upbringing in San Ysidro, a U.S.–Mexico border town, to create work that engages the tradition of plein air landscape painting in new and experimental ways.
He began this painting, "California via Colorado River via Rio Grande," outdoors, on a road trip through Southern California, setting up his canvas along riverbanks so he could sketch and paint his direct observations.
For the first layer, he tie-dyed the canvas with Indigo, then began to paint the landscape from different viewpoints on top of the dyed surface. He mixed soil collected from the journey into the acrylic paint he layered on top, and peeled back sections of the acrylic to revealing a spiral form that suggests movement, time, and even infinity.
👀 Seen up close, hidden textures and layers will shift your perception.
Witness it now in "Several Eternities in A Day: Form in the Age of Living Materials."
💫"As a child, I was always interested in fairy tales and magical stories."—Betye Saar @betyesaar
For over 70 years, Betye Saar has created artwork that examines spirituality, culture, and the Black experience in America.
Born in Los Angeles, Saar studied design at @UCLA and became a leading voice in the Black Arts Movement which created politically engaging art to foster Black liberation, identity, and consciousness.
A pioneer of assemblage, Saar transforms found objects into powerful symbols of history, resilience, and empowerment. Her work continues to shape generations of artists and audiences alike.
Experience the magic of her artwork when you see "SPACE IS THE PLACE," now on view.
BONUS! 🎧 Hear from the artist herself on the Bloomberg Connects @bloombergconnects app!
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SPACE IS THE PLACE: Selections from the Hammer Contemporary Collection, installation view
Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, April 5—September 6, 2026. Photo: Sarah Golonka @smgfunk
