Art at the Park

LA PRIDE speaks to Nathaly Charria, curator of this year’s art and heritage exhibit, about this year’s “Cruising” theme, the large-scale exhibitions woven throughout the festival, and what it’s like to work with both prominent and emerging artists of the LGBTQ community.

What is your own background, and what brought you to LA PRIDE/Christopher Street West?

I am an independent curator and advisor who specializes in contemporary art experiences. I began my practice in Miami in 2003, coinciding with the start of Art Basel Miami Beach. Throughout the lastdecade, I’ve curated, exhibited, produced, and been a part of leading art festivals’ most exciting projects. I moved to West Hollywood in 2012, where I fell in love and found a home in Los Angeles. There’s an energy here that is unlike anyplace else in the world, and within it is the heart of an art movement that has shifted the paradigm. Chris Classen and Craig Bowers of Christopher Street West became familiar with my work and invited me to curate the art program for LA Pride 2016.

What can the LA PRIDE festival-goer expect from your work at this year’s celebration?

We’re refocusing on presenting a larger art presence at LA PRIDE that highlights a combination of L.A.’s emerging and established contemporary artists. I hope I to create an environment that inspires excitement, discovery, and wonder.

The theme for this year’s art is “Cruising.” How did you decide on the theme?

The theme was conceived by artists JD Samson and Drew Denny. The concept looks back at traditional, IRL (in real life) meeting spaces and was created to take into account the cross-generational experience. Paying homage to the necessity of many LGBTQ+ identified people to hide in plain sight, embedding queer romance and sexuality into urban and rural landscapes, the Cruising Park is both a nostalgic reminder of yesterday’s survival tactics and a call to take our politics (and our bodies) back to the streets. Aiming to incite a mass queering of public space and social media, the Cruising Park invites you to come inside.

In your call to artists, you said you were seeking work that “encourages shareable moments.” What shareable moments can we expect to see?

Social media has changed the way people interact with and experience art. It makes artwork accessible and creates memories. Expect to discover a playground with moments that invite interaction, play, and allow you to become part of the art.

You’re known for seeking out and mentoring undiscovered talent. Who are some artists showcased at this year’s event?

Van Jazmin is an undiscovered L.A. artist who makes work about the trans identity and who will show a series of sculptures that demystify and break | down gender stereotypes. The exhibition will also feature works by local icons Seth Bogart, Peggy Noland, and Tom of Finland Foundation.

Published: 8th June 2016

Categorised in: Events