L.A. based artist Patrick Martinez’s artistic practice takes many forms. An observer of the city, his work illustrates the ever-changing urban landscape and the beauty that can be found within the diverse and layered aesthetics of our streets. Martinez discusses his role as an observer, the importance of recovering and documenting erased histories, and how his art serves a social purpose, communicating the most pressing social issues of our time. "It's also about observation too, right?...

L.A. based artist Maysha Mohamedi’s abstract paintings are flurries of colors, lines, and shapes imbued with energy, sensation, and meaningful intention. She often paints with her hands and talks about both visible and invisible marks that go into the making of her work. She discusses her process, her use of language, the movements and gestures that define her work, and how the making of abstraction can be a privilege. “It does feel like a privilege for a person of color to engage in cr...

L.A. based artist Naotaka Hiro talks about the exploration of the “unknown body” in his multi-media practice. The Osaka-born artist, who works across painting, drawing, video, film, and sculpture, often puts constraints on his body as he works, embracing his own limitations and failures. In this episode Hiro gives listeners intimate insight to his nuanced process, and the private performance that goes into making his work. He also talks about how 2020’s pandemic and unrest directly impacted h...

L.A. based artists Amanda Ross-Ho and Erik Frydenborg talk about shifting focus and priorities after a year of the pandemic. As teachers, the two discuss what it’s been like to work with students over the last year, and they also find common threads across their art practices: attention to detail, engaging with time and archival material, and inviting the viewer into an open-ended dialogue. “The craft element was not just about a well-made object, but a way to see other objects with precision...

In this episode, host Lindsay Preston Zappas talks to L.A. based artist Simphiwe Ndzube. Ndzube talks about his childhood growing up in South Africa and how as an artist he uses his Magical Realist style to blend past experiences with fantasy. Ndzube talks about following his inner child as an intuitive guide to his art making which blends sculpture, painting, and assemblage. Ndzube discusses art-making as a tool for unpacking traumas, and how he uses his own practice to process past experien...

Adapting performance work for Covid-19 safety — How performance operates without an audience present — How writing, sampling, and sound play in performance work — How the pandemic has shifted the way we we think about institutional support and artist communities In this episode, I talk to three artists in The Hammer exhibition, Made in L.A. 2020: A Version, which is on view but still not open to the public due to Covid-19 restrictions. Harmony Holiday, Aria Dean, and Jaqueline Kiyomi Gork all...

Abstraction as Resistance — Reclaiming Identity Through Strategies of Refusal — The Labor of Performance — Relating Audience and Performer — The Politics of Rest — Saying No Nikita Gale is an L.A.-based multi-media artist working in sound, sculpture, and video. In 2018, Gale made a solo show about changing her name—a form of reclaiming her own identity away from a patriarchal lineage. This refusal in many ways sets the stage for Gale’s multi-disciplinary practice, as she explores what i...

Learning within Institutions — Building Spaces for Community — Redefining Centers, Structures, and Bureaucracies — Connectivity within Digital Adaptations — Radical Everyday Practice — Living, Breathing Values Sarah Williams is the co-founder and Executive Director of the Women’s Center for Creative Work (WCCW). In this episode, Zappas & Williams discuss the seeds in Williams’ trajectory that grew into WCCW, a space that nourishes and adapts to the needs of its creative feminist communiti...

Remembering John Baldessari: artist, friend, teacher, and mentor — Leslie Jones, Meg Cranston, Fay Ray, Amanda McGough, and Norm Laich reflect on the life and legacy of the celebrated Los Angeles artist This special episode of the Carla podcast is dedicated to remembering John Baldessari, who passed away on January 2nd at the age of 88, leaving behind a massive void in the L.A. art community and beyond. You’ll hear from five people who knew John—former assistants, students, friends, an...

Growing up in L.A. — Rock Photography and Photographing Michael Jackson — Feeling Split Between Commercial Work and Art — The Colonized Mind — Finding Balance Between Mind and Body — Make Rules Break Rules Todd Gray joins Lindsay for an hour-long conversation surrounding his work and the influences that life experiences have had on his approach to thinking and making. Gray’s meticulous photographs are framed and then stacked on top of each other, so certain areas are strategically concealed. ...

How identity has shaped Pittman’s work—Being a Painter in the Pictures Generation—Working Politically While Not Being Defined as a “Political Artist”—Thoughts on the Younger Generation of Artists—On Boredom—Leaving Work Open for the Viewer This episode, host Lindsay Preston Zappas is joined by painter Lari Pittman that was recorded just days before Pittman’s retrospective opened at the Hammer Museum in LA. They discuss personal experiences that have deeply influenced his work, and talk about ...

Interview with curator Jamillah James — The unconventional start to her art career — The responsibility of museums to be accessible & accountable — Generosity & mentorship — What does it mean to curate the contemporary? Welcome to Season 3 of The Carla Podcast! This episode, host Lindsay Preston Zappas is joined by curator Jamillah James for an in-depth conversation spanning the whole episode. They discuss James’ background in music and fast-track from overcoming serious illness to la...

Trulee Hall on her recent solo show — Americana and female sexuality — Working across multiple mediums — The importance of timing in an artist’s career — Choosing the right gallery Writer’s Room In this last episode of Season 2 of The Carla Podcast,host Lindsay Preston Zappas is joined by Carlacontributor Catherine Wagley and artist Trulee Hall to collapse all segments into one conversation on Hall’s recent exhibition The Other and Otherwise, which Catherine wrote about in our forthcoming iss...

Dianna Molzan discusses her recent show, “Fizzz,”and generating joy amidst political chaos — Vanessa Place’s Rape Jokes — Understanding how art might open up space to communicate about the #MeToo Movement — Do artists need to be good at writing about their own work? Writer’s Room Host Lindsay Preston Zappas is joined by contributing editor, Catherine Wagley, to discuss her article from Carla issue 15, “Laughing in Private,” which centers around the artist Vanessa Place’s Rape Jokesperfor...

Julian Rosefeldt’s “Manifesto,” in relation to the subjectivity of the body, Hollywood, and politics — Kelly Akashi discusses her art practice and recent show — What makes a good press release? Writer’s Room Host Lindsay Preston Zappas is joined by Carlacontributor Christina Catherine Martinez to discuss her article from issue 15, “Eyes Without a Voice,” which considers Julian Rosefeldt’s Manifesto, an immersive video installation starring actress Cate Blanchett that was recently on view at H...

David Lynch’s paintings and the contrast between still-images versus moving — Tips and tricks for how to file your taxes as an artist Writer’s Room Host Lindsay Preston Zappas is joined by Carlacontributor Travis Diehl to discuss his article from issue 14, “Lynch in Traffic,” which discusses David Lynch’s transition from painter to filmmaker. They talk about the deskilled style of his painted works, where the resolution of his paintings is left unanswered in his films, and how his depiction o...

How figurative art relates to Christianity and politics — Celeste Dupuy-Spencer depicts white America — Sneak peek of the art fair Frieze Los Angeles — L.A.’s art community vs. its collector base — How do I price my artwork? Writer’s Room Host Lindsay Preston Zappas is joined by Carlacontributor, Catherine Wagley to discuss her article from Carla Issue 14 called “Celeste Dupuy-Spencer And Figurative Religion,” which discusses Dupuy-Spencer’s recent show The Chiefest of Ten Thousand at Ni...

Looking back on “Made in L.A.”— What does it mean for an artist to be political? — How are artists responding to our time?—How do young artists connect with curators? Writer’s Room Lindsay is joined by the three Carla writers who reviewed Made in L.A. 2018 for Carla issue 13: Jennifer Remenchik, Aaron Horst, and Claire de Dobay Rifelj. Hear about the hits (and misses) from three of our very own critics. They also discuss how politics were interpreted across the exhibition, and how nuance can ...

Whose work is it anyway? — Norm Laich’s world as a brush for hire — The art of the collaboration — Is there a viable way to share your work on social media? Writer’s Room Lindsay is joined by Carla contributor, Matt Stromberg to discuss his article from Carla issue 13 called “The Collaborative Art World of Norm Laich,” which discusses Norm’s recent show Brush for Hire at ICA, and his role as a fabricator over the years. We talk about Norm’s work as it pertains to questions of authorship, fabr...

Florals and feminism — the historical, political, and gendered uses of floral imagery — Call-out culture and Instagram feminism — Has female representation in the art world made any progress? Writer’s Room Lindsay is joined by Carla writer Angella d’Avignon to discuss Angella’s recent article, “Perennial Bloom,” which discusses California’s super bloom in late 2016 as it coincided with stark political events such as the presidential election and Women’s March. We talk about the trend of flora...