The Hammer Museum in Los Angeles has announced the lineup for the 2025 Made in L.A. biennial. The exhibition will run from October 5, 2025, to January 4, 2026, and feature 27 artists working in the greater LA area. Curators Essence Harden and Paulina Pobocha have selected a multigenerational group of artists who work in various mediums.
Visitors can expect to see works by conceptual artist John Knight, architectural explorations by Jerald “Coop” Cooper, a choreographic composition by Will Rawls, and a stage production by avant-garde duo New Theater Hollywood (Max Pitegoff and Calla Henkel). The curators have not announced a theme for this year’s biennial yet. However, they note that the vibrant and varied character of Los Angeles will serve as a unifying thread across all works.
In a joint statement, Harden and Pobocha said, “From the outset of this process, our primary objective was to look at art, and to see as much of it as possible. We wanted to learn from artists and distill an exhibition from those experiences.”
The participating artists come from diverse backgrounds and age groups.
Biennial’s diverse artist lineup
The oldest participant is 85-year-old Pat O’Neill, while the youngest is 30-year-old Ali Eyal. Other artists include David Alekhuogie, Greg Breda, Carl Cheng, Kristy Luck, Patrick Martinez, Beaux Mendes, Amanda Ross-Ho, Gabriela Ruiz, Alake Shilling, Nicole-Antonia Spagnola, Mike Stoltz, Peter Tomka, Freddy Villalobos, Kelly Wall, Leilah Weinraub, and Bruce Yonemoto. The biennial promises to be a survey of the city’s dynamic and diverse artistic practices, reflecting Los Angeles’ unique cultural landscape.
Some of the artists’ work will be selected for the recently announced joint collection managed by the Hammer, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the Museum of Contemporary Art, known as MAC3. Made in L.A. artists are eligible for three awards: the $100,000 Mohn Award for artistic excellence, a $25,000 award for career achievement, and a $25,000 award chosen by visitors to the biennial. The announcement comes as Los Angeles continues to battle multiple destructive wildfires across the city.
Zoë Ryan, the Hammer’s new director, commented, “Every two years, the Made in L.A. biennial offers a chance for local and international audiences to celebrate the incredible work being made by artists in this city. Los Angeles is still grappling with the terrible fires of the last few weeks but, as we look ahead to the fall, I hope this biennial can demonstrate the resilience of artists and this city.”
For more information and updates about the upcoming biennial, visit the Hammer Museum’s official website.
