Publisher's Synopsis
Southern California's modern landscape was formed by the automobile. This wide-ranging exhibition catalog examines how the automobile invaded the consciousness of Los Angeles artists in the late 1960s through the early 1980s, influencing every aspect of their art. From Ed Ruscha's meditative celebration of the parking lot, to Darryl Curran's sexually charged view of the gas station, to Jane O'Neal's colorful street carnival, to Julian Wasser's time-exposure approach to motion - here is an abundant buffet of the car-saturated essence of the Los Angeles landscape. For artists in the region, this was a pioneering moment that drew from the emergent sensibilities that informed New Topographics, embraced the unbridled nature of their art community, and internalized the unique street view that cemented the disparate geographies of Southern California.
