The Hammer Museum at UCLA launches its seventh edition of its celebrated Made in L.A. biennial this fall. It opened on October 5, 2025, and will run through March 1, 2026, the exhibition highlights 28 artists from across the greater Los Angeles region.

Made in LA at the Hammer Museum

Curators Essence Harden and Paulina Pobocha organized this year’s show, shaping it through extensive studio visits and conversations. They explored artist-run spaces, museums, and galleries across Los Angeles County before finalizing their multigenerational lineup.

Director Zoë Ryan emphasized the exhibition’s cultural importance. She noted that the biennial allows audiences to celebrate Los Angeles creativity every two years. Moreover, she expressed hope that the city’s resilience—especially after recent wildfires—will shine through the artists’ work.

Harden and Pobocha aimed to build the exhibition directly from their encounters with art and artists. They focused on how individuals define their connections to Los Angeles. The city resists easy labels; instead, its layered complexity inspires many works on view.

The biennial includes painting, sculpture, video, installation, performance, and music. Artists such as Greg Breda, Hanna Hur, and Patrick Martinez push the boundaries of painting, reimagining forms like history painting and geometric abstraction. Additionally, Carl Cheng and Pat O’Neill present rarely seen works that reveal their decades-long material experimentation.

John Knight continues his critical study of built environments, while Jerald Cooper and Michael Donte examine architecture’s power to shape communities. Experimental film and video by Widline Cadet, Na Mira, and Mike Stoltz engage spatial and optical perception.

Playwright and filmmaker Leilah Weinraub debuts a new stage work with New Theater Hollywood. Meanwhile, choreographer Will Rawls creates a performance exploring the city’s recent upheavals.

Through these varied approaches, Made in L.A. 2025 underscores the city’s diversity and dynamism. Ultimately, it demonstrates how artists reflect and transform Los Angeles’s chaotic vitality into meaningful cultural expression.

What: Made in L.A. biennial
Where: Hammer Museum, 10899 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90024
When: Running through March 2026
Website: https://hammer.ucla.edu/exhibitions/2025/made-la-2025