Chase Hall Explores LACMA’s Blackburn Photography Collection in Two October 18 Programs
On Sunday, October 18, artist Chase Hall will host a tour and discussion at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), showcasing his two-year residency centered on the Mark and Carolyn Blackburn Collection of Photography. This extensive collection, which includes over 9,700 pieces dating from 1840 to 2016 and sourced from ten Pacific Island nations, features notable items like Duke Kahanamoku’s surfboard and A.R. Gurrey’s 1914 surfing book. Hall, a surfer and American vernacular photography enthusiast, will delve into themes of surfing and landscapes, with a focus on his recent painting, Winter in America (2023). The program will include a dialogue with LACMA director Michael Govan and associate curator Dhyandra Lawson. RSVPs are suggested.
Key facts
- Chase Hall has spent two years exploring LACMA’s Mark and Carolyn Blackburn Collection of Photography as part of a residency.
- The Blackburn Collection includes over 9,700 objects made between 1840 and 2016 across 10 Pacific Island nations.
- Among its holdings are Duke Kahanamoku’s wooden surfboard and A. R. Gurrey’s 1914 book widely regarded as the first about surfing.
- Hall will lead a tour of works in the David Geffen Galleries on Sunday, October 18.
- After the tour, Hall will speak with associate curator Dhyandra Lawson and LACMA director Michael Govan.
- Hall’s painting Winter in America (2023) is in LACMA’s collection and depicts a solitary figure with a surfboard.
- Hall’s drip-brew technique uses coffee beans and acrylic pigments, referencing the commodification of a plant from Africa.
- The conversation will use surfing as a departure point to explore African American and Indigenous American histories and vernacular photography’s role in interpreting the past.
Entities
Artists
- Chase Hall
- Duke Kahanamoku
- A. R. Gurrey
- Dhyandra Lawson
- Michael Govan
Institutions
- LACMA
- Mark and Carolyn Blackburn Collection of Photography
- David Geffen Galleries
Locations
- Pacific Island nations