East Los Angeles residents and art lovers have a new cultural event to mark on their calendars. According to Rafu, the Vincent Price Art Museum at East Los Angeles College will hold an opening reception for the exhibition “California Collectives: Asian American Moderns, 1924‑1965” on Saturday, Nov. 21, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The free event is intended to introduce the public to more than 50 paintings, drawings, watercolors, prints and photographs by American artists of Asian descent, many of which are drawn from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s collection.
The reception will also celebrate the launch of the second volume of “Francis and Anthony Almendárez: Navigating the Archives Within.” Attendees can enjoy a short performance by musician‑choreographer Nobuko Miyamoto, a vinyl DJ set provided by the Central American Sound Archive, and a cash bar featuring specialty cocktails crafted by Chicas on the Rocks. While admission is free, the museum asks guests to make reservations through its website.
The exhibition examines the artistic networks that flourished among Asian‑American creators during the Exclusion Era (1882‑1965), a period marked by anti‑immigration legislation such as the Asian Exclusion Act of 1924 and Executive Order 9066, which authorized the incarceration of Japanese Americans. Despite those challenges, artists formed collectives—including the East West Art Society, Shaku‑Do‑Sha, the Japanese Camera Pictorialists of California, and the Los Angeles Oriental Artists’ Group—and staged high‑profile shows across California, from the Bay Area to Los Angeles’ Little Tokyo.
By retracing these careers, the show aims to broaden public understanding of 20th‑century American art and highlight how Asian‑American moderns used their craft to assert a place in California’s art world. The exhibition will run through March 6, 2027, with museum hours Tuesday‑Friday, 12 p.m.‑4 p.m., and Saturday, 11 a.m.‑5 p.m.; it remains closed on Sundays and Mondays.
What’s next: After the Nov. 21 reception, visitors can explore the galleries during regular hours. For further details, including reservation information, the museum directs interested parties to its website at vpam.org and the exhibition page at vpam.org/exhibitions.
Sources: rafu.com
