Irving Blum and The Cool School

The Cool School: How LA Learned to Love Modern Art

Irving Blum and The Cool School
Wednesday, May 4
6:30 pm, Ring Auditorium

Legendary contemporary art dealer Irving Blum transformed the Los Angeles art scene in the 1960s by bringing together East and West Coast artists for the first time at a single venue. At Ferus Gallery, Blum joined forces with Walter Hopps, who had founded the gallery with artist Ed Kienholz, to exhibit local “cool school” artists such as Robert Irwin, Larry Bell, and Ed Ruscha, along with Pop artists from New York, such as Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, and Jasper Johns. Blum introduces the documentary The Cool School: How LA Learned to Love Modern Art and reflects on his time at Ferus, including his work with Robert Irwin, whose exhibition is currently on view at the Hirshhorn.