Human Resources Los Angeles (HRLA) is a non-profit exhibition and performance space located in Los Angeles's Chinatown dedicated to supporting interdisciplinary, performative and experimental art practices.

History

Human Resources Los Angeles was founded by siblings Eric and Kathleen Kim in 2010. They were joined by three of their friends Giles Miller, Devin McNulty, and Dawn Kasper with the intent of featuring performance art over traditional static displays. Instead of being organized by a single curator HRLA utilizes a content programming committee, organizing displays through collaboration. The name "human resources" refers to the fact that the gallery is a resource for artists rather than an institutional setting. Doug Harvey, writing for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' mentioned HRLA among the "D.I.Y. artist-run project spaces evolving into an art-world destination" in Chinatown, the "surprise flashpoint of Los Angeles's rise as an international art center." In 2011 HRLA moved from its original location, a small space at Bernard Street shared with other artists, to a much larger nearby renovated movie theater (previously occupied by "Cottage Home" gallery). At , the location has been described as "cavernous."

Events

Frieze In classical architecture, the frieze is the wide central section of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic order, Ionic or Corinthian order, Corinthian orders, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Patera (architecture), Paterae are also ...

described Human Resources Los Angeles as a "hot house for music and performance." It has hosted performances by a range of

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

artists, including

Ron Athey Ron Athey (born December 16, 1961) is an American performance artist associated with body art and with extreme performance art. He has performed in the U.S. and internationally (especially in the UK and Europe). Athey's work explores challenging ...

, Rafa Esparza, Dawn Kasper and My Barbarian. Artists from outside the region who have shared work through HRLA include Rocio Boliver, Ligia Lewis,

Narcissister Narcissister is an American, Brooklyn-based, feminist performance artist, born of Moroccan Jewish and African-American descent. Narcissister's work tends to focus on race, gender, and sexuality, using her slight anonymity to explore such topics co ...

, Keijaun Thomas and Geo Wyeth. Notable group exhibitions include Katherine Garcia and Sarvia Jasso's "Queering Sex" (2011) and Kelman Duran's "The Border, Again" (2014). Human Resources Los Angeles has also presented exhibitions of work by Carmen Argote, Fayçal Baghriche, Math Bass, Scott Benzel, Sabrina Chou,

Leidy Churchman Leidy Churchman (born 1979 in Villanova, Pennsylvania, Villanova, PA) is an American painter who lives and works in New York (state), New York. Early life and education Churchman received their Master of Fine Arts, M.F.A. from Columbia Universi ...

, Helga Fassonaki,

Fritz Haeg Fritz Haeg (born 1969) is an American artist whose work spans a range of disciplines and media including gardens, dance, performance, design, installation, ecology and architecture, most of which is commissioned and presented by art museums and ...

, EJ Hill, Candice Lin & Patrick Staff, Pearl C. Hsiung, Emily Joyce, Rasmus Rohling, Anna Sew Hoy, Sille Storihle, and

Martine Syms Martine Syms (born 1988) is an American artist residing in Los Angeles, specializing in various mediums including publishing, video, installation, and performance. Her artistic endeavors revolve around themes of identity, particularly the repre ...

. HRLA's music and sound program has featured Southland Ensemble, LA Fog, Dorian Wood, Jackie O'Motherfucker, Pedestrian Deposit, Pinkcourtesyphone, Postcommodity,

Terre Thaemlitz Terre Thaemlitz is an American musician, composer, owner of the record label Comatonse Recordings, and a public speaker. Thaemlitz's work critically combines themes of identity politics – including gender, sexuality, class, linguistics, ethnici ...

Lawrence English Lawrence English (born 1976) is an Australian composer, artist, and curator from Brisbane. His work is broadly concerned with the politics of perception, specifically he is interested in the nature of listening, and sounds' capability to occupy ...

, and

Touch The somatosensory system, or somatic sensory system is a subset of the sensory nervous system. The main functions of the somatosensory system are the perception of external stimuli, the perception of internal stimuli, and the regulation of bo ...

artists. HRLA's programming extends to readings (e.g.

Penny Arcade ''Penny Arcade'' is a webcomic focused on video games and video game culture, written by Jerry Holkins and illustrated by Mike Krahulik. The comic debuted in 1998 on the website ''loonygames.com''. Since then, Holkins and Krahulik have establish ...

Eileen Myles Eileen Myles (born December 9, 1949) is an American poet and writer who has produced more than twenty volumes of poetry, fiction, non-fiction, libretti, plays, and performance pieces over the last three decades. Novelist Dennis Cooper has des ...

, Luis J Rodriguez, and Raquel Gutierrez). and screenings. In 2013 the gallery hosted a viewing of

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (;''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''"Warhol" born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director and producer. A leading figure in the pop art movement, Warhol ...

's ''

Sleep Sleep is a state of reduced mental and physical activity in which consciousness is altered and certain Sensory nervous system, sensory activity is inhibited. During sleep, there is a marked decrease in muscle activity and interactions with th ...

''. In 2014 HRLA hosted

Abraham Cruzvillegas Abraham Cruzvillegas (born 1968) is a Mexican visual artist. He is best known for his work with found objects, and particularly his ongoing "autoconstrucción" project. Biography Cruzvillegas grew up in Ajusco, a district in the south of Mex ...

's 2009 film ''Autoconstrucción'' and a

Pokémon is a Japanese media franchise consisting of List of Pokémon video games, video games, Pokémon (TV series), animated series and List of Pokémon films, films, Pokémon Trading Card Game, a trading card game, and other related media. The fran ...

-themed exhibit called "Who is Ken Sugimori?" by

Johnnie Jungleguts Johnnie Jungleguts (born John Martin; June 9, 1987) is an American artist living in Los Angeles. Jungleguts work spans a range of disciplines and media including drawings, radio, and video and frequently involves video games, comics, and other e ...

. HRLA also collaborates with Los Angeles organizations such a
VOLUME
and ONE Archives. In June 2012, HRLA hosted a fundraiser, headlined by indie bands

No Age No Age is an American noise rock duo consisting of guitarist Randy Randall and drummer/vocalist Dean Allen Spunt. The band is based in Los Angeles, California, and was signed to Sub Pop records from 2008 to 2013. No Age's fourth studio album, '' ...

, Tearist, and L.A. Fog, opposing the introduction of

Walmart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores in the United States and 23 other ...

to the neighborhood. In a calendar year, HRLA may present as many as 90 events, installations and exhibitions. In 2012 ''

LA Weekly ''LA Weekly'' is a free weekly alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, California. The paper covers music, arts, film, theater, culture, and other local news in the Los Angeles area. ''LA Weekly'' was founded in 1978 by Jay Levin (among others), ...

'' recognized Human Resources as one of the best arguments "that Chinatown is still a vital art neighborhood."

References

{{Reflist, 30em Non-profit organizations based in Los Angeles Art museums and galleries in Los Angeles Performance art in Los Angeles Music venues in Los Angeles 2010 establishments in California Chinatown, Los Angeles Art in Greater Los Angeles Arts organizations based in Los Angeles Contemporary art galleries in the United States