EXHIBITION
Exhibition: Unlocking Sacred Spaces

The Public Art Movement in MacArthur Park.

Fri, 09/01/2023 -
Fri, 10/06/2023
Goethe-Institut LA Project Space

Featuring "The Grieving Sun Mural" Marlené Nansi Lopez's capstone for her year as Activist-in-residence at UCLA,  UNLOCKING SACRED SPACES brings artists together with local organizations and community members to imagine and design powerful public art installations that promote healing, culture, and spatial justice for the future of MacArthur Park. 

The exhibition fills the Goethe-Institut project space with interactive art pieces and offers art-making workshops and art happenings where artists unite to create interactive public art installations. Thes pieces demonstrate the power of “Functional Community Art” to shed light upon the unseen, fight gentrification, decolonize, and to create radical connections. Together, the installations call upon the creation of permanent Public Art spaces that can be activated by various organizations, Activists and Artists, for ceremony, and programming in Los Angeles’ most vulnerable communities. The exhibition will also introduce  the next evolution of the Grieving Sun Mural, the "Enchula LA-Culturama Project" in partnership with UCLA's cityLAB.

While on view at the Goethe-Institut, additional programming will include story-art circles, documentary screenings, discussions, and art happenings. In the spirit of the “Aesthetics of the Oppressed”, the exhibition serves as a launching point to begin legal and political negotiations for the permanent installation of the art pieces in MacArthur Park.


UNLOCKING SACRED SPACES includes works from Artists Marlené Nansi López, Abraham Aragundi, Maria Ramirez, and Patricia Yossen.
In cooperation with HOLA, CHIRLA, cityLAB UCLA, Polos Pantry, and Inner City Arts.

The exhibition can be viewed during events and at the following times:
During Office Hours: September 1st -October 6th, 2023
                                    Tuesdays–Thursdays: 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
                                    Fridays: 10:00 am – 3:00 pm 


Public transport is possible with the red line to MacArthur Park/Westlake stop. Using carpool or ride-share options are appreciated.

Free Parking is available at Metro/Retail parking structure located at
676 S. Westlake Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90057 

UNLOCKING SACRED SPACES is curated by artivista Marlené Nansi Lopez and presented as part of the Neighborhood Interpretive Center, a hyperlocal initiative of cultural programs that focus on and uplift the MacArthur Park/Westlake neighborhood and surrounding areas.