A Brief Downtown Renaissance
When plans were announced in the mid 1970's for a new Museum of
Contemprary Art in downtown Los Angeles, there was an influx of artists
and galleries to the industrial area of downtown. The museum opened a
planning office on Boyd Street and galleries immediately opened in the
surrounding blocks. A lively scene of restaurants, shops and
performance spaces flourished in this neighborhood between Little Tokyo
and Skid Row. A loft building on Boyd and Wall was being restored for
art's studios as were other buildings on the block. Hal Glicksman was
able to convince a patron to support a gallery for an exhibition of Light
and Space installations by Tom Eatherton.
There was very little money for this project, and no money to sustain
the gallery for a further series of works. Glicksman hoped to sell a
major piece, but if that did not materialize, to sell the exhibition
space lease and improvements. Unfortunately, a quite serious downturn in
the economy occured at the end of 1981. All the galleries closed in
downtown and most of the artists relocated as well.
