“This festival is about giving back to our community, by preserving what’s best about the art and music of LA, while providing fuel for the amazing new cultural developments happening here.”

One of Los Angeles most unique events and a staple in the city for almost two decades, the 17th Annual Tarfest celebrates Art & Music on September 14, 2019 from 12pm to 7:30pm at the La Brea Tar Pits 5801 Wilshire Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90036.

Always FREE, Angelenos of all ages are invited to dance the day aways with a lineup of KCRW DJs, while artists like Johnny KMNDZ Rodriguez (curated by KP Projects Gallery) and Mr. B Baby (curated by Branded Arts ) who was recently part of the Maya Angelou Mural Festival, paint live murals around the park at L.A.’s distinct natural attraction, the La Brea Tar Pits. All live art will be sponsored by Blick Art Materials.

Tarfest, the pit’s one-day-only art and music festival going 17 years strong, is bucking the trend of other festivals, remaining free and open to the public, and fully dedicated to promoting the best that LA has to offer, in an era defined by selling and monetizing.

In addition to the expanded programming for installation art, the iconic Serpentine Pavilion at Second Home can be experienced for free by everyone who attends the festival.

Tarfest’s longtime partner, the Natural History Museum of LA County, will also be open for FREE all day, allowing attendees to flow at their leisure from art and music to immersion in geological history.

Tarfest is produced by the non-profit arts organization LAUNCH LA.

“TARFEST has been part of the LA community for over seventeen years, remaining as an annual event through massive changes that have transformed the city,” says LAUNCH LA founder James Panozzo.

Live music will be provided by KCRW’s own Raul Campos, Jeremy Sole and Valida opening the festivities at noon.

Throughout the day, attendees can immerse themselves in large-scale live painting sessions by Johnny KMNDZ Rodriguez (curated by KP Projects Gallery), and Mr. B Baby (curated by Branded Arts), who was recently part of the Maya Angelou Mural Festival. All live art will be sponsored by Blick Art Materials.

TARFEST 2019’s expanded Installation Art program features:

Second Home Serpentine Pavilion by SelgasCano at La Brea Tar Pits Curated by Second Home and the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County (NHMLAC)
SelgasCano’s now-iconic architectural creation can be experienced for free by all attending TARFEST 2019. Each of the rainbow tunnels takes you on a different journey. There are multiple ways to wander, and many entrances and exits, but they all emanate from a center area where you’ll be immersed in stained glass light. The pavilion experience shifts from day to night—natural light seeps through translucent walls by day, and glowing lights illuminate its colors and surfaces once the sun goes down.

What Wood You Build by Susan Feldman Curated by Hijinx Arts
In this larger-than-life installation, Feldman brings together her found wood sculptures to form an immersive structural landscape, creating a community of architectural fantasy buildings.

Ox by Cynthia Minet Curated by Holly Jerger of Craft Contemporary
In her cutting-edge, wildly popular Ox sculpture series, Minet creates life-size sculptures of oxen from recycled materials, light-emitting from their partially translucent bodies.

Site-Specific Works by Ramiro Gomez Curated by Jennifer Cernada of LACMA
Gomez’s work highlights the “invisible” labor forces that typically maintain public and private spaces of leisure. Subverting the societal tendency to become oblivious to the presence of custodial, construction, and domestic workers, Gomez’s work elevates and centralizes those individuals. Using cardboard as his primary support, he often paints life-size cut-outs of landscapers or nannies and installs them “guerilla-style” in parks, the lawns of luxurious homes, or at the entrance to the Beverly Hills Hotel. For his submission to Tarfest, the artist is commenting on the immigration crisis and the countless instances of family separation that are presently taking place at our national border.

Catering to all ages, there will be free kids art-making and cultural activities with Japan Foundation, Los Angeles, Fusion Academy, Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, The Petersen Automotive Museum and METRO. Intergenerational hip-hop and breakdancing collective Justice by Uniting in Creative Energy (JUiCE), based out of the MacArthur Park Recreation Center in the Rampart District of Los Angeles will conduct art and dance workshops as well. Face painters, balloon artists, and other surprises complete the celebration.

The 21+ crowd can enjoy the Lagunitas Biergarten & Cocktail Lounge featuring selections from Lagunitas Brewing Company and 6th & La Brea Brewery, a specialty cocktail from Tito’s Handmade Vodka and Ryder Estate Wines.

A selection of Los Angeles’ hottest gourmet food trucks will also be on-site, including Baby’s Badass Burgers, Rice Balls of Fire, The Deli Doctor, White Rabbit Truck and Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream.

Tarfest 2019 is made possible in part by support from the City of Los Angeles, Department of Cultural Affairs, the California Arts Council, the National Endowment for the Arts/Art Works and The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles. Some of this year’s sponsors include Olympia Medical Center, Lagunitas Brewery, The Original Farmer’s Market, The Grove, The Beverly Connection, Los Angeles City Councilmembers David Ryu and Paul Koretz, METRO, Builders of the Purple Line Subway, Arclight Cinemas, the Miracle Mile Chamber of Commerce, and many other businesses and individuals who believe in advancing creativity and free, innovative arts programming in Los Angeles. A special thanks for the support and participation of cultural partners LACMA and the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County (NHMLAC). Please visit http://www.launchla.org and for more information.