Compound, a new, free, public contemporary art and cultural space is coming to Long Beach, California, this September.
Compound will be housed within a pair of 1930s buildings recently converted by Long Beach-based BOA Architecture and Compound’s co-founder and creative director Megan Tagliaferri, an entrepreneur, philanthropist, and designer. The renovation will keep the buildings’ existing art deco facades while creating a mix of galleries and gathering spaces in the interior.
The 15,000-square-foot complex’s two buildings, which have been dubbed The Laboratory and The Warehouse, will house a variety of programming. Rotating exhibitions curated by Lauri Firstenberg, the founder of LA><ART and Compound’s curator and artistic director, will be presented in The Warehouse, which will also house a meditation space and a restaurant, Ellie’s.
The Laboratory will contain new site-specific commissions. You Belong Here, a new light installation by contemporary conceptual artist Tavares Strachan, is already installed on Compound’s facade, and new work by artists Anna Sew Hoy, Lita Albuquerque, and Chrysanne Stathacos will be on view throughout the complex.
In a statement, Tagliaferri said, “We believe that culture shifts consciousness. From the very start, our mission has been to create an inclusive space for dialogue, social justice, healing, and transformation—where all feel a great sense of belonging.”
When Compound opens in September, it will host more than just contemporary art events. There will be music performances, film screenings, bilingual Spanish/English poetry readings, and youth art classes, as well as yoga and healing workshops.
Compound’s founders have also launched Compound-ed, an online magazine with contributions from several of the artist featured in the physical space, including Strachan, Albuquerque, Glenn Kaino, and more.
The founders have also partnered with Artist Relief, a national organization that aims at supporting artists during the COVID-19 pandemic, to launch a digital weekly series that shares wellness resources for artists on the two organizations’ social media channels.
