Alexis Smith to be honored at Venice Family Clinic Art Walk & Auctions

The 39th annual Venice Family Clinic’s Art Walk & Auctions honors three world-renowned Venice-based artists: this year’s signature artist Alexis Smith along with honorees Sam Durant and Ed Moses, posthumously. Venice Art Walk takes place on Sunday, May 20, from noon to 6pm at Google Los Angeles, 340 Main Street, Venice, CA 90291 and is the largest public event held by the tech giant. Guests can enjoy free, firsthand access to the city’s internationally renowned art scene and all winning bids in the silent art auction raise vital funds that directly impact the lives of people in need of health care. This year’s lead sponsors are Sony Pictures Entertainment and Frederick R. Weisman Philanthropic Foundation. Venice Family Clinic’s Art Walk & Auctions has long been a must-see for local art collectors and trendsetters. This year’s event features a 250-piece silent art auction along with live art exhibits curated by artist Bert Rodriguez, guided art workshops, live music and a craft beer & wine garden. For a 50 USD donation, guests enjoy special access to dozens of artists’ studios.  

A highlight of the 2018 Venice Family Clinic’s Art Walk & Auctions is the celebration of LA-based collage and installation artist Alexis Smith. Emerging from the LA art scene in the 1970s, she went on to exhibit extensively at prestigious museums around the world. Known for her meticulously crafted and colorful mixed-media collages, Smith has focused on universal, but timely subjects from truth to gender, underscoring the powerful role of the media in shaping our lives and exploring the deeper meanings behind popular culture. As this year’s Venice Family Clinic’s Art Walk & Auctions Signature Artist, Smith is in good company with past honorees including John Baldessari, David Hockney and Barbara Kruger. 

As the largest art walk in Southern California, this unique event supports Venice Family Clinic’s mission to provide quality health care to people in need. From its roots in Venice Beach, the Clinic has expanded to include 12 sites in Venice, Santa Monica, Mar Vista, Inglewood and Culver City—as well as street outreach to homeless populations—serving 26,000 people annually, providing them with quality primary care, specialty care, mental health, dental, and health education. During a particularly unsteady and tumultuous time for health care, this year’s auction is more important than ever, and several hundred renowned artists including such luminaries as John Baldessari, Ed Ruscha and Alison Saar are donating their work with the goal of exceeding the 800,000 USD raised last year in support of the Clinic’s important work.

Venice-based multimedia artist Sam Durant, known for his social and political artwork, will be creating a print for this year’s auction. An active supporter of Venice Family Clinic since 1992, Sam has a strong personal connection to the cause, having once been a patient of the Clinic. With his recent passing, Venice Family Clinic will also honor iconic painter Ed Moses, one of the most experimental artists of the last half century. A former honoree, Moses kept his artist studio in Venice and generously donated artwork to the event over the many years.

Art enthusiasts will be able to preview the silent auction and bid in advance online at Paddle 8, with all proceeds benefiting Venice Family Clinic. For exclusive access to LA’s internationally renowned creative scene, art lovers may also become Venice Art Walk Angels. Angels enjoy intimate art talks in the homes of renowned collectors, as well as a VIP preview of the silent art auction at Google Los Angeles on Saturday, May 19, before the auction opens to the public on Sunday.