LOS ANGELES, CA.- Two paintings loaned to the Pompidou Center in Paris were accidentally destroyed and another one was damaged. The paintings were part of the "Los Angeles 1955-1985," which ran from March-to-July. “That piece was Craig Kauffman's "Untitled Wall Relief," a 1967 work of acrylic lacquer on vacuum-formed Plexiglas that measured 52 by 78 inches. Pompidou officials told LACMA it fell and shattered July 16, just before the show closed,” reported the Los Angeles Times. The other total loss was an untitled piece made by Peter Alexander in 1971 and lent by the Franklin Parrasch Gallery in New York.

In the exhibition Los Angeles 1955-1985 the visitors discovered a surprisingly diverse art scene, although still not well-known, which evolved continually during the thirty years of this survey. The provincial art scene of the 1950's and 1960's gave birth to an international art capital, recognized since the eighties as an alternative to the New York art scene. The transformation of art forms and concepts and the emergence of innovative art movements were concurrent with the establishment of new art venues, museums and galleries, and the growing reputation of Southern California art schools.

The most significant expressions of this progression were presented in the 17 rooms of the exhibition with a selection of about 350 paintings, sculptures, installations, photos, films and videos. Following a chronological layout, the works were grouped by trends and movements. The exhibition started with works from the 50's, when the art of assemblage reacted against the period's conformism in America. After that, several rooms were devoted to L.A. Pop from the 1960's, which examined the ordinary urban landscape. Then, the exhibition included works representative of the Finish Fetish (California Minimalism) and Light and Space movements, which both included innovative materials and techniques in the late 1960's. This was followed by Conceptual Art and Performance Art, which explored new directions in the 1970's. The final rooms of the exhibition were devoted to the younger generation who came on the scene in the 1980's.