The Hidden Gallery That Is Some Sort of Alternate Universe
Art by Clare Graham. Bottom right button-mirror photo by sorinphoto.com
MorYork Gallery on York in Highland Park will blow your socks off and then roll them up into flower origami, with thousands of other blown-off socks, mount them on a tabernacle, and make you understand your socks—and by extension, your life—in an entirely new way. MorYork is the studio and gallery of artist Clare Graham, in whose hands collections of buttons are reworked into chandeliers; colored pencils become folding screens; and tin-can tops are made into optic coverings for shelves and dining tables. He calls it obsessive compulsive order.
Since MorYork doesn’t have a sign, I’d walked by it many times, thinking it was just another concrete structure shedding paint. I couldn’t have been more wrong. The gallery is immersive, wondrous, and about the size of a roller-skating rink, which is what it was in the ‘50s. The space also hosts shows of unrepresented visual artists, as well as performances. These can be a great way to get inside the gallery, which is open only sporadically. There's an upcoming concert with Dorian Wood performing 10 David Bowie songs on February 26 and 27. Also, MorYork is sometimes open on the second Saturday of each month during the Northeast L.A. (NELA) Art Walks, or try calling to set up an appointment.
MorYork
4959 York Blvd.
Highland Park 90042
(323) 663-3426
