On the corner of East 3rd and South Garey lies a blurry line between museum and gallery better known as Hauser Wirth & Schimmel, the newest art empire to touch down in Los Angeles. The entire Arts District was overflowing with people and Porsches on Sunday afternoon as the mega gallery opened its doors to the public with a historical group show featuring over 100 works by 34 female artists. 

Like attending your rich neighbor’s housewarming party while the living room is still under construction “Revolution in the Making” was set between a 100,000 square-foot mix of white walls, raw warehouse space, and a public pavilion that hasn’t quite reached its potential yet. The half-finished vibe bothered no one as the day continued to feel like a giant art-world reunion of colleagues and friends hanging out under the baby blue California sky, eating finger foods and drinking lemon water. 

After briefly socializing with our own colleagues and friends in the pavilion we braved the crowded hallways in exchange for viewing art in a few beautiful but stuffy galleries. Stuffy in the literal sense because of the humid air that strangely lingered and stuffy figuratively because of the way the guards scolded us when we tried to photograph the work. I mean what is this? The Sistine Chapel? Please. 

The work itself—while historically important and curatorially significant—felt very safe for a space attempting to change the way the public experiences art. And here we were with an overwhelmingly amount of people trying to have an experience. It felt like a missed opportunity to push some important boundaries but perhaps that is to be expected from a space that is navigating between public cultural institution and private art business. 

What exceeded our expectations however was the amount of actual diversity in the crowd that was drawn to this opening, and that was an energizing sight to see. A mixed bag of hip kids, not so hip kids, suits, stilettos, overalls and families stretching across all ethnicities both seemingly knowledgeable about art or not. It was refreshing to hear declarations like “this shit right here is terrible” sprinkled throughout the respectful oohs and ahhs we’re accustomed to hearing.

In this minor way, Hauser Wirth & Schimmel momentarily succeeded in bringing a community together and in sparking an artistic interest in the public. The challenge will be whether or not they can sustain this diverse engagement and whether the shows that follow will feel exciting and accessible to a larger audience. One thing is for sure though, Sunday’s grand opening marked an important change in LA’s art world and the end of LA’s Arts District as we knew it. You could feel it in the (stuffy) air.