LACMA’s 12th Annual Art+Film Gala Honors Judy Baca and David Fincher and Raises More than $5 Million
More than 650 Notable Guests Attended the Event
Co-chaired by Eva Chow and Leonardo DiCaprio, with a Special Performance by Lenny Kravitz
Presented by Gucci
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) hosted its 12th annual Art+Film Gala on November 4, 2023. The event honored artist Judy Baca and filmmaker David Fincher, featuring a special performance by Lenny Kravitz. Over 650 notable guests from the art, film, fashion, and entertainment industries attended the gala. The event was co-chaired by LACMA trustee Eva Chow and Leonardo DiCaprio, with गुच्ची Creative Director Sabato De Sarno serving as the Gala Host Committee Chair.
This year’s gala successfully raised more than $5 million to support LACMA’s initiatives aimed at elevating the role of film in the museum’s curatorial programming and advancing its broader mission. Gucci, a long-standing partner of LACMA since the inaugural Art+Film Gala in 2011, returned as the presenting sponsor of this year’s event. Additionally, Audi provided electric vehicle transportation and additional support.
It was a great pleasure to bring such an amazing group of people together to honor Judy Baca and David Fincher while supporting our beloved museum,” said gala co-chair Eva Chow. “Lenny Kravitz’s incredible performance made the evening truly unforgettable. I’m so grateful to Sabato De Sarno and everyone at Gucci for their continued generosity and belief in the power of art and film.”
Michael Govan, LACMA CEO and Wallis Annenberg Director, added, “Judy Baca and David Fincher are both powerful storytellers whose bodies of work offer vital commentary on history and human nature. It was wonderful to recognize their achievements alongside other artists and friends from L.A.’s creative industries. We owe the success of the Art+Film Gala year after year to the dedication of our co-chairs, Eva Chow and Leonardo DiCaprio, and I’m deeply grateful for their ongoing support.”
The 2023 Art+Film Gala was planned in collaboration with SAG-AFTRA. The proceeds from the event support LACMA’s film initiatives, future exhibitions, acquisitions, and programming.
Renowned artists, distinguished guests and luminaries from the art, fashion, music and entertainment industries gathered at the Art+Film Gala and posed for photos in front of Chris Burden’s “Urban Light” (2008) on Wilshire Boulevard. Following an outdoor cocktail reception, guests moved into the Art+Film pavilion overlooking Michael Heizer’s “Levitated Mass” (2012) for a special dinner prepared by Chef Mattia Agazzi of Gucci Osteria da Massimo Bottura in Beverly Hills in collaboration with Chef Joachim Splichal and Patina Catering.
After welcoming words from Michael Govan and Eva Chow, Eva Longoria paid tribute to Judy Baca accompanied by a short film by Alejandra Vasquez and Sam Osborn titled “Baca”.
Honoree Judy Baca expressed her gratitude and spotlighted her many collaborators, saying, “There are hundreds, probably thousands of people with me on the stage tonight, accepting this acknowledgment of our work with deep gratitude. Often, we worked against all odds to remember our stories and paint them on the walls of our communities around the nation and the world.”
Honoree David Fincher humbly remarked “I suppose I’ve never looked at directing as artistic because it required so many actual artists just to get through a given day. I am grateful for my inclusion this evening, standing next to Judy.”
Following dinner, Michael Govan invited guests back outside, where Jennifer Lopez introduced the evening’s performer, Lenny Kravitz. The iconic musician played beloved hits, including “Fly Away,” “American Woman,” “Are You Gonna Go My Way,” “Dig In,” and delivered a moving rendition of “Here to Love.”
Notable figures from the art world attending the 2023 Art+Film Gala included Elizabeth Alexander, Lyndon J. Barrois, Louise Bonnet, Diedrick Brackens, Jeffrey Deitch, Awol Erizku, Brendan Fernandes, Katherine Elizabeth Fleming, Honor Fraser, Larry Gagosian, Charles Gaines, Alexandra Grant, Todd Gray, Chase Hall, Lauren Halsey, Greg Ito, Sandra Jackson-Dumont, Ewa Juszkiewicz, Shio Kusaka, Deana Lawson, Tidawhitney Lek, Glenn Ligon, Catherine Opie, Helen Pashgian, Annie Philbin, Nathaniel Mary Quinn, Shaun Regen, Guadalupe Rosales, Ed Ruscha, Analia Saban, Antwaun Sargent, Kenny Scharf, Paul Mpagi Sepuya, Adam Silverman, Shinique Smith, Ricky Swallow, Vincent Valdez, Lesley Vance, Darren Walker, Mary Weatherford, Anna Weyant, Fred Wilson, Jonas Wood, and Kulapat Yantrasast.
Guests from the fashion, entertainment, and business worlds at this year’s event included Ben Affleck, Mert Alas, A$AP Rocky, Halle Bailey, Mariacarla Boscono, Sofia Boutella, Michael Braun, Quinta Brunson, Tantoo Cardinal, Emma Chamberlain, Jessica Chastain, Jodie Comer, Emilie Cotter, Chief Marketing Officer, Audi, Sabato De Sarno, Gucci Creative Director, Colman Domingo, Ava DuVernay, Peter Dundas, Kirsten Dunst, Daisy Edgar Jones, Billie Eilish, Miles Fisher, Jane Fonda, Jean-François Palus, Gucci President and CEO, Andrew Garfield, Julia Garner, Lily Gladstone, James Goldstein, Lukas Haas, Jon Hamm, Laura Harrier, Yoshiki Hayashi, Salma Hayek Pinault, Paris Hilton, Kevin Huvane, Kim Kardashian, Heidi Klum, Daniel Kwan, Greta Lee, Miky Lee, Lykke Li, Eva Longoria, Jennifer Lopez, Praya Lundberg, Tobey Maguire, Michael Mann, Niecy Nash-Betts, Lupita Nyong’o, Sam Osborn, David Oyelowo, Elliot Page, Soo-Joo Park, Pedro Pascal, François-Henri Pinault, Brad Pitt, Jesse Plemons, Ke Huy Quan, Keanu Reeves, Rosé, Peter Sarsgaard, Jodie Turner-Smith, Celine Song, Jes Tom, Alessio Vannetti, Gucci Chief Brand Officer, Alexandra Vasquez, Lucy Walker, and Samara Weaving.
In addition to Eva Chow, LACMA trustees in attendance included Board Co-chair Elaine Wynn, as well as the Honorable Colleen Bell, Allison Berg, Boojin Lee, Cheech Marin, Ashley Merrill, Geoff Palmer, Carter Reum, Jim Tananbaum, Maggie Tsai, and Jeff Yabuki.
Wearing गुच्ची to the 2023 Art+Film Gala were Art+Film Gala co-chairs Eva Chow and Leonardo DiCaprio, honorees Judy Baca and David Fincher, LACMA CEO and Wallis Annenberg Director Michael Govan and Katherine Ross, Ben Affleck, A$AP Rocky, Odessa A’zion, Halle Bailey, Sofia Boutella, Emma Chamberlain, Jessica Chastain, Jodie Comer, DDG, Kirsten Dunst, Billie Eilish, Mark Foster, Andrew Garfield, Julia Garner, Lily Gladstone, Salma Hayek Pinault, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Lenny Kravitz, Greta Lee, Lykke Li, Jennifer Lopez, Mustafa Ahmed, Lupita Nyong’o, Elliot Page, Soo-Joo Park, Pedro Pascal, Brad Pitt, Jesse Plemons, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Keanu Reeves, Antwaun Sargent, Peter Sarsgaard, Yara Shahidi, Jodie Turner-Smith, Jes Tom, and Samara Weaving.
Wines by JUSTIN Vineyards & Winery. Signature cocktails by KHEE Premium Soju. Additional beverages by FIJI Water.
About Judy Baca
Dr. Judy Baca stands as one of America’s foremost visual artists, leaving an indelible mark on the landscape of public art for over four decades. In 1974, Baca established the City of Los Angeles’s inaugural mural program, a pioneering initiative that birthed more than 400 murals. This program not only offered employment opportunities to thousands of local participants but also evolved into the Social and Public Art Resource Center (SPARC), an influential arts organization.
Dr. Baca continues to play a pivotal role as SPARC’s artistic director, championing social justice causes and steering participatory public art projects. Her most renowned creation, The Great Wall of Los Angeles, graces the San Fernando Valley, stretching over half a mile. This monumental mural is a perpetual work in progress, captivating a new generation of young artists.
The process of crafting this mural has embodied the essence of community involvement, engaging more than 400 youths and their families from diverse social and economic backgrounds, alongside artists, oral historians, and scholars. In 2017, The Great Wall of Los Angeles received prestigious national recognition and earned a place on the National Registry of Historic Places, courtesy of the U.S. Department of the Interior.
Dr. Baca’s contributions have been acknowledged through significant awards, including the Guggenheim Fellowship, the United States Artist Rockefeller Fellowship, and the Mellon Foundation Grant, which aims to expand The Great Wall. In a fitting tribute to her outstanding career, she was honored with the 2021 National Medal of Arts.
Dr. Judy Baca creates art that springs from an interactive relationship between history, individuals, and their surroundings. Her public works are a testament to the struggles for rights, seeking to affirm the deep connections communities have to their spaces. Through her art, she co-creates what can be aptly described as “sites of public memory.
About David Fincher
David Fincher is a leading figure in contemporary cinema, celebrated for his meticulous craftsmanship and distinctive visual style. His notable feature films include “Se7en” (1995), “Fight Club” (1999), “Zodiac” (2007), “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (2008), “The Social Network” (2010), “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” (2011), “Gone Girl” (2014), “Panic Room” (2002), and “Mank” (2020). Beyond the silver screen, Fincher’s creative portfolio extends to directing commercials, music videos, and television shows, including “House of Cards” (2013–18) and “Mindhunter” (2017–19).
About Lenny Kravitz
Lenny Kravitz is renowned as one of the preeminent rock musicians of our time, transcending genre, style, race, and class throughout his three-decade-plus musical career. Embracing the soul, rock, and funk influences of the sixties and seventies, this writer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist has claimed four consecutive Grammy® Awards, setting the record for the most wins in the “Best Male Rock Vocal Performance” category. In addition to his 11 studio albums, which have sold 40 million copies worldwide, Kravitz has ventured into film, appearing as Cinna in the box-office hits “The Hunger Games” and “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.” He has also made notable appearances in critically acclaimed films such as “Precious” and “The Butler.” Kravitz’s creative firm, Kravitz Design Inc., boasts an impressive portfolio, encompassing hotel properties, condominium projects, private residences, and collaborations with high-end legendary brands. Most recently, Kravitz was selected as a 2023 Hollywood Walk of Fame inductee and will be releasing a new album, “Blue Electric Light,” in March 2024.
About LACMA
Situated on the Pacific Rim, LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) is the largest art museum in the western United States, housing a collection of nearly 152,000 objects spanning 6,000 years of artistic expression from around the world. Committed to presenting a wide array of art histories, LACMA curates and interprets works of art from fresh and unexpected perspectives, influenced by the region’s rich cultural heritage and diverse population. LACMA’s spirit of experimentation is evident in its collaborations with artists, technologists, and thought leaders, as well as its regional, national, and global partnerships, aimed at sharing collections and programs, launching pioneering initiatives, and engaging diverse audiences.
