Frieze Los Angeles launched in 2019 and swiftly became a fixture in the art world calendar. The event effectively kicks off the city’s busiest week of fairs, gallery openings, talks, parties, dinners, and more. This year, it also serves as a runway to an especially big season for L.A.: In March, beloved local artist Lauren Halsey debuts sister dreamer, her long-anticipated sculpture park in South Central, and in April, LACMA will open its long-awaited David Geffen Galleries, a major expansion of the museum’s footprint.
Frieze still headlines art week from its tent at the Santa Monica Airport, though the week’s best discoveries expand far beyond the fairgrounds. If, like me, you’re visiting for the week and aren’t driving (and you’re confounded by the logic of L.A. traffic), the smartest approach is to plan by neighborhood. Pick your clusters wisely and you’ll spend more time with art—and less time crawling the 10 in an Uber.
Below is a focused selection of 10 key art destinations for L.A. Art Week 2026. We’ve also made this Google Maps list you can save to your phone, with the following sites (plus more galleries), to make navigating on the ground easier.
1. Frieze Los Angeles
Santa Monica | Santa Monica Airport, 3027 Airport Avenue, Santa Monica
The main event: Frieze Los Angeles brings together around 100 international galleries under a tent at the Santa Monica Airport. As you approach from the parking lot or drop-off point, you’ll typically find a solid lineup of food trucks and dining options, plus Frieze Projects, a slate of public artworks curated by Art Production Fund. While it’s a close cousin of the other Frieze fairs, there’s a light-filled, al fresco West Coast character that sets this event apart from convention-center events. I always make time for the Focus sector, which highlights solo and duo presentations by emerging galleries. It’s a nicely scaled fair—you can see most of it in around two hours with time left for a bite or a beverage outside.
2. Post-Fair
Santa Monica | 1248 5th Street, Santa Monica
Going into its second year, Post-Fair has built a reputation as the cool, fresh counterpart to Frieze—and its location makes it a convenient stop after the main fair. Local gallerist Chris Sharp directs the charming, unhurried event in the lofty and light-filled Art Deco halls of the former Santa Monica Post Office. Galleries receive generous wall and floor space, so the layout feels more open and free-flowing than a typical booth setup. One-third of the galleries are local, but there’s also a strong international presence, with exhibitors hailing from Paris to Oaxaca, Mexico. Expect emerging and mid-career talent and more experimental work—and a useful reset for your eyes after the bigger fair. I’m especially excited for P.P.O.W’s presentation of Phoebe Helander’s paintings. You can walk it quickly, but it’s worth lingering and chatting with gallerists; I’d budget at least an hour.
3. Felix Art Fair
Hollywood | The Roosevelt Hotel, 7000 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles
Felix has become one of the most beloved satellite fairs in the country—largely because it revolves around the delightful David Hockney–painted pool at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. The cabana rooms around the pool are where I usually start: Each hotel room hosts a different gallery, mainly small and midsize programs known for giving emerging artists a platform. Then take the elevator up to the tower for two more floors of guest rooms filled with art. Pop in and out as you sweep through the long hallways and rub shoulders with the art crowd. It’s always fun to see which artworks get hung in the bathrooms. Plan to stay awhile: It takes time to see all the rooms, and it’s hard to resist hanging by the pool. If you want to do it properly, I’d give it at least two hours—maybe three—and stop by some nearby Hollywood galleries before or after.
4. Hollywood Galleries
Hollywood | Various locations
During art week, the stretch of galleries from West Hollywood through central Hollywood becomes an essential circuit that could keep you busy for many days. Several blocks of Santa Monica Boulevard, North La Brea, and Highland Avenues are dotted with excellent galleries. This is one of the rare areas where you can gallery hop on foot—within reason. It’s not New York (where a long stroll between neighborhoods is nice and convenient in good weather); in L.A., even a mile can be impractical, and sometimes not the safest route. Focus on small clusters, not a meandering marathon. Our Google Maps list is especially helpful here. On Tuesday evening, I’m excited about several openings, including three new shows at Megan Mulrooney—Kate Zimmerman Turpin, Alma Berrow, and a group show called “Afterimage” curated by artist Tommy May—as well as the Leiko Ikemura show at Lisson Gallery; and a pair of solo shows at Karma of works by Milton Avery and Casey Bolding.
5. MAK Center for Art and Architecture
West Hollywood | 835 Kings Road, West Hollywood
No visit to L.A. is complete without taking in local architecture, and I’m always drawn to the MAK Center during art week. Housed in Rudolph Schindler’s landmark Schindler House, it’s an unusual-yet-delightful exhibition setting. This year, the MAK Center presents “Nancy Holt: Light and Shadow Poetics,” exploring the pioneering Land artist’s use of light, perception, and space. The California modernist architecture alone is worth the trip.
If you’re craving more art inside very L.A. architecture and planning to head east, look up Frank Lloyd Wright’s Hollyhock House in Barnsdall Park and the Neutra VDL House along the Silver Lake Reservoir. Both similarly stage exhibitions within their historic environs, and their settings offer some of the best communal, outdoor space that the east side of Los Angeles has to offer.
The MAK is conveniently located for a West Hollywood galleries run, too. The lovely Francis Gallery and Hauser & Wirth’s West Hollywood outpost are nearby. Plus, Perrotin is staging a compelling group show in West Hollywood at the former Spago restaurant (1114 Horn Avenue), called “Paging Dr. Feelgood,” tapping into the city’s history as a mecca of spirituality and wellness.
6. Hauser & Wirth Downtown
Arts District | 901 E 3rd Street, Los Angeles
We Live Close To Tha Ground, 2026
Christina Quarles
Hauser & Wirth
If we were ranking the most impressive gallery spaces in the U.S., Hauser & Wirth’s downtown L.A. flagship would be high on the list (the gallery also has an impressive space in West Hollywood). For anyone used to New York’s tighter footprints and crisp white cubes, it’s always awe-inducing. The gallery is set inside a former flour mill the size of a full city block in the Arts District and typically presents multiple shows at a time. The on-site restaurant Manuela and a small garden with chickens add to the considerable charm. During art week, a big Monday-night opening packs the house. This year, I’m especially eager to see a solo presentation of L.A. painter Christina Quarles, who’s known for electric, fluid depictions of the body, as well as a major show displaying the collection of trailblazing L.A. collector Eileen Harris Norton. If you’re making the trip downtown, MOCA and the galleries in the Santa Fe building are easy stops to add on.
7. The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA)
Downtown L.A. | 250 S Grand Avenue + Geffen Contemporary, 152 N Central Avenue, Los Angeles
With two locations downtown, MOCA is one of L.A.’s essential institutions. It boasts an impressive permanent collection of post-war and contemporary art, and the museum always has at least one temporary exhibition worth prioritizing during art week. This year I’m compelled to visit both venues. The Grand Avenue building will open “Haegue Yang: Star-Crossed Rendezvous,” a major presentation of the Korean artist’s signature Venetian-blind installations. And at the Geffen Contemporary in Little Tokyo (a short Uber hop east), “MONUMENTS” genuinely justifies a visit: The show presents decommissioned monuments, including Confederate statues, alongside contemporary artworks to address how such sculptures portray and influence American history and national identity. The show is co-presented by fellow art institution The Brick, which is located along the same stretch as the Melrose Hill galleries.
8. Julia Stoschek Foundation
Downtown L.A. | Variety Arts Theater, 940 S Figueroa Street, Los Angeles
Earlier this month, the Julia Stoschek Foundation opened its first U.S. show, an immersive exhibition spread across six floors of the historic Variety Arts Theater. Based in Berlin and Düsseldorf, the foundation of major collector Julia Stoschek has amassed one of the world’s most significant private collections of time-based and video art. This American debut, “What a Wonderful World: An Audiovisual Poem,” is edited by Udo Kittelmann and features work by Marina Abramović, Arthur Jafa, Anne Imhof, Jordan Wolfson, Jacolby Satterwhite, Lu Yang, and others. It’s open evenings on Wednesday through Sunday from 5 p.m. to midnight, plus an events program on Sundays.
9. Melrose Hill Galleries
Melrose Hill | Various locations
Melrose Hill emerged a few years ago as a gallery destination, anchored in large part by the L.A. outpost of David Zwirner, with several cool younger galleries within walking distance. During art week, David Zwirner is opening solo presentations of work by Belgian painter Luc Tuymans and L.A. painter Raymond Saunders, who passed away last year. James Fuentes, Fernberger, and Chateau Shatto are along the same few blocks of N Western Avenue.
10. Miracle Mile/Mid-Wilshire Galleries
Miracle Mile/Mid-Wilshire | Various locations, Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles
The stretch of Wilshire around LACMA is a rewarding gallery corridor—and several exciting shows will be on view during art week. LACMA itself is always worth a stop, and just across the street, Sprüth Magers is opening an exhibition of new paintings by David Salle. Down the block, Anat Ebgi is opening three solo shows featuring Veronica Fernandez, Heather Guertin, and Alejandro García Contreras. Plus, there’s an exciting pop-up show: Barry McGee, with The Hole and Jeffrey Deitch, is turning a former 99-cent store near LACMA (6121 Wilshire) into a weeklong “artist flea,” with an anti-fascist zine fair and live performances.
A short drive west, Pace’s idyllic ivy-covered gallery is showing an exhibition of large energizing paintings by young L.A. artist Lauren Quin that I’m dying to see. Plus, David Kordansky, Perrotin, and Roberts Projects are all within reach. This part of the city rewards a properly planned afternoon—and unlike some other stops on this list, you can probably park by or Uber to one location and walk between a few spots.
Explore our favorite works from L.A. Art Week in our curator’s picks collection.
