More than 650 well-known people from the art, film, fashion, and entertainment industries attended the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) 12th annual Art+Film Gala on Nov. 4.
It honored artist Judy Baca and filmmaker David Fincher and featured a special performance by Lenny Kravitz.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) 12th annual Art+Film Gala (All photos by Getty Images)
This year, the Gala, presented by Gucci, was co-chaired by LACMA trustee Eva Chow and Leonardo DiCaprio with Gucci Creative Director Sabato De Sarno as the gala host committee chair.
The event raised more than $5 million to support LACMA’s efforts to make film more central to the museum’s curatorial programming, as well as LACMA’s broader mission.
“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 Chow. “And Lenny Kravitz’s incredible performance made the evening truly one to remember. 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.”
“Judy Baca and David Fincher are both powerful storytellers whose bodies of work offer vital commentary on history and human nature, and it was wonderful to recognize their achievements with all of the other artists and friends from L.A.’s creative industries,” said Michael Govan, LACMA CEO and Wallis Annenberg Director.
The 2023 Art+Film Gala was planned in alignment with SAG-AFTRA. The proceeds from the event support LACMA’s film initiatives and future exhibitions, acquisitions, and programming.
Following the outdoor cocktail reception, guests moved into the Art+Film pavilion overlooking Michael Heizer’s Levitated Mass (2012) for a special dinner by chef Mattia Agazzi of Gucci Osteria da Massimo Bottura in Beverly Hills, in collaboration with chef Joachim Splichal and Patina Catering.
After Michael Govan and Eva Chow welcomed the crowd, Eva Longoria gave a tribute to Judy Baca, accompanied by a short film by Alejandra Vasquez and Sam Osborn titled Baca.
Baca said, “There are hundreds, probably thousands, of people with me on the stage tonight accepting with deep gratitude this acknowledgment of our work, often against all odds, to remember our stories and paint them on the walls of our communities around the nation and the world.”
Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) 12th annual Art+Film Gala (All photos by Getty Images)
Brad Pitt then presented a tribute to David Fincher.
Fincher said, “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.”
After dinner, Michael Govan invited guests back outside where Jennifer Lopez introduced the evening’s performer, Kravitz. The iconic musician played beloved hits including “Fly Away,” “American Woman,” “Are You Gonna Go My Way,” “Dig In,” and 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, BLACKPINKs’ Rosé, Korean actor Lee Jung-jae, 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.
Other LACMA trustees in attendance included board co-chair Elaine Wynn, Colleen Bell, Allison Berg, Boojin Lee, Cheech Marin, Ashley Merrill, Geoff Palmer, Carter Reum, Jim Tananbaum, Maggie Tsai, and Jeff Yabuki.
Wearing Gucci to the 2023 Art+Film Gala were Gala co-chairs Chow and 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.