UTA Artist Space

That a top-tier Hollywood talent agency is behind one of L.A.’s most exciting galleries may raise some eyebrows, but UTA Artist Space has made earnest attempts to even the playing field for artists who have historically been shut out from white art institutions. Designed by Ai Weiwei, who has not worked on any other architectural projects in the U.S. since, the gallery consistently invites bright talent into its balmy, skylit space. Though it had its initial missteps (it first set up in Boyle Heights before community members successfully organized against neighborhood displacement from artwashing) it eventually settled into its more appropriate space in Beverly Hills and hired Arthur Lewis as their creative director to curate and orchestrate narrative-driven exhibitions. Most recently, UTA Artist Space has shown Blitz Bazuwale, Ferrari Sheppard, Vaughn Spann and other emerging, in-demand artists. Its Beverly Hills location is right where it had always needed to be, giving both collectors and the public a look at how artists of color can get their shine in a traditionally white-dominated market.