Art Opens a Portal to Curiosity

We Should Measure Its Value Not in Dollar Signs But in Question Marks

“L.A. is one of the largest creative economies in the world but artists here are low-wage workers. So do we even value art at all?”

Artist Joel Garcia asked the pointed question at last night’s Zócalo program, “What Is the Value of Art?” Put on in partnership with NeueHouse, KCRW, and Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, the program took place just days before Frieze Los Angeles—a week of art exhibitions, events, and big money—descends upon the city.

The panel spoke to a packed house at the ASU California Center. The conversation, moderated …

More In: The Takeaway

tktk | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Can Humans Reprogram the Internet’s Original Sin?

From the Pop-Up Ad to Criminal Sentencing Algorithms, Software—And the People Behind It—Shape Our Lives

Will ChatGPT change the world? The new artificial intelligence chatbot, which has inspired both fear and awe with its power to do everything from write jokes and term papers to …

How Poetry Marches Democracy Forward

Spoken Word Artists Discuss the Power of Language in a ‘Post-Truth’ Nation

The connection between poems and American politics runs deep. Presidents from John Quincy Adams to Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama are published poets. Poets help usher in new presidential eras …

A Feminist-Led Uprising Brings the World to Iran’s Fight | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

A Feminist-Led Uprising Brings the World to Iran’s Fight

This Time Around, Social Media and Youth Fuel the Call for “Women, Life, Freedom”

Last night, a quartet of Iranian women took the Zócalo stage to discuss the uprising in Iran, where a general strike has entered its third day and protests persist after …

Los Angeles Sends Writers in Novel Directions | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Los Angeles Sends Writers in Novel Directions

Three Authors Share How the City Inspired and Influenced Their Stories

It is said that Los Angeles lacks a literary pulse—that the flash and glam of Tinseltown overpowers the cultural terrain. But writers here deftly channel this city’s rhythms, spinning fictions …

| Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

How Do You Solve a Problem Like L.A.’s City Council?

In This Moment of Pain and Division, There’s Opportunity to Demand Real Change for Our Democracy

“Do we even need a city council?” That was the provocative title question posed at last night’s Zócalo/KCRW event at the Herald Examiner Building in downtown Los Angeles.

To get at …