Los Angeles is a much different city now compared to the first week of 2025, before wildfires wrought unimaginable devastation on the Pacific Palisades and Altadena neighborhoods. But not even the most severe climatic disasters can dampen Southern California’s unshakeable creative spirit, which goes on vivid display during Frieze Los Angeles. As artists, gallerists, and collectors descend on the City of Angels, its tight-knit design community has come together to mount a wealth of stellar shows around town emblematic of the creative community’s deep bonds and layers of support. Many exhibitions directly benefit fundraisers to support artists and designers who lost their homes and studios to the fires; others are vibrant showcases of the resilience and talent percolating within California’s creative capital. All are worth seeing.

“Woody De Othello: Tuning the Dial” at Karma”

Opportunities for reflection and self-discovery abound in Woody De Othello’s inaugural Los Angeles solo show, which unites stacked sculptures, poignant works on paper, and even an ambient soundscape into perhaps the Miami-born artist’s most ambitious outing yet. Bronze assemblages of hands, ears, feet, and speaker horns collapse the distinction between seeing, hearing, and feeling, while a constellation of ceramic figurations rest atop forms inspired by boomboxes and African drums. The back room is where the real soul-searching begins—Othello blankets the entire floor with mounds of sand and sprinkles the walls with watercolors that he likens to the stars illuminating wayward travelers through the desert.

February 19–April 5