On January 7, just as the art world was awakening from its annual slumber after Art Basel Miami and the winter holidays, two separate, massive wildfires on opposite sides of town struck Los Angeles (LA). The Palisades and Eaton Fires decimated more than 35,000 acres of land in total—destroying over 12,000 structures, displacing 200,000 people, and resulting in 31 deaths. 

The local artist community was deeply impacted: Kelly Akashi’s home and studio was burned to the ground, her Skutt ceramic kiln the only thing left standing. Organizers of the city’s largest and flashiest art fair, Frieze LA, were teetering on canceling the event altogether in light of the metaphorical and literal dark cloud still blanketing the city in February. Some of the artists who were affected by the blaze insisted that the fair should continue, business as usual. Despite the destruction of studios, bodies of work, livelihoods—even art collections as a result of a lifetime of trades that were being counted on as a source of retirement income—artists clamored for the opportunity to promote and sell their work. Subsequent post-fair reports detailed sold-out booths, including Maia Cruz Palileo’s first solo presentation of over a dozen paintings, ceramic sculptures, and works on paper with David Kordansky gallery.