Explore the Era

Delve into the postwar Los Angeles art world in this online archive, which provides additional material related to the exhibitions on view at the Getty Center. Learn about hipsters and happenings, and the venues across the city where all the action took place through images from the archives and first-hand accounts with the artists.

From the Archive

An exhibition at Billy Al Bengston’s Artist Studio

An exhibition at Billy Al Bengston’s Artist Studio, with works by Ed Ruscha, Peter Alexander, and John McCracken, 1970. Image courtesy of Billy Al Bengston

Billy Al Bengston hosted exhibitions in his studio in Venice, California, which he called Artist Studio. This photograph depicts one in 1970, which included works by Ed Ruscha (small painting hanging on the door), Peter Alexander (on the wall at right of center), and John McCracken (the plank leaning against a wall in the background at far right). Image courtesy of and © Billy Al Bengston

Historic Map Locations

Works of Art

  • Untitled (Leaner)

    Untitled (Leaner), 1970, Peter Alexander. Polyester resin. 104 ½ x 5 ½ x 3 in. Collection of the artist. © Peter Alexander

  • The Los Angeles County Museum on Fire, 1965–68, Ed Ruscha.

    The Los Angeles County Museum on Fire, 1965–68, Ed Ruscha. Oil on canvas. 53 1/2 x 133 1/2 in. Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., Gift of Joseph H. Hirshhorn, 1972. © Ed Ruscha. Photography by Lee Stalsworth

  • Standard Station, Amarillo, Texas

    Standard Station, Amarillo, Texas, 1963, Ed Ruscha. Oil on canvas. 64 1/2 x 121 3/4 in. Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire; gift of James Meeker, Class of 1958, in memory of Lee English, Class of 1958, scholar, poet, athlete and friend to all. © Ed Ruscha

  • For People Who Know The Difference

    For People Who Know The Difference, 1967, John McCracken. Polyester resin, fiberglass, and plywood. 120 x 20 1/4 x 3 1/4 in. Collection of the Mohn Family Trust. © The Estate of John McCracken. Courtesy David Zwirner, New York

  • Cloud Box

    Cloud Box, 1966, Peter Alexander. Cast polyester resin. 9 5/8 x 9 5/8 x 9 5/8 in. Collection of Janis Horn and Leonard Feldman, Los Angeles. © Peter Alexander. Photo: Brian Forrest

Explore the Archive

  • Video:John McCracken

    Video: Interview with John McCracken, October 4, 2010, New York, NY. © 2010 Glenstone

  • Video: Peter Alexander

    Video: Peter Alexander speaks about his work, May 2010

  • Video: Jack Brogan

    Video: Jack Brogan speaks about working with Los Angeles artists, June 2011

  • Video: Ed Ruscha

    Video: Ed Ruscha speaks about his work, April 2011

  • Ed Ruscha holding "Every Builging on the Sunset Strip"

    Ed Ruscha holding his book Every Building on the Sunset Strip, 1967. © Ed Ruscha. Image courtesy of Jerry McMillan and Craig Krull Gallery, Santa Monica. © Jerry McMillan

  • John McCracken in his studio

    John McCracken in his studio in Costa Mesa, California, in the mid-1960s. Photo by Frank J. Thomas. Courtesy of the Frank J. Thomas Archives

  • Peter Alexander, 1966

    Peter Alexander in 1966. Image courtesy of and © Billy Al Bengston