X-TRA Contemporary Art Quarterly

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X-TRA Contemporary Art Quarterly
Executive EditorElizabeth Pulsinelli
Executive Director Shana Lutker
Managing EditorPoppy Coles
Online EditorTravis Diehl
Categories Art magazine, visual art
FrequencyQuarterly
Circulation est. 28,000
PublisherProject X Foundation for Art and Criticism
FounderStephen Berens, Ellen Birrell
Year founded1997
First issueSpring 1997
CompanyProject X Foundation for Art and Criticism
CountryUSA
Based in Los Angeles
LanguageEnglish
Website x-traonline.org
ISSN 1937-5069

X-TRA Contemporary Art Quarterly (X-TRA) is an independent visual arts journal that focuses on criticism and conversation about contemporary art. [1] X-TRA was founded in Los Angeles in 1997 by artists Stephen Berens and Ellen Birrell and is published quarterly by the non-profit Project X Foundation for Art and Criticism. [1] [2] The magazine is the longest running art publication in Los Angeles. [3]

Contents

X-TRA journal publishes features, reviews, columns, interviews, and artist projects. [1] [4] The artist-driven magazine produces exclusive online content and public programs [5] [6] in addition to its print publication. [1] X-TRA’s audience includes a broad range of practicing artists, art curators, art dealers, critics and writers, the general art audience, and students.

History

1990's–1997: Early years and first publication

In Los Angeles in the late '90s, friends and artists Stephen Berens and Ellen Birrell formed Project X, an art curatorial collective. [1] [2] To accompany each exhibition organized by Project X, the group printed newsprint exhibition catalogs that documented the exhibitions and included additional essays and images of interest. [1] [2]

Noticing the lack of lasting art publications in Los Angeles and limited sources of art criticism outside of the mainstream, [7] Berens and Birrell evolved the scope of Project X to include X-TRA, a publication intended to diversify and broaden the dialogue around contemporary art in LA. [2] Berens and Birrell published the first issue of X-TRA in spring of 1997 with co-founders Jan Tümlir and Jérôme Saint-Loubert Bié. [1] [2] From its initiation, X-TRA has worked collaboratively through an editorial board of volunteer artists and writers. [1] [2]

2002–present: Project X Foundation and funding

In 2002, artist and X-TRA publisher Jeff Beall helped create the Project X Foundation for Art and Criticism, a 501c3 non-profit organization, to fund and publish the quarterly magazine. [1] Artist Shana Lutker currently serves as the Executive Director of Project X.

Once surviving on little to no budget, X-TRA is now the recipient of grants from foundations and organization including the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts (2007), [8] [9] National Endowment of the Arts, [10] City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, [11] Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, Mike Kelley Foundation for the Arts, the Getty Foundation, and the Pasadena Art Alliance. [12]

Title

According to Birrell, the magazine's unique spelling of "extra" stems from an idea of only publishing "an issue when [the editors] had a great piece of writing to run, that it would be an extra edition to a publication that didn’t otherwise exist." [2]

Executive Editors

Events

X-TRA hosts a range of events, supplementing the journal with programming to enhance community building. Some examples include:

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Miranda, Carolina A. "It started as a one-shot publication — 20 years later X-TRA magazine is celebrating two decades of art". latimes.com. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Wilcox, Brica (2013). "From X to XV: Conversation with X-TRA Founders Ellen Birrell and Stephen Berens". X-TRA. Retrieved 2019-07-14.
  3. ↑ "VIA Art Fund | Project X Foundation for Art and Criticism: X-TRA Volume 20 Number 4". VIA Art Fund. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  4. ↑ "Spring 2019 Volume 21 Number 3". X-TRA. 2019. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  5. ↑ "Hear Snippets of Independent Art Writing from Around the World". Hyperallergic. 2019-01-30. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  6. ↑ Miranda, Carolina A. "Datebook: A Chicana artist's pastels on paper, sacred books from the Middle Ages and wearable paper jewelry". latimes.com. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  7. ↑ "Experiments in Print: A Survey of Los Angeles Artists' Magazines from 1955 to 1986". East of Borneo. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  8. ↑ "The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts - News". warholfoundation.org. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  9. ↑ The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts 20-year Report, 1987-2007. New York, New York, U.S.A: The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. 2007. p. 67. ISBN   978-0976526315.
  10. ↑ Wick, Julia. "An Extremely Incomplete List Of L.A. Arts Organizations That Have Benefited From NEA Funding". LAist. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  11. ↑ "Project X Foundation for Art and Criticism". Department of Cultural Affairs. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  12. ↑ "X-TRA Contemporary Art Quarterly". Pasadena Art Alliance. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  13. ↑ "Andrea Fraser Considers the Role of Artists and Institutions in the Rise of Right-Wing Populism". Hyperallergic. 2018-03-06. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  14. ↑ "The Cypress - Pope.L reading and conversation at The Underground Museum - News - Mitchell-Innes & Nash". www.miandn.com. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  15. ↑ "Screening and Conversation with Aria Dean, Erin Chrisotvale, and Ulysses Jenkins". X-TRA. 2017. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  16. ↑ "PERFORMANCE ART AND PUBLIC ART FESTIVAL – FACT SHEET" (PDF). The Getty Foundation. April 2011. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
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