ATLA

About the Gallery
ATLA is a contemporary gallery rooted in Los Angeles and grounded in a deep reverence for craft. With a multicultural focus that brings ceramic and artistic traditions from East and West into dialogue, ATLA’s exhibitions explore intersectionality, history, heritage, politics, and identity through the lens of skilled making.

Named in homage to the Japanese word atara, which describes the sorrow felt when something beautiful is no longer cherished, ATLA is devoted to celebrating endurance and resisting disposability—of work, of experience, and of attention—in a fast-changing, fast-consuming world.

About the Presentation
ATLA will debut at Independent with a sculptural activation featuring work by Yoshikazu Tanaka and Kuniko Kinoto. The Japanese artists will present their ceramic pieces together to highlight a shared interest in creation as an act of transformation. Tanaka’s work uses fragments from old, abandoned ceramic sculptures and ground up found materials such as glass and metal to create new forms. Kinoto uses her expertise in the chemistry and choreography of firing in traditional noborigama kilns to make works that resemble geological forms.