Where to see and hear it
See
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Bread & Salt San Diego
Former bread factory in Logan Heights housing galleries and studios.
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Craft Contemporary Los Angeles
Craft and folk art on Museum Row, in a converted 1930s building.
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Grand Central Art Center Santa Ana
Cal State Fullerton space with an artist-in-residence programme.
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Hammer Museum Los Angeles
UCLA museum in Westwood; admission is free.
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Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles Los Angeles
Non-collecting contemporary space in the Arts District; admission is free.
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LACMA Los Angeles
The largest encyclopedic museum in the western United States.
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Laguna Art Museum Laguna Beach
California art only, from the nineteenth century to now.
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MOCA Los Angeles
Contemporary art across two sites, Grand Avenue and the Geffen.
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Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego La Jolla
Contemporary collection on the bluff at La Jolla, plus a downtown site.
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Orange County Museum of Art Costa Mesa
Modern and contemporary art next to Segerstrom Center.
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Self Help Graphics & Art Los Angeles
Chicano printmaking workshop and gallery in Boyle Heights, running since 1973.
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The Brick Los Angeles
Non-profit experimental space, formerly LAXART.
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The Broad Los Angeles
Postwar and contemporary collection downtown; general admission is free.
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Vincent Price Art Museum Monterey Park
Teaching museum at East Los Angeles College; admission is free.
Hear
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2220 Arts + Archives Los Angeles
Member-run space in Historic Filipinotown; experimental music and film.
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Belly Up Solana Beach
Converted Quonset hut north of San Diego, open since 1974.
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Dizzy's San Diego
Listening-room jazz, no bar service during sets.
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Hollywood Bowl Los Angeles
Outdoor amphitheatre in the Cahuenga Pass; summer season.
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Sam First Los Angeles
Small jazz bar by LAX with nightly sets and its own record label.
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Segerstrom Center for the Arts Costa Mesa
Orange County's main performing arts campus.
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Soda Bar San Diego
Small room in Normal Heights booking touring and local acts.
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Teragram Ballroom Los Angeles
Mid-size room west of downtown.
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The Casbah San Diego
Little Italy club running since 1989, by the airport flight path.
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The Echo Los Angeles
Echo Park club with the larger Echoplex downstairs.
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The Ford Los Angeles
Outdoor amphitheatre across the freeway from the Bowl, built into the hillside.
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The Observatory Santa Ana
Santa Ana venue with a smaller Constellation Room attached.
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Walt Disney Concert Hall Los Angeles
Home of the LA Phil, in the Gehry building on Grand Avenue.
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Zebulon Los Angeles
Frogtown club and cafe; experimental and international bookings.
Festivals
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Oceanfront festival in Redondo Beach.
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Tyler, the Creator's carnival festival at Dodger Stadium.
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Two weekends at the Empire Polo Club, with large-scale art commissions.
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CRSSD Festival San Diego
Electronic festival at Waterfront Park, twice a year.
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Single-day post-punk and new wave bill at Brookside at the Rose Bowl.
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Desert Daze Lake Perris
Lakeside festival leaning psychedelic and experimental.
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Art fair staged in the rooms and cabanas of the Hollywood Roosevelt.
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Summer-long fine art show with the tableaux vivants pageant alongside.
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Single-day bill drawn from indie acts of the 2000s and 2010s.
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Free street festival on Girard Avenue; proceeds go to local schools.
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Long Beach Jazz Festival Long Beach
Long-running festival in Rainbow Lagoon Park.
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Country festival on the Coachella grounds, the following weekend.
Every link goes to the place itself.