From iconic architecture and neighborhood landmarks to personal histories, cultural traditions, and everyday moments, the exhibition examines how the city is experienced, remembered, and imagined. Through painting, photography, mixed media, sculptural works and other mediums, participating artists offer a collective portrait of Los Angeles—one built not only by its structures, but by the people and stories that animate them.

Presented across town in two exhibition spaces, Band of Vices (located in the Historic Downtown Los Angeles Arts District) and the Helms Design Center (on the campus of Culver City’s Historic Helms Bakery), the exhibition creates a dialogue between art, architecture, design, and community. Together, Helms and Band of Vices invite visitors to consider how creative expression shapes our understanding of place and how the stories we tell become part of a city's evolving identity.

The exhibition opens in both spaces the same weekend, but on different days with completely different works in each location:

Opening and Artists Reception
 

Band of Vices - DTLA

1700 S. Santa Fe Avenue, Suite 371

Los Angeles, CA 90021

Saturday, 27 June 2026

2pm - 5pm

Opening & Artists Reception
 

Helms Design District

8745 Washington Blvd

Culver City, CA 90232

Sunday, 28 June 2026

2pm - 5pm

ABOUT HELMS DESIGN DISTRICT

Helms is a gathering place for creativity in Los Angeles. What began as the historic Helms Bakery has evolved into a destination where design, architecture, culture, dining, and community converge. Through exhibitions, lectures, installations, and public programming, Helms creates opportunities for people to engage with ideas, discover new perspectives, and experience the ways design influences everyday life.

ABOUT dear artists...

dear artists... is an ongoing exhibition initiative created to foster connection, participation, and creative dialogue through large-scale thematic exhibitions. Open to artists of varying backgrounds, disciplines, and experience levels, the program serves as an invitation to respond to shared ideas while contributing to a larger collective narrative. Each exhibition celebrates the power of many voices coming together to tell a richer story than any single perspective could achieve. dear artists... Los Angeles — Streets, Structures & Stories marks the third installment in Band of Vices’ ever-evolving exhibition series. Conceived as both a response to the current art market and a reimagining of how exhibition spaces can invite participation, the series creates a new point of access for emerging collectors while continuing to engage seasoned collectors with limited “wall estate” for new works.

Much like its first two installments, A Figurative Story and Be Still - a still life experience, all participating artists have created works specifically in a 12” x 12” x 1.5” format, with prices ranging from $500 to $2,500. The result is an intentionally accessible, collectible, and deeply considered exhibition model that centers artists, expands opportunity, and invites a broader community into the act of collecting.

ABOUT BAND OF VICES

Established in 2015, Band of Vices is an internationally recognized art and culture platform dedicated to championing emerging and mid-career artists while creating space for voices that have historically been overlooked. Through exhibitions, strategic partnerships, publishing, and community-focused programming, Band of Vices advances conversations around culture, identity, and contemporary life. Founded by Terrell Tilford, the gallery has built a reputation for presenting work that is fearless, thought-provoking, and deeply connected to the communities it serves.