Endless Summer

Taking its title from the classic Bruce Brown surf movie from 1966, Endless Summer offers a snapshot of the hedonistic minimalism that emerged in Los Angeles in the 1960s. Alternatively called “Finish Fetish” or “Light and Space,” these works were influenced by the surf industry, custom car culture, and the legendary climate of Southern California and characterized by slick surfaces and dreamy, sometimes atmospheric color. Distinct from the East Coast variant of minimalism that was emerging at the same time, the West Coast artists embraced new materials such as fiberglass, plastic, and resin instead of steel, iron, and lead, and they reveled in the vagaries of perception rather than objective facts.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website.