What's New: Long Beach Attractions

Long Beach’s exceptional collection of art museums and spaces offer distinct experiences, from the nation’s only museum dedicated to modern Latin American art, to a 75-year-old landmark perched on an ocean bluff. Each has their own unique culture and vibe, and each has some terrific new exhibitions in store for 2025.

LONG BEACH MUSEUM OF ART

Overlooking the Pacific Ocean, the Long Beach Museum of Art (2300 E Ocean Blvd) celebrates its 75th anniversary with its Permanent Collection Series, from Feb. 21 to May 4. Preserving Progress showcases artistic resilience with a selection of works created from the Works Progress Administration's (WPA) Federal Art Project. Crafted Beauty displays the museum’s complete collection of woodworks, donated in 2009 by Dr. Irving and Mari Lipton. LBMA has a long-standing commitment to spotlight artists working with wood as their primary medium.

Maurice Braun, Mountain Ranch, Oil on Canvas, 24 ¼ x 29 ¼ inches, Gift from Colonel L. Heartwell 60-1.138

PACIFIC ISLAND ETHNIC ART MUSEUM

Pacific Island Ethnic Art Museum (695 Alamitos Ave) is the only museum in the contiguous United States to focus on amplifying the collective wisdom of the Pacific Island peoples of Oceania. Kinship: Translations of Place-Based Memory is an exhibit by artist collective Art 25 (Lisa Jarrett, Lehua M. Taitano, and Jocelyn Kapumealani Ng). The exhibit investigates how Indigenous and Black art lives in the 21st century and how it will flourish in the 25th century in terms of historical access, curation, collection, consumption, and preservation of Indigenous and Black art and culture.

COMPOUND

Compound (1395 Coronado Ave), the creative and cultural complex that offers contemporary art, wellness classes and community markets, ushers in its second year with Fay Ray: Puerperal (Feb. 15-Aug. 2025). Puerperal–which translates to "woman who has given birth”–invites the viewer to consider a postpartum aesthetic while reflecting on the intimacy of motherhood. The show will feature 15 to 20 works by Ray, including two- and three-dimensional monochromatic sculptures.

MUSEUM OF LATIN AMERICAN ART

The Museum of Latin American Art (628 Alamitos Ave) is exhibiting muralist Frank Romero’s “Pleasantville.” Created for the Academy Award nominated film Pleasantville, the large mural will be publicly conserved by MoLAA, in collaboration with Romero, throughout the first half of 2025. By inviting the public to witness the artistic conservation process, MoLAA hopes to demonstrate and share the importance of artwork conservation. The museum is also exhibiting Ironias Del Sur: Neo-Figuration from the Collection, featuring works from its permanent collection that use irony to make their point. These works channel visages into diverse thematic statements about politics and humanity, helping the viewer confront our complex world with a knowing smile.

CAROLYN CAMPAGNA KLEEFELD CONTEMPORARY ART MUSEUM

Located on the campus of Cal State Long Beach, the Kleefeld Contemporary Art Museum’s 11,000 square feet of display space is free to the public. Inner Vision: Abstraction and Cognition (Feb. 13-May 8) considers the use of abstraction to investigate the nature of thought, experience and the senses. Many of the works explore and engage perceptual awareness, demonstrating the potential of abstraction to understand and communicate the full spectrum of lived experience. Featured artists include Bhakti Baxter, Rema Ghuloum and Vian Sora.

About the Author

Steve Lowery

Steve Lowery is a longtime local. Over the years he has written for the Los Angeles Times, ESPN, and others. If you're looking for the hidden gems of Long Beach, Steve is your go-to.