PHOTOGRAPHIC ARTS COUNCIL LOS ANGELES - PAC LA

Experience | Join | Subscribe | Donate


PAC LA is…

© Kali Archibald

…passionate about photography as an art form.

And we’re excited to share our passion with you.

Dedicated

For over a decade, our focus has been to gather and engage experts and curious newcomers in conversation about the ways photography connects and enriches our community.

Independent

From our roots as an advisory council to one of the largest museums in the country, PAC LA is now recognized as a leading independent resource for the entire arts community in Los Angeles and beyond.

Connected

We bring together artists, gallerists, museums, collectors, educators, and individuals to create unique collaborations, programs and experiences.

Active

PAC LA produces a robust calendar of expertly curated public and member events throughout the city, along with online talks and guided travel, on our own and in partnership with other notable arts organizations. We also produce a thought-provoking digital newsletter every month. It’s free, so why not subscribe?

Here for You

PAC LA exists to build, educate, and engage our community, and that means we do this for you. Whether you are a supporting member, a viewer on our YouTube channel, a follower on Instagram, or a first time guest at an event in your neighborhood, we are so glad you found us.

 

  • The Photographic Arts Council Los Angeles creates unique collaborative programming that engages and educates the community in an evolving public conversation about photography and photo-based art.

  • We recognize photography and photo-based art connects us to one another and pushes the boundaries of our understanding.

    As we build upon our knowledge of photography’s complex history, PAC LA fosters a deeper understanding of contemporary artists and their influence on our culture. We engage our diverse community through active learning opportunities – through viewing and discussing classic and contemporary photography, hearing lectures by experts, engaging in an ongoing dialogue with artists and participating in photo-focused travel.

    Giving back is fundamental to the PAC LA culture. Through volunteer work, partnerships, mentoring and grant initiatives we empower the PAC LA community to contribute to a new generation of scholars, artists, students and social activists discovering photography as a powerful means of self-expression. Join us and experience the wide range of photographic activity in the art capital of Los Angeles and beyond.

  • Created in 2022, our strategic plan focuses on ensuring a future of self-sustainability and a growing and diverse PAC LA community.

    The plan is a living and evolving document that has been embraced and is used by our Board to chart and evaluate our progress regularly.

    Learn more and read the plan here.

Explore: Programs | Travel | Membership | Team


EXPERIENCE PAC LA

Something is always happening at PAC LA! Follow us on Instagram for up-to-the-minute event postings, news and recaps, and browse below for what’s in the works now. We offer live in-person programs for the general public throughout Los Angeles, special opportunities for our members, and unique online conversations accessible anytime, anywhere. Get even more curated guidance to current events in photography in our FREE monthly newsletter.

© Yang Fudong

PAC LA for Everyone

PAC LA PRESENTS: YEAR OF THE WOMAN

In honor of the powerful women who helped to shape PAC LA's first decade, we are launching Year of the Woman, a series of flagship public educational events celebrating notable women in fine art photography. The organization is building an entire year of programming around this central theme and will offer free, in-person events, held quarterly at venues across the city in 2025 and early 2026.

Read more here.

© Alex Prager

This groundbreaking programming initiative is made possible through the generous sponsorship of Eastman Museum Los Angeles.

 

Upcoming Public Programs

Installation of Richard Avedon Exhibition at G. Ray Hawkins Gallery - 1980

OCT 26 | An Evening with Stephen White and David Fahey: Benefit for PAC LA

Please join us for an intimate conversation with venerated photography dealers David Fahey and Stephen White celebrating their 50 years in the world of fine art photography. If you want to know about the early days of the photo world in Los Angeles and beyond you won't want to miss this event. With the stories and visuals Fahey and White possess, we're sure to catch lighting in a bottle.

Tickets include dinner, a drink and a front row seat for this one of a kind evening. A portion of each ticket is a tax deductible donation supporting PAC LA. Capacity is strictly limited, so don’t miss out!

Sunday, Oct 26 | 6 PM PST | $200 donation

The Formosa - Hollywood | Buy Tickets

 

Public Event Highlights

Year of the Woman Flagship Event: An Afternoon with Photographer Susan Meiselas | SEPT 2025

Known for her documentation of human rights issues in Latin America, this remarkable event coincided with the 2025 rerelease of Meiselas’ acclaimed publication, Nicaragua from Aperture. Susan’s talk centered around her Nicaragua work over multiple decades and the various forms it has taken, as a book, exhibition and film, tracing the lives of her images as they have circulated and been repatriated, shifting their meaning over time. Read more about her seminal work in Nicaragua here.


Photo Forward | FEB 2023

PAC LA organized and hosted Photo Forward, a brand new, 100% free Photography Fair at Bergamont Station in Santa Monica. Over the course of a weekend, thousands of visitors experienced the excitement of discovering new work, meeting notable gallerists, and learning from PAC LA presenters on topics ranging from the creation of photo books to starting a photo collection.



PAC LA for Members

Upcoming Member Opportunities

© Stephen Shames

OCT 4 | Guided Walkthrough: Comrade Sisters: Women of the Black Panther Party

PAC LA is excited to continue our Year of the Woman programming with an opportunity for members to view Comrade Sisters: Women of the Black Panther Party. Domenica Castillio and Keith Rice from the museum will lead us on a private guided walkthrough of the exhibition. We will also be joined by Brian English and PAC LA Board Member, Alex Fiero.

Comrade Sisters is based on the book of the same name by Stephen Shames and Ericka Huggins. This exhibition presents 50 commemorative photographs by celebrated photojournalist Stephen Shames, who first met members of the BPP in 1966 as a 19-year-old Berkeley student. With unprecedented access, he captured intimate behind-the-scenes moments, revealing women party members acting as leaders; serving communities; caring for families; and engaging in grassroots campaigns to elect mayors, assembly members, judges, and members of neighborhood councils.

Throughout the US, Comrade Sisters were mothers, sisters, aunties, cooks, housecleaners, churchgoers, high school and university students, teachers, artists, factory and retail workers, poets, dancers, writers, and musicians. Primarily between the ages of 14 and 21, they decided to transform the conditions for those facing injustice. What motivated them? Love.

Saturday October 4 | 1 PM PST | Free for PAC LA Members

Museum of Social Justice | Members - RSVP Here


PAC LA @Paris Photo 2024

NOV 12-15 | Member Travel Opportunity: Paris Photo 2025

Paris Photo 2025 will be held at the Grand Palais from November 12-16. As a benefit of joining PAC LA, members are welcome to request a complementary VIP Paris Photo pass for two, but why not treat yourself to a Premium Experience that only PAC LA can offer? You'll enjoy personalized, private access to the City and photography culture beyond the Fair, expertly curated and led by our very own Paris experts. It's an unforgettable way to truly be a VIP in Paris!

November 12-15 2025

Paris, France | Members - RSVP Here

 

Member Event Highlight: The Lapis Press | MAR 2024

In March 2024, PAC LA members were invited to The Lapis Press for a special curatorial walkthrough of the studio–visiting works from newly released editions by Stephen Shore and Daido Moriyama, as well as projects on view by Ed Ruscha, Kehinde Wiley, Matthew Brandt, Analia Saban and others.


PAC LA Online

Since early 2020, PAC LA has presented conversations with artists, curators, collectors and experts from all corners of the photography and lens-based art world. Visit our YouTube Channel to enjoy our full archive.

Recent Online Event

© Cara Romero

 

Instagram Live: A Conversation with Cara Romero | SEPT 2025

Continuing our Year of the Woman celebration virtually, PAC LA presented an engaging Instagram Live event hosted by Hannah Sloan with Santa Fe-based photographer and visual artist Cara Romero.

An enrolled citizen of the Chemehuevi Indian Tribe, Romero was raised between contrasting settings: the rural Chemehuevi reservation in Mojave Desert, CA and the urban sprawl of Houston, TX. Romero’s identity informs her work, a blend of fine art and editorial photography, shaped by years of study and a visceral approach to representing Indigenous and non-Indigenous cultural memory, collective history, and lived experiences from a Native American female perspective.

By staging theatrical compositions infused with dramatic color, Romero takes on the role of storyteller, using contemporary photography techniques to depict the modernity of Native peoples, illuminating Indigenous worldviews and aspects supernaturalism in everyday life.

See the event on Instagram, here.

 

Production of new PAC LA online talks and our free public archive is made possible by the generous financial support of the Herb Ritts Foundation.

Recent Conversations

PAC LA Online Highlight: A Picture a Minute | OCT 2024

In honor of our 10th Anniversary in 2023, PAC LA produced a virtual gathering, "A Picture A Minute", celebrating the power of images and the art of storytelling inspired by Agnès Varda's groundbreaking 1980s television production "Une Minute pour Une Image". In October 2024, more esteemed members of the photographic community come together to share thoughts and impressions of their favorite images in the encore version of the event. Each participant had just one minute to convey the essence of their chosen image, allowing us to explore a wide array of subjects and emotions together through the lens of photography.

Stay tuned for the return of A Picture A Minute in 2026!


Questions/Ideas about PAC LA Events? | Email us!

 

THE REWARDS OF MEMBERSHIP

 
 

PAC LA Membership connects you directly to the heart of the photographic arts community here in Los Angeles.


Through expertly curated experiences, our members…

Explore and Discover

PAC LA members have unparalleled access to artists, museums, galleries, and private collections, all year long, all over Los Angeles. And beyond.

Learn and Discuss

Our private group visits are hosted by leading curators, academics, and often, the photographers themselves. We create comfortable opportunities for members to ask questions, share impressions and exchange ideas with the experts, and each other.

Connect with Each Other

Not only do our members share a curiosity and enthusiasm for fine art photography, they are also warm, welcoming and fun to spend time with. Join this vibrant community and you’ll find yourself among friends.

Support PAC LA

Membership contributions are the primary source of funding for PAC LA. Your dues allow us to serve the Los Angeles arts community as an independent council, produce outstanding programming for members and the public, and to support the health and growth of this vital ecosystem through our work.

Want to do even more with us? Become a Sponsor member!

All membership fees are 100% tax deductible.

Join or Renew today!

© Baldwin Lee

Member Programs include:

Artist Studio Visits & Conversations

Meet photographers where they work, or join them for a guided tour through a new installation. Get direct insight into the creative process and their personal stories.

Past Highlights: Ken Gonzalez-Day | Matthew Brandt | Zanele Muholi| Torbjorn Rodland & James Turrel | | Todd Gray | Judy Dater

Curator-Led Museum & Gallery Walkthroughs

Dive into curator-led walkthroughs at major museums including: The Getty, The Hammer, The Autry, LACMA, The Huntington, The Norton Simon Museum, and more.

Past Highlights: Mapplethorpe at LACMA | Kamoinge Workshop at the Getty | Shirin Neshat at The Broad | La Raza at the Autry

Insider Access to Private Collections and Shows

Be welcomed into private homes and spaces to see photographs that are not normally available to the public. You will also enjoy VIP treatment at photo events around the world.

Past Highlights: Stanford Libraries Collection | Salon event with Tom Gitterman | Collection Visit with Paula Ely & Cesar Rueda | VIP Passes to AIPAD, Photo London and Zona Maco

Immersive Travel

The PAC LA Travel Program offers members extraordinary photography-focused travel opportunities in the US and internationally.
Past Highlights:
Japan, Chicago, London, Mexico City, Paris, New York, Toronto, Carmel, Kansas City, Tucson, Washington, D.C. and San Francisco | Coming soon: Seattle!

See upcoming PAC LA Events here.

© Shirin Aliabadi

Have a membership question? | membership@paclosangeles.com