While much has been written about blue-chip galleries setting up shop in Los Angeles since the pandemic, from David Zwirner to Perrotin, smaller international outfits are also flocking to the City of Angels. One is the Cape Town–based Southern Guild, whose LA outpost makes it one of the few Africa-founded galleries to have a presence in the United States.
Located in Melrose Hill (a real-estate term that refers to a neighborhood better known locally as East Hollywood), Southern Guild’s space is near Zwirner, Morán Morán, James Fuentes, and Rele, which was founded in Lagos in 2015. Other galleries are a short drive away.
Taking over a 5,000-square-foot former laundromat, Southern Guild is opening with two exhibitions, a solo show for Zizipho Powsa, whose recent residency in Long Beach was a catalyst of sorts for the gallery’s expansion to LA, and a group exhibition titled “Mother Tongues,” featuring 26 artists on the gallery’s roster, including Zanele Muholi, Andile Dyalvane, Manyaku Mashilo, Jody Paulsen, andJozua Gerrard.