Carolyn Applegate: The L.A. Series
June 27th - August 23rd
Reception: June 27th, 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM

This newly unearthed body of abstract paintings—created in the 1980s and 1990s—reflects a vibrant period in Carolyn Applegate’s career during her time as part of downtown Los Angeles’ thriving studio scene. Bold, gestural, and emotionally resonant, these works explore themes of growth, regeneration, and sensory experience, inviting viewers to slow down and engage with the power of form, color, and rhythm.

The LA Series is a meditative exploration of abstraction grounded in light, color, and the sensory rhythms of Southern California. These paintings are not depictions of specific places but atmospheric responses to the visual language of Los Angeles—its haze, heat, movement, and muted geometry. Through a restrained palette and layered, gestural brushwork, Applegate builds compositions that hover between clarity and obscurity, evoking both the urban sprawl and quiet moments of reflection within it. The result is a body of work that captures something elusive yet distinctly felt: the emotional weather of a place, the presence of absence, and the beauty of stillness amidst chaos.

Carolyn Applegate (b. Louisiana, 1938) is an artist whose practice in abstraction spans over five decades. Known for her vibrant and gestural approach to painting, Applegate’s work draws from both the natural world and psychological interiority, translating personal experience and collective emotion into bold, expressive forms. After relocating from Louisiana, Applegate spent over fifty years in Los Angeles, where she successfully integrated her work as an educational psychologist with her artistic endeavors. Her practice was deeply informed by her work in special education, and she was twice recognized by the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs with major grants. The first supported an after-school art program for students with learning disabilities. The second, awarded in the wake of the 1992 Los Angeles civil unrest, funded a community-based art initiative designed to foster healing and cultural exchange across the city’s diverse neighborhoods. Throughout her career, Applegate has remained committed to the expressive potential of abstraction. Now based in Bakersfield, California, Applegate continues to paint and reflect on a rich career defined by both introspection and public engagement.