Non-Stop Flow: Inside Alex Israel’s Studio with DSCENE

Reuniting with Los Angeles-based artist Alex Israel, DSCENE Magazine steps inside his unique studio space on Pico Boulevard for an exclusive interview with Editor Katarina Doric. This unique environment, designed by architects Sharon Johnston and Mark Lee, is a hub for his dynamic creative process. As an artist deeply embedded in the cultural fabric of California, Israel has transformed a once-abandoned building into a space that supports his multifaceted art practice, reflecting his reimagined California pop iconography.

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From his giant plastic Fins sculptures that seem to leap from the gallery floors to his iconic Self-Portrait series born from his celebrity video portraits As It Lays, Israel’s work continuously engages with and reshapes the cultural zeitgeist. As we sit down with him in his studio, Alex shares insights into how this specially tailored space fuels his creative process, the interplay between his personal and professional life, and his visions for future projects that continue to push the boundaries of art and cultural expression.

Alex, can you take us through the process of discovering and transforming the old, abandoned building into your current studio? – I looked for a studio space for a while, in 2015 and 2016. I was beginning to think about making a second season of As It Lays, and I needed space in which I could construct the set and shoot my videos. I was working out of my kitchen, and that wasn’t going to cut it. So I started working with a friend who is a commercial real estate broker, Jay Luchs, and we went to see a ton of buildings. I finally found my building online, visited it, and immediately knew it was “the one.”

I’m almost always working, and the boundaries between work and my social life have become blurry to the point of near non-existence.

What was the vision that guided you and the architects Sharon Johnston and Mark Lee in creating a space that so uniquely supports your art practice? – Sharon and Mark understand art and artists, and they were incredibly easy to work with. I explained my working process to them, and we began to carve up the building into spaces that fulfilled the various needs of my practice. We began to see the building as a kind of spatial narrative—each space marking the next plot point or plot twist in the daily adventure of my work.

Your workday lasts well into the night, blending dinners, meetings, and creation into one. How does this non-stop flow feed into your work? – Flow is definitely the right word. Creativity, for me, is like a faucet in my head that’s always on and always running. I never know when something exciting is gonna come out, so I prefer not to turn it off unless I absolutely have to. And yes, I’m almost always working, and the boundaries between work and my social life have become blurry to the point of near non-existence. My work is often collaborative, and it also often involves casting. So, I accomplish a lot of what I do by meeting potential collaborators and participants at dinners, events, concerts, etc. It was important for me, for this reason, to move my work out of my house and to create some sense of separation through the studio—even if the separation is just an illusion and I’m still going to be home in bed texting a fabricator, watching TV while DM-ing a collector, or sitting in the kitchen researching for my next piece, book or exhibition.

Is your studio intentionally designed to cater to this whirlwind of activity, or is it more of a happy accident? – The studio is designed to encourage this whirlwind of activity and to be flexible enough to contain its ever-changing shape.

Creativity, for me, is like a faucet in my head that’s always on and always running. I never know when something exciting is gonna come out, so I prefer not to turn it off unless I absolutely have to.

With a room for naps and a doghouse, your studio has more character than most people’s homes. Do you ever find inspiration in the midst of a nap? – I don’t think so. I’m a power napper; I love a twenty-minute or forty-minute nap. I don’t get too deep into a REM cycle while napping to have vivid dreams or visions that inspire my work. That said, napping certainly recharges my social battery, and that’s key to my work and to finding inspiration while I’m awake.

What’s the first thing you do when you come into the studio? – I go through the mail and have a Zevia Cream Soda.

Is there an element of the studio that has taken on new meaning or function over the years? – The dog house you mentioned has certainly taken on new meaning since Mr. Brown’s passing at the end of 2022. It’s now very much a memorial to his magical little legacy.

 

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What is the record number of steps you’ve clocked in a single day within the walls of your studio? – I don’t know. But last Sunday at Coachella, I got 37,238.

Name one thing you can’t live without in your studio. – Air conditioning.

As your practice evolves, how do you see your studio transforming with you? – I think when it’s time for a change, I’ll know.

Do you have any wild dreams for the future (or a space that you haven’t brought to life yet)? – I would love the studio to one day have a tiny bar or nightclub inside it, like the Kuramata bar I just saw in the design exhibition at the M+ museum in Hong Kong. That would be a dream, for sure.

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