Photographs by Janna Ireland will be on display in the “Even by Proxy” exhibit. (photo by Janna Ireland, courtesy of the L.A. Department of Cultural Affairs)

Commissioned on the occasion of Hollyhock House’s centennial, “Janna Ireland: Even by Proxy” presents twenty-one photographs by the artist that introduce new perspectives on Los Angeles’ only World Heritage site. The exhibit opens Jan. 26.

Ireland’s photographs privilege the quiet, subtle details of Hollyhock House and make visible the care and conservation that sustain the site over time.

The title of the exhibition comes from Frank Lloyd Wright’s autobiography, in which he describes the process of realizing Hollyhock House. For Ireland, Wright’s phrase “even by proxy” points to the fraught relationship between client and architect in building the house as well as the ongoing project of preservation.

“I regard the story of Hollyhock House, and how it came to be in spite of the often contentious relationship between heiress Aline Barnsdall and architect Frank Lloyd Wright, as one of the great L.A. stories,” Ireland said. “It is a tale of ego and conflicting ambitions, as so many of the best stories are. My photographs are about light and shadow, wood and concrete, and the labor involved in preserving Wright and Barnsdall’s complicated project for future generations.”

“At the site’s centennial, Janna Ireland beautifully documents the landmark structure, showing signs of life, scars and activity along with striking interplay of light and shadow,” said Abbey Chamberlain Brach, Hollyhock House director and curator. “This commission builds a rich photographic legacy for Hollyhock House, including work by Margrethe Mather, Edmund Teske and Julius Shulman, and here Ireland reframes the storied site, capturing its continued resonances into the 21st century.”

Even by Proxy is presented in partnership with Project Restore and the Julius Shulman Institute at Woodbury University. Janna Ireland is the 2024 recipient of the Julius Shulman Institute Excellence in Photography Award, which is presented to a photographer who honors Shulman’s legacy by challenging the way we look at physical space.

Janna Ireland lives in Los Angeles, where she is an assistant professor in the Department of Art and Art History at Occidental College. Her photographic work is primarily concerned with the themes of family and domestic life, the built environment, and interactions between humans and the natural world.

Her 2024 mid-career survey, “Janna Ireland: True Story Index,” was jointly hosted by the Santa Barbara Museum of Art and the Museum of Contemporary Art Santa Barbara. In 2016, she began photographing structures designed by legendary Black architect Paul R. Williams. A collection of 250 of these photographs was published in a monograph entitled Regarding Paul R. Williams: A Photographer’s View, in 2020.

Advance tickets recommended. An opening reception will be held on Jan. 26 from 2-5 p.m. Hollyhock House at Barnsdall Art Park, located at 4800 Hollywood Blvd., is open Thursday–Saturday, 11 a.m.–4 p.m. For visitor information and tickets, visit hollyhockhouse.org.