Inside Superchief Gallery, murmurs of excitement and eagerness filled the air. Around 60 people gathered in the downtown art space for a screen printing workshop on a late summer evening in August. <\/p>\n
Young families, friend groups and couples filled neon pink pews, ready to print designs on T-shirts. Salsa music blared over the speakers as a few stragglers took their seats and others admired artwork on the walls, including a fine-line David Lynch drawing, a ceramic Garfield and a depiction of a lowrider\u2019s paint job. <\/p>\n
Despite the lively atmosphere, this gathering might be one of the last. Co-founder Bill Dunleavy said the gallery may be forced to close this month if it can\u2019t raise enough money to pay the bills.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe thought we had until November to save Superchief, but it came early,\u201d Dunleavy said. \u201cIt\u2019s not easy to build the type of community we\u2019ve built. It would be a real shame, and set the culture back to some degree.\u201d <\/p>\n
For over a decade, Superchief has established itself as a place where punk rockers, graffiti writers, street photographers, homegrown fine artists and anyone with a piqued interest in counterculture gather to celebrate art. <\/p>\n
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Audrey Caceres poses with her screen printed jersey at Superchief Gallery, during the workshop.<\/p>\n
(Jonathan Alcorn\/For The Times)<\/p>\n
The gallery\u2019s possible closure would add to the list of shuttered businesses in downtown L.A. that have struggled to rebound following the COVID-19 pandemic. Although downtown continues to attract residents, many office buildings are struggling with falling values and high vacancies<\/a>.<\/p>\n This year alone, the neighborhood has seen legacy kitchens like the Original Pantry Cafe<\/a> and Cole\u2019s French Dip<\/a> face permanent closure. The Mayan<\/a>, a historic nightclub, is set to shut down later this month and Angel City Brewery<\/a> announced that its Arts District taproom is being put up for sale. <\/p>\n Nick Griffin, executive vice president of the DTLA Alliance, a coalition of property owners, said the closures reflect the \u201cebb and flow\u201d of business and changing tastes rather than conditions in downtown.<\/p>\n \u201cSuperchief might be closing, but Dataland,<\/a> the digital AI Art Museum up on Bunker Hill, is going to be opening next year. The Lucas Museum<\/a>, a massive billion-dollar museum, is opening in Exposition Park. The Broad<\/a> is doing a $100-million expansion of its facility,\u201d said Griffin. \u201cIt\u2019s the normal churn of businesses and culture.\u201d<\/p>\n He says that more businesses are opening in the area than are closing, but the ones that are closing tend to be \u201cvery high profile,\u201d cater to niche audiences and often have a cult following \u2014 like Superchief. <\/p>\n 1\/2 <\/p>\n After waiting in line to use the printing mechanism, Nick Rivera and Courtney Florento work together to screen-print a t-shirt. \u00a0 (Jonathan Alcorn\/For The Times) <\/p>\n 2\/2 <\/p>\n Screenprint artist Alex Calderon, of Destroy LA, was in charge of teaching the workshop. He is pictured helping a girl named Gianna print a design.\u00a0 (Jonathan Alcorn\/For The Times) <\/p>\n Art galleries have faced their own challenges.<\/p>\n