A Note from Mike:
To our ShockBoxx Community
I want to extend a heartfelt Thank You for being a part of the spark that kept the flame of ShockBoxx alive over the past 8 years. When Laura and I first opened ShockBoxx we laid down a goal to create an art gallery that respectfully stood on the shoulders of the groundbreaking creatives that emanated from Hermosa Beach since long before either of our time.
We didn’t set out to serve a small community, nope, our sights were set on something bigger— but never could we have guessed just how big. In a short period of time, a group of artists that would become known as, “The Program,” showed up in a way that was undeniably, authentic, captivating and refreshingly experimental.
It was these movers and shakers that brought what began as a banged up little gallery on a small street in Hermosa Beach, to what it ultimately became: a banged up little gallery on a small street in Hermosa Beach that attracted attention not only from Southern California, or even from all the nooks and crannies of the United States, but from artists and patrons tuning in from around the world. Turns out we underestimated the power of authenticity, inclusivity and downright grit. Mission accomplished.
This was a team effort, and a win that belongs to everybody that believed in this place. Sure, Mike, Laura and Astrid were here first, but shortly after that first show, the arrival of original Program Artists like Scott Meskill, Theodosia Marchant, Preston Smith, Sarah Svetlana, Kymm Swank, Dennis Dugan, Drica Lobo, Emerald Padgett and Paul Roustan added an energy to ShockBoxx that started the buzz that carried us from 2017 right into COVID lockdown.
You’d think that would have been the end of us, turns out we were just getting started. Despite the restrictions that came with a worldwide pandemic, this little Boxx-that-could never missed a beat. We switched our format to hosting live zoom openings that managed to help knit a community together while simultaneously reaching around the globe, connecting with and collecting more artists with each new call.
When the dust settled and openings shifted back to in-person, the first thing we did was add a handful of new artists to the mix. With the likes of Aimee Mandala, Kat Alyst, MUKA, and Mike Voss jumping in feet first, all of the sudden the Program was more than just a roll call of represented artists, it’s when this thing called, “Boxx Fam,” sprouted the wings that even Mike and Astrid couldn’t control.
This is the ShockBoxx you all came to know, and that Boxx Fam turned out to be the real creative, powerful and inclusive force that put ShockBoxx onto the world stage in exactly the way you see us now.
Sitting here in the shadow of having made the decision to close the gallery’s physical space, it is clear that the most important thing that ever happened here at ShockBoxx had nothing to do with the thousands of pieces of art that made it onto our walls.
It wasn’t the hundreds of shows, nor was it the art fairs, the articles or the reviews. No, what is most important is that you all found a place to feel at home, a place safe enough to take risks, to be experimental, and most importantly, a place to come sit on the stoop and soak up some sun while kicking it with the Boxx Fam.
Onward.
Love,
Mike x