On the occasion of Machines for the Spirit, Oliver Lee Jackson’s premier solo exhibition with the gallery and his first in Los Angeles since 1982, BLUM is pleased to present a conversation with the artist and Harry Cooper, Curator of Modern Art at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC. Cooper and Jackson met when Cooper invited Jackson for a residency at the Harvard Art Museums alongside saxophonist and composer Marty Ehrlich, with a proposal that the two artists create an exhibition and music installation in homage to their close friend Julius Hemphill, who passed in 1995. In 2002, Harvard's Sert Gallery presented the exhibition Duo, featuring Jackson's paintings and an accompanying soundtrack by Ehrlich. In 2019, Cooper organized a solo exhibition of Jackson's recent paintings at the National Gallery of Art. Cooper has written about Jackson's work in brochures and catalogs, and most recently contributed a text for Jackson's print folio Dear Friend, a collaboration showcasing Hemphill's original scores. This event is free and open to all. RSVP is encouraged. Please note this event will be filmed; by attending, participants and visitors consent to video and audio recording and its publication and reproduction. Limited parking available. Rideshare highly encouraged.