Artist Plans Audible, Neon West Hollywood Sculpture To Honor Gay Businesses Lost To COVID

Artist Carl Hopgood has shared with What Now Los Angeles his plans for Lost Hollywood, a multimedia public art sculpture fusing sound with neon to memorialize beloved gay bars and other institutions in West Hollywood lost during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The work will be installed on the Circus of Books building facing Santa Monica Boulevard near the intersection with North La Jolla Avenue. It will feature the names of establishments lost to the pandemic, including gay bar Gold Coast, which was across the street, while also amplifying recorded soundbites of their stories from speakers below the installation, according to Hopgood.

He said he was inspired by walks along shuttered bars and restaurants to give voice to LGBTQ+ visitors and residents of West Hollywood that have fond memories from the now-shuttered establishments.

“It makes me feel so helpless, but I know there is something I can do to memorialize these iconic places,” Hopgood told What Now Los Angeles. “The names of the iconic gay places we lost will be created in glowing neon lights seemingly falling from the sky from white neon clouds. Their spirit and memory will live on.”

Hopgood said his plan is for the sculpture to be on display for six months, after which time it will be donated to the Los Angeles LGBT Center for permanent display.

The Wales-born sculptor has started a fundraising page for the installation that can be found here.

His latest sculpture is inspired by previous neon art work including Looking For Love In All The Wrong Places and My Heart Is Open.

“These were the places where we came out, made friends, went on dates, celebrated life and laughed in the face of adversity,” Hopgood said of the establishments lost.

“Lost Hollywood will be a memorial to the LGBTQ+ community. A clear message about preserving the legacy of these gay institutions and keep their spirit alive for future generations.”