The Palm Court Arts Complex is home to the Great Park Gallery and the Great Park Studio. The Palm Court’s re-purposed military structures now form a cultural campus supporting the development of a fresh approach to establishing an interdisciplinary, public arts program.
Learn more about exhibitions at the Irvine Fine Arts Center.
Learn more about Art at City Hall exhibitions.
Thursdays & Fridays: Noon–4 p.m.
Saturdays & Sundays: 10 a.m.–4 p.m.
Free Admission
October 26–December 28
Opening Reception: Sunday, October 26, 1–3 p.m.
Located within the Claire Trevor School of the Arts at the University of California, Irvine, the Donald R. and Joan F. Beall Center for Art + Technology was established in 2000 with the mission of fostering research, organizing exhibitions and
facilitating public programs that promote innovative connections between art, science and engineering. Over the past 25 years, the Beall Center has expanded on the contemporary art-viewing experience by showcasing unique interdisciplinary art practices. In partnership with UC Irvine, this joint exhibition highlights artists, installations, and exhibitions from the Beall Center's 25-year history.
Image courtesy of the Beall Center for Art + Technology
View Photos From the Opening Reception
Exhibitions: January 25–April 12
Opening Reception: Sunday, January 25, 1–3 p.m.
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Daniela García Hamilton is a Mexican-American artist whose vibrant, embroidered paintings reflect the traditions, stories, and memories that shaped her childhood. Through visual storytelling, she explores what it’s like to grow up between two cultures — expressing ideas about identity, belonging, and the experience of navigating more than one world at once.
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Kristina Rose Baker: The Diver presents new large-scale paintings and drawings by California-based artist and Irvine native Kristina Rose Baker. Drawing on over 2,500 years of art historical representations of diving, Baker re-imagines the figure in moments of suspension — between water, earth, and sky. With her distinct use of oil paint and charcoal, she captures fleeting moments between motion and stillness, presence and absence.
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Since the 1950s, comic strips have profoundly influenced artists — fueling bold, graphic imagery drawn from everyday life and pop culture, helping launch the Pop Art movement. That influence lives on in the work of contemporary California-based painter Vonn Sumner, who continues this tradition by reimagining Krazy Kat, the American comic strip created by George Herriman. Sumner uses Krazy Kat as a vehicle for visual storytelling, placing the character in surreal, painterly narratives that blend art history, mythology, and introspective humor.
Image Credits:
Daniela García Hamilton, "El camaleón" (detail), 2023, hand embroidery, acrylic airbrush and oil paint on canvas, 22 x 29 inches.
Kristina Rose Baker, "A Dance in the Mire" (detail), 2024, charcoal, conté, and white chalk on joined paper, 47.75 x 76.5 inches.
Vonn Sumner, "The Magic Number (Krazy in the Sky with Daisies)" (detail), 2024, oil on canvas, 36 x 58.25 inches.
ALL AGES | GREAT PARK | NO REGISTRATION REQUIRED
Sunday, January 25, 1–3 p.m. | Saturday, March 14, 1–3 p.m. | Saturday, April 11, 1–3 p.m. | Great Park Palm Court Arts Complex
The Great Park Palm Court Arts Complex presents a three-part live music series, Jazz in the Palm Court. Inspired by a diverse range of composers and musicians, this event echoes the rich traditions and wide stylistic spectrum of jazz — from the soulful sounds of blues and swing to the bold innovations of bebop and contemporary jazz. Bring folding chairs and blankets for seating around the Palm Court.
Sunday, January 25, 1–3 p.m. | Great Park Studio
Discover the beauty of Orizomegami, the traditional Japanese art of fold-dyeing paper. Participants will fold, dip, and unfold sheets of paper to reveal vibrant, one-of-a-kind patterns that blend geometry and chance. This simple yet creative self-guided activity sets the stage for colorful expressions of balance and surprise. Transform paper into stunning kaleidoscopes of color at this free, fun for all ages event. No advance registration is needed.
Saturday, March 14, 10 a.m.–3 p.m. | Hangar 244, Great Park Gallery, and Great Park Studio
Step into the living history of Southern California, where memory meets melody and fabric tells a story. Beyond the Archive celebrates the region’s rich cultural tapestry through the voices, sounds, and threads that have shaped it. Join us for exhibitions, presentations, and activities for all ages. This free educational event is presented by OC Archives in Action in collaboration with CSUF Pollak Library, UCI Libraries, and the Great Park Gallery.
Saturday, April 11, Noon–3 p.m. | Great Park Studio
Participants can explore the artistic and structural possibilities of everyday paper through self guided techniques like cutting, folding, bending, and layering. Learn how these basic actions can be combined to create personalized animal characters. Once your creations are complete, bring them to life in fantastical mini landscapes by artist Vonn Sumner and capture your work in a playful photo op, sharing your craft and photography skills with #ArtsInIrvine! Bringing together paper craft, sculpture, art direction, and photography, this all-ages event offers a fun, group-friendly activity in visual storytelling through both two-dimensional and three dimensional art forms.
The Great Park Studio is a creative flex space that offers camps and classes, special events, and private rentals. Studio camps and classes cover educational topics such as chess, engineering, science, and more. All current camps and classes can be viewed at yourirvine.org, or browse the current digital edition of Inside Irvine. Special events include enhancement activities that compliment Great Park Gallery exhibitions. Information regarding private rentals at the Studio and Great Park can be viewed here.
Thursdays & Fridays: Noon–4 p.m.
Saturdays & Sundays: 10 a.m.–4 p.m.
Free Admission
*Great Park’s Hangar 244 is subject to closures due to private event rentals and/or larger city-wide events. For building closure status, please call 949-724-6599.
In 1993, Marine Corps Air Station, El Toro was designated for closing by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission and all of its activities were to be transferred to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar. The station officially closed on July 2, 1999.
Since 2002, the Legacy Project has documented the transformation of the former Marine Corps Air Station, El Toro into the Orange County Great Park. They have created more than 200,000 images and famously turned a giant jet hangar into the world’s largest camera and used it to take the world’s largest picture.
These photos capture the Flying Bull insignia around the military base and its buildings.
A Guide to Marine Corps Air Station, El Toro is a documentary about the history of the region.
This 9-minute archive will take you on a retrospective journey from the early days of the Irvine family’s prodigious ranching and agricultural projects, to the coming of World War II and the subsequent arrival of Marine Corps Air Station, El Toro.
The film screens every 20 minutes in the History Room hallway of Hangar 244.
The Flying Bull
In 1943 Walt Disney designed the El Toro Flying Bull logo for Marine Corps Air Station El Toro. Walt Disney Productions created approximately 1,200 designs during World War II for both American and Allied military units. In 1993, Marine Corps Air Station El Toro was designated for closing by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission and all of its activities were to be transferred to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar. The station officially closed on July 2, 1999. These photos, captured by the Legacy Project, document the Flying Bull insignia in various locations of MCAS El Toro.
Opening El Toro
Construction of Marine Corps Air Station El Toro began on August 3, 1942 on land previously owned by the Irvine Company. The runways and taxiways were completed by December 1, 1942 and all squadron hangars were complete by January 15, 1943. These photos, taken by Bob Blankman, a history archivist and member of the first unit stationed at El Toro, capture the building of the base.
Coordinates
Since 2002, the Legacy Project has documented the transformation of the former Marine Corps Air Station El Toro into the Orange County Great Park. They have created over 200,000 images and famously turned a giant jet hangar into the world’s largest camera and used it to take the world’s largest picture. This photography collection showcases 18 former MCAS El Toro buildings and sites, accompanied by a large-scale historic map of the base highlighting the coordinates and building numbers represented in each photo. The Legacy Project is comprised of artists Mark Chamberlain, Clayton Spada, Jacques Garnier, Robert Johnson, and Douglas McCulloh.
Life on the Base: MCAS El Toro
The day to day for El Toro service members included the expected activities of life on a military base, however their free time and recreational activities were fun, diverse and similar to Great Park visitors today. The images on display, courtesy of the First American OC Historical Photo Archive and the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum, capture life in the early days of MCAS El Toro. Originally exhibited in the 2023 Great Park Gallery exhibition Life on the Base: MCAS El Toro curated by Cynthia Castaneda.
Contact Us
949-724-6880
Irvine Fine Arts Center
14321 Yale Ave.
Irvine, CA 92604
Great Park Arts
8000 Great Park Blvd.
Irvine, CA 92618
Irvine City Hall
1 Civic Center Plz.
Irvine, CA 92606
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Read the digital winter issue of ArtBeat. Registration for classes opens November 15 at 6 a.m. at yourirvine.org.
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