The GRAMMY Museum® is pleased to announce its plans to expand the forthcoming exhibit celebrating the 40th anniversary of seminal L.A. punk rock band X. Previously set to open on June 30, 2017, on the Museum’s fourth floor, X: 40 Years of Punk in Los Angeles will now be displayed on the second floor in the Museum’s Special Exhibits Gallery, opening Friday, Oct. 13, 2017. With more artifacts and space than previously planned, the exhibit will give visitors a glimpse into how X's four original members – Exene Cervenka, John Doe, Billy Zoom, and DJ Bonebrake – quickly established the band as one of the best in the first wave of L.A.'s flourishing punk scene.
Items on display will include:
• Original instruments and gear played by the band
• Handwritten lyrics and notebooks by Exene Cervenka and John Doe
• Clothing and other personal items
• Original concert flyers for L.A. shows
• Rare photographs and artwork by Exene
• X: The Unheard Music film, and more!
"We are so excited to be moving this exhibit to our main exhibits gallery, giving X, one of Los Angeles’ most influential punk rock bands, the recognition they deserve,” says GRAMMY Museum Executive Director Scott Goldman. "X played such an integral role in developing the West Coast punk movement, and we are excited to tell that story, now with even more artifacts and ephemera than previously planned."
"When we were in the early stages of developing the exhibit, we knew what an important story we’d be telling, but we had no idea just how many photographs, artifacts, and other items we would have access to,” continues GRAMMY Museum Curator Nwaka Onwusa. “Thanks to X, we outgrew our previously planned space before the exhibit even opened! We can’t wait to share this exhibit with our visitors, and we are so honored to be giving X the spotlight they deserve.”
"An X exhibit in a museum? Unbelievable! We are honored, dumbstruck and so grateful that all four original members are here to celebrate and share our history and 40th anniversary. It’s a very long way from a basement on Hollywood Blvd (The Masque) to the GRAMMY Museum, but we feel that we bring with us all the punks from then and now. We are just the representatives for what has gone before and what is still to come in the City of Angels." — Exene, Billy, DJ, and John
X: 40 Years of Punk in Los Angeles will be on display through spring 2018.
