The Beverly Hills Arts and Culture Commission identified its top five priorities for its 2026-27 work plan at its March 10 meeting.
The priorities that will move forward to the City Council for review are the Festival Beverly Hills; programming for the 2026 World Cup and 2028 Olympic Games; several film and speaker series; community outreach to chefs, retailers and galleries; and the development of informational sources such as kiosks and billboards for visitors to the city.
The commission discussed its priorities for over an hour. Many commissioners expressed a desire to emphasize arts education in the city and to house certain events under the umbrella of arts education, such as the city’s annual ArtWalk event.
“ArtWalk is…arts education,” said Commissioner Karla Gordy Bristol, later adding, “Can we combine arts and culture, community engagement under arts education where anything related to arts in the community would fall under that one item on the work plan?”
Chris Paulson, the city’s assistant director of community services, advised the commission to be sure that their priorities were feasible given the scope of the commission’s purview and the city’s financial capabilities.
“We need to limit [the priorities] to just the five,” he said. “They need to be realistic. They need to follow SMART goals. So, they’ve got to be strategic. They’ve got to be measurable, achievable. So, if that means we’re looking at a capital improvement project where construction is required, probably not the most feasible right now, when the city is looking at a multimillion-dollar deficit.”
The commission’s work plan process reflected a new developmental procedure that was implemented by the city this fiscal year, replacing a system in which commissioners submitted and voted on proposals. The new system involves presenting potential commission work plan items to the City Manager and City Council alongside the council’s annual priorities.
The updated process is intended to offer commissioners increased clarity, structure and discretion.
During the process of developing a work plan, commissioners are asked to consider factors such as timelines, staff resources, and budget so projects can be realistically completed.
In considering their priorities for the upcoming fiscal year, commissioners and city staff determined that the acquisition of fine art is a foundational priority and did not count towards one of the five work plan priorities.
A conversation about programming for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2028 Olympic Games was tabled due to time constraints.
Commissioners additionally heard updates to its 2025-26 work plan. The current plan focuses on fine art acquisition, Festival Beverly Hills, the ArtWalk program, Concerts on Canon performer selection criteria, developer-owned art, inspection of developer-owned art, arts education and programming for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
The city has five fine art projects currently in progress: “Hymn of Life: Tulips” by Yayoi Kusama, “Trinity” by Judy Chicago, “IO” by Carol Bove, “Home” by Charles Arnoldi and “Fin” by Alex Israel.
Assistant Director of Community Services Patty Acuna and Arts and Culture Program Associate Brandy Scott, providing progress reports on the projects, said that a base and redesign of two replacement tiles for “Hymn of Life: Tulips” has been approved by the artist.
The city received a signed agreement for the acquisition of the sculpture “Trinity” from Chicago’s legal team.
“IO” has received support for relocation to the Burton Way median, and city staff are producing estimated costs for the restoration of the artwork and its base as well as any other associated costs.
The relocation of the cast bronze sculpture “Home” has also been discussed by various commissions. The Arts and Culture Commission recommended Coldwater Canyon, and the Recreation and Parks Commission recommended Beverly Gardens Park. The Arts and Culture City Council Liaisons considered the issue on March 6 and supported Beverly Gardens Park.
With regards to developer-owned art and inspections thereof, city staff presented a proposed inspection process at the commission’s Feb. 10 meeting. Commissioners conditionally approved the proposed process, and it will be shared with City Council in April.
The Beverly Hills ArtWalk program has progressed to offering twice-monthly tours in the spring and fall of exceptional artworks and historical aspects at locations including Beverly Gardens Park, the Civic Center campus and the Burton Way median.
This session’s first tour took place on March 1 and will continue through April.
The commission’s proposed work plan for the 2026-27 fiscal year will move forward to the City Council for review in April or May.
