Watts Towers Arts Center
The official Support Group for the Watts Towers Arts Center
Welcome to the Official Site of the Watts Towers Arts Center!
Where Truth and Art Connect
Celebrating the First 50 Years - 1961 -2011
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Watts Towers |
Watts Towers Arts Center |
Simon Rodia |
Friends of Watts Towers Arts Center (FOWTAC) is a nonprofit corporation created to support the Watts Towers Arts Center in its mission to educate and nurture children and adults through diverse cultural enrichment programming including docent tours of the Towers, lectures, changing exhibitions, and studio workshops for teachers and students.
Formed in 1983, FOWTAC performs other support functions as requested by the Watts Towers Arts Center Director, Rosie Lee Hooks. Friends support the educational programs and exhibitions, and co-produces public events including the annual Simon Rodia Watts Towers Jazz Festival, established in 1976, and the annual Day of the Drum Festival, established in 1981 along with the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs. These festivals are among the nation's oldest and most respected music and arts gatherings and are offered to the public free of charge.
The Watts Towers were built over the course of about 30 years, from the early 1920s to the early 1950s, by an immigrant Italian artisan named Sabato Rodia (also known as Simon or Sam). He single-handedly built a mosaic fantasia consisting of three spires of reinforced cement, the highest reaching to a height of 99-1/2 feet.
The Watts Towers Arts Center was founded in 1961 by a group of multiethnic citizens concerned with the preservation of the Watts Towers and surrounding community. The present facility was dedicated March 1, 1970. The Center offers classes, in most cases free of charge, classes and ongoing programs for children, teens, and adults in dance, music, and visual arts. An exhibition of percussion instruments from around the world, from the collection of Dr. Joseph Howard and Mrs. Bootise Howard, is on permanent display. The main gallery features rotating exhibitions including paintings, sculptures, and photography by noted artists.
The adjacent Charles Mingus Youth Arts Center held its grand opening during the 2009 Festivals and provides a diverse array of programs designed for the cultural enrichment of the community of Watts and the City of Los Angeles.
Watts Towers and Watts Towers Arts Center. 1727 East 107th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90002
E-mail: cadwattsctr@earthlink.net Telephone: 213.847.4646 Fax: 323.564.7030
Free Admission to galleries and art exhibitions. Free Parking.
Tours of the Watts Towers of Simon Rodia
Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays from 10:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. and Sundays from 12:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
General Admission: $7.00; Seniors and Youth 13-17 years: $3.00; Children 12 and younger: FREE
Twenty visitors per tour. All tours are conducted by docents and are on a first-come, first-served basis. No tours on rainy days. Smoking, eating, or drinking inside or near the Towers fenced area is prohibited. Admission fees, days, and times are subject to change without notice. Public tours begin at 11:00 a.m. on Thursdays and Fridays when there is a pre-scheduled Visiting School Workshop.
Call 213.847.4646 for more information about the Watts Towers Arts Center-Charles Mingus Youth Arts Center Campus events, classes, and about our Visiting Schools Program and Large Group Tour arrangements.
The Watts Towers and Watts Towers Arts Center is (click here) located in Los Angeles in the heart of the Watts community.
Webmaster ecaroldavis@gmail.com
