salvaged wood from the LA wildfires becomes functional objects at marta exhibition
reclaimed wood objects from the la wildfires on view at marta
From the Upper Valley in the Foothills is a group exhibition at Marta in Los Angeles, on view through January 31st, 2026. Co-curated and co-organized by Vince Skelly, with material support from Angel City Lumber, the exhibition brings together 22 artists and designers working in and around greater Los Angeles, using reclaimed wood sourced from Altadena, the foothill region most profoundly impacted by the 2025 Eaton Fire. Marking one year since the devastating wildfires that reshaped vast portions of Los Angeles County, the show positions material as a carrier of memory, loss, and regeneration.
At the center of the exhibition is wood, framed as a specific, sourced, and transformed substance. Each participating artist selected a section of lumber milled by Angel City Lumber, a Los Angeles–based operation that salvages fallen and removed trees for reuse in community projects. The wood originates from Altadena and includes species such as Aleppo pine, cedar, coastal live oak, and Shamel ash, a mix of native and naturalized trees that reflect the biome of the region. These materials are shaped into functional forms: chairs, stools, benches, bowls, and containers. In this context, function becomes a way of imagining how devastated spaces might once again support everyday life.
Vince Skelly
the material embraces traces of its previous life
On January 7th, 2025, the Eaton Fire broke out in the San Gabriel Mountains, burning for twenty-five days before being contained on January 31st, 2025. It claimed nineteen lives and destroyed over nine thousand structures, becoming the second most destructive wildfire in California’s history. At the same time, the Palisades Fire raged across the county, ultimately taking twelve lives and destroying nearly seven thousand structures, making it the most destructive wildfire in the history of the City of Los Angeles.
The works are installed throughout Marta’s Silver Lake gallery in a loose, forest-like arrangement. The objects are positioned so that visitors must walk through them, navigating the space as one might move through a wooded landscape. This curatorial decision reinforces the central premise of the exhibition: trees are not passive scenery but active participants in lived environments. They offer shade, structure, boundaries, and orientation. In their transformed state, now furniture or vessels, they continue to hold and support bodies, possessions, and gestures of rest.
Across the exhibition, the material retains traces of its previous life. Some works incorporate charring, visible grain, knots, or irregularities, resisting the idea of total refinement. The artists approach wood as a collaborator, shaped by time, climate, and fire. This shared material origin creates continuity between the works, even as they diverge in form, scale, and intention. On the anniversary of the fires, the exhibition becomes both a monument and a proposition, a collective act of attention toward what remains and what can be reused.
Ryan Belli
the exhibition brings together 22 artists and designers
Asher Gillman Left Over Chair, 2025 Cast Aluminum, Aleppo Pine
Dan John Anderson Circle the Square Chair, 2025
Sam Klemick Dressed Stool, 2025
Vincent Pocsik Five Ears in Cedar, 2025
the show positions material as a carrier of memory, loss, and regeneration
Tristan Louis Marsh Floral Stool, 2025
Mark Morones Everybody Gets a Guitar, 2025
Vince Skelly Assembled Foothills Side Table, 2025
Max Hertz Petal Stool, 2025
Noah Cohen Small Chest (Forever Changes), 2025
Nik Gelormino Hitchhiker (No. 03), 2025
Brian Guido of Barni Goudi McNally Stool #1, 2025
Brian Guido of Barni Goudi McNally Stool #2, 2025
Jonathan Synder & Alejandro DePass of Snyder DePass Santa Rosa Chair, 2025
project info:
name: From the Upper Valley in the Foothills
designers: Dan John Anderson, Ryan Belli, Noah Cohen, Nik Gelormino, Asher Gillman, Brian Guido (Barni Goudi), Max Hertz, Sam Klemick, Tristan Louis Marsh, Doug McCollough, Mark Morones, Lindsey Muscato & Joshua Friedman (Base 10), Christopher Norman, Dave O’Brien, Shin Okuda, Vincent Pocsik, Ellie Richards, Josué da Silva, Vince Skelly, Rachel Shillander, Jonathan Snyder & Alejandro DePass (Snyder DePass), Marley White
venue: Marta | @marta.losangeles
location: 3021 Rowena Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90039
dates: January 10th – 31st, 2026
curation: Vince Skelly (co-curated and co-organized)
material partner: Angel City Lumber
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