In the heart of South Los Angeles, an underground art gallery is waging a daily battle for survival against overwhelming odds including ICE raids, economic hardship, and even illegal hash oil explosions. Superchief Gallery, a community-based art space known for its indie roots and grassroots approach, has been serving the local community for over a decade, providing a platform for young independent artists while resisting the forces of gentrification.
The gallery, operated by co-founder and director Bill Dunleavy, occupies what appears to be just another storefront from the outside. However, once visitors step through its doors, they are transported into a vibrant world where every square foot of blank canvas is adorned with color and culture. Dunleavy, a New York transplant who arrived in Los Angeles in 2014, established the space as an alternative to what he perceived as elitist mainstream galleries.
"I don't ever want to be a part of the art gallery industrial complex that just gentrifies neighborhoods and commodifies things," Dunleavy explains. "The goal is not to make it bougie. The goal is to make it sustainable and representative of the community and stay true to a subversive vision, and not just become one more generic art gallery in the landscape."
For Dunleavy, spaces like Superchief are invaluable because they engage with the community in ways that more mainstream galleries don't. "It's a welcoming and inspiring environment for people from across lines of class, race, or gender, and I have always taken chances on lesser-known artists rather than trying to chase the same programming as everyone else," he said. "It's a beautiful mix of different communities that come together here and create something really unique and special."
The gallery has served as an incubation space for numerous young artists, many of whom have gone on to launch successful solo careers after their Superchief debuts. One of Dunleavy's proudest success stories is Isaac Psalm Escoto, known as Sickid, who sold out his first solo show after debuting at Superchief for a group exhibition and has since completed a solo show with Jeffrey Deitch. "I've started a bunch of careers out of here, maybe six or seven that have really been debuted at Superchief and go on to become top-tier artists. So they're like my children a little bit," Dunleavy said.
Dunleavy's dissatisfaction with Los Angeles' existing art scene motivated him to create something more accessible and relatable to a broader community. "I was looking at the art galleries that promoted graffiti and photography, and I just found it all to be kind of bougie and elitist," Dunleavy explained. "And, essentially, what I thought was I could probably do a better job of that." Drawing inspiration from art spaces on the East Coast and the colorful DIY culture of Mexico City, he created a gallery filled with bold art from across cultures.
The gallery's journey has been marked by significant challenges and relocations. Superchief has moved locations twice since its creation, starting on Skid Row for nearly seven years before a devastating explosion destroyed their original gallery space just before the COVID-19 pandemic. The powerful blast resulted from an illegal hash oil accident that severely damaged the building's structural integrity, forcing the gallery to vacate immediately. The gallery remained dormant for several years during the pandemic before finding its current location in a converted evangelical church that had gone out of business.
Despite these setbacks, Superchief's most significant challenge has been financial sustainability. As part of the space's commitment to independent financing, Dunleavy has sacrificed much of his own income to keep the gallery operational while managing a downsized staff and working long hours. "I'm staying with friends, scraping by on side hustles," Dunleavy revealed. "I'm hoping I can get things stable soon and find some traction, but I haven't been able to pay myself in over a year and a half despite putting way more than a full-time job's amount of work into Superchief. But I believe in the mission I'm trying to realize, and I do my best with the small team that I have and try to make sure to take care of them."
To address these financial challenges, Dunleavy has developed new funding strategies, primarily through crowdfunding efforts. Superchief currently aims to increase subscribers on their Patreon platform and hosts numerous community events to raise money. The gallery has also become known for organizing large community service events as a way of giving back to the Los Angeles community that has supported it.
"When the need arises in the community, I try to be there in that way also," Dunleavy said. "It's an art gallery and it's a space for events. But it's also like a mutual aid center when needed." This programming includes food and supply drives, fashion shows, film screenings, art classes, ethics and rights of protest photography panels, and much more. Recently, Superchief has hosted Anti-ICE protest events, a girls spray paint workshop, and a No Kings Day sign-making workshop that attracted large crowds.
The gallery has also organized multicultural fashion shows, large community celebrations with proceeds benefiting local nonprofits, and even hosted supply drives for victims of the 2016 Mexico City earthquakes. At the beginning of this year, Dunleavy partnered with a friend to organize one of the city's largest relief centers for victims of the Altadena and Palisades fires, demonstrating the gallery's commitment to community service beyond the arts.
Superchief's programming spans multiple genres, showcasing underground graffiti culture, Chicano pride, political protest, fashion, and the queer community. The gallery's most recent exhibition featured a collaborative show from Dead Relatives Magazine, highlighting Los Angeles' vibrant punk street culture. This diverse programming continues to attract growing audiences who find community through art.
For Dunleavy, spaces like Superchief have never been more crucial for cultural education and inspiring younger generations. "This artistic community broadens people's world views and opens them up to new things," he explained. "It educates them about the artists who came before them, and shows them new influences. In many cases, it shows young people a path to pursue art as a career in their own lives, and that's really special to me."
Local USC Annenberg student John Millsap, who has attended two of Superchief's art exhibitions, believes the gallery provides essential access to art for marginalized communities. "I've definitely grown to appreciate South L.A. a lot in my four years here," he said. "And it's a very underserved place. And a lot of people might think that just because a place is underserved, economically or socially, that it doesn't have as much to offer. But Superchief is a clear example of the fact that that's not true. I really hope that they're able to stay afloat and keep going."
While Superchief still faces a long road to achieving financial viability, Dunleavy's hope for the gallery remains stronger than ever despite the numerous challenges it has encountered. "The number one thing I hope people get from Superchief is inspiration," he said. "To see that art is more than something for upper-class people, and show them that art is a valuable thing for everyone."
Despite multiple close calls that have threatened permanent closure, the community has demonstrated its willingness to rally behind this unique gallery in ways that have exceeded Dunleavy's expectations. The gallery, located at 1965 S. Los Angeles St. in Los Angeles, continues to serve as a beacon for independent artists and community members who believe in the power of accessible, grassroots art spaces. For all the work that Superchief has done to support its surrounding community, advocates argue it's time for the gallery to receive some of that support in return – and right now, it needs it more than ever.
