Skid Row DTLA is home to one of the largest concentrations of people experiencing homelessness in the United States, a neighborhood where despair is a constant shadow, and hope isn’t simply given—it has to be fiercely found. Because of its visible blight, Skid Row is a place where many have voiced feeling discarded, degraded, and ostracized by the rest of downtown. For many outsiders, the area feels more like a forbidden DTLA Annex than a true part of the city. Yet, amidst the hardships and stories of DTLA’s forgotten, the community of Skid Row rises within their own capacity, as though showing all, there is hope coming from within. The fight for housing, mental health services, and for community, will be won—whether through constant visits to city hall, stark activism, self-reliance, or community events laced with art and music. For the people of Skid Row, community is just as vital as its long list of concentrated nonprofits and social services.
On October 18 and 19, 2025, from noon to 4 p.m. each day, General Jeff Park at 808 East 6th Street will come alive with rhythm, color, and energy for the 16th Annual Festival for All Skid Row Artists.
Hosted by the Los Angeles Poverty Department (LAPD), the festival transforms one of the city’s most overlooked neighborhoods into a place of art, connection, and community pride, serving as the setting for an annual transformation: a weekend where the community’s inner light shines brightest.
This is Skid Row at its best—united, expressive, and fearless, rising.
Photos Courtesy LA County Arts
This isn’t all charitable work, showing up to “help” Skid Row. This is Skid Row showing the world the creative power that has always been here and a stage for real voices.
Since its start in 2010, the Festival for All Skid Row Artists has given residents a platform to be seen and heard. It was founded by the LAPD, a performance and arts group made up largely of Skid Row residents, and built on a simple truth: everyone has the right to create. Each year, the park fills with song, paint, poetry, dance, and storytelling that captures the heartbeat of this community.
Photos Courtesy LA County Arts
This year, more than 150 Skid Row artists will perform or display their work. The lineup includes musicians, painters, poets, and sculptors sharing everything from street murals to gospel choirs. Artists like Chella Coleman, Gerardo Diaz, and Anthony Quinn, whose portraits appear on the official posters, embody the creative resilience that defines Skid Row. For two afternoons, the park becomes an open-air stage where joy and struggle meet. The crowd claps and sways, children dance near the front, and new stories rise from the pavement to the sky.
The Heart Behind the Festival
Photos Courtesy LA County Arts
Los Angeles Poverty Department (LAPD) might sound bureaucratic, but it is anything but. Founded in 1985 by activist and theater visionary John Malpede, LAPD is the first performance group in the U.S. composed mainly of people living and working in Skid Row. For forty years, they’ve used art to heal, organize, and redefine what community means. They don’t make art about Skid Row; they make art with it. Through plays, exhibitions, and the festival itself, LAPD helps residents reclaim their own narrative and remind the city that culture doesn’t only live in galleries or theaters—it lives wherever people gather and create.
For many, residents and visitors alike, the festival weekend feels like a homecoming. Neighbors catch up, volunteers help set up canvases, and newcomers are welcomed as friends. Kids paint alongside seasoned artists, poets perform next to musicians, and laughter rolls through the park—a true display of community.
Want More Art?
Visit the Skid Row Museum! The festival is just one highlight of a busy October, but the creative energy doesn’t stop at the park. Located on Broadway just catty-corner of Grand Central Market, the Skid Row History Museum & Archive has become one of the most creative hubs of downtown’s east side.
This fall, the museum is hosting an exhibition titled “Scratching the Surface: 40 Years of Visual Arts in Skid Row (1985–2025),” open through October 25. The show traces four decades of artistic expression from the community, celebrating the pioneers who shaped its visual identity.
Throughout October, Skid Row Museum is alive with workshops, performances, and conversations that build toward the festival weekend. Each event offers a different glimpse into the neighborhood’s artistic and activist spirit. Here is the schedule:
- September 6 – October 25: Scratching The Surface – 40 Years Of Visual Arts In Skid Row exhibition (Thu–Sat, 2–5 p.m.).
- Every Thursday, 6–8 p.m.: Theater Workshop at the Skid Row History Museum & Archive.
- Every Tuesday & Friday, 1–3 p.m.: Theater Workshop at the Skid Row Care Campus, 442 Crocker Street.
- October 3, 3–5 p.m.: Film Lover To Filmmaker Class with Adam F. Johns.
- October 3, 7 p.m.: Movie Night: Sing Sing, directed by Greg Kwedar and starring Colman Domingo.
- October 4, 1–6 p.m.: Our Streets Zine Fest.
- October 7 & 14, 10:30 a.m.–12 p.m.: Poetry Workshop with Sara Fetherolf.
- October 9, 12:30–1:45 p.m.: Skid Row Arts Alliance tour at the Los Angeles Public Library.
- October 10, 5–7 p.m.: Skid Row Poetry: Inklings Of A History, a talk examining the neighborhood’s poetic traditions.
- October 17, 3–5 p.m.: Film Lover To Filmmaker Class continues.
- October 17, 7 p.m.: Movie Night: Lorinda Hawkins Smith Birthday Party Screening.
- October 18–19, 12–4 p.m.: 16th Annual Festival For All Skid Row Artists in Gladys / General Jeff Park.
- October 24, 3–5 p.m.: Sock Puppet Workshop with Marilyn Irizarry.
- October 24, 5–7:30 p.m.: Show & Tell: The Skid Row Archive, a discussion with media archivist Henry Apodaca and archivist Zach Rutland.
- October 26, 2–4 p.m.: Mutual Aid Self/Social Therapy (MAST), hosted by Public School Los Angeles.
Together, these programs show how deeply rooted the arts can build bridges between residents, local partners, and the broader Los Angeles creative scene.
A Story That Lives On
Over sixteen years, the Festival for All Skid Row Artists has become a vital part of Los Angeles culture. The Skid Row History Museum & Archive documents each year’s performances and artwork, preserving them for future generations. The event also honors the late General Jeff Page, a tireless community leader who helped make Gladys Park a protected public space. His legacy echoes in every brushstroke and beat. As downtown Los Angeles continues to change, the festival stands as proof that art does not need permission. It only needs people who care enough to create it.
Come See for Yourself
The Los Angeles Poverty Department invites everyone to experience Skid Row’s creative heart firsthand. Follow @lapovertydept on Instagram for updates, artist spotlights, and behind-the-scenes moments from the festival and its companion events. “Skid Row Rising” isn’t just a slogan. It’s a truth that plays out in every song, every canvas, and every shared smile in Gladys Park. For two afternoons in October, forget what you think you know about Skid Row. Here, it’s all about art—the kind that brings people together and leaves the heartbeat of humanity echoing long after the last note fades. https://www.lapovertydept.org
