X-TRA Contemporary Art Quarterly

X-TRA Contemporary Art Quarterly, commonly known as X-TRA, is an independent visual-arts journal based in Los Angeles. Founded in 1997 by artists Stephen Berens and Ellen Birrell, with Jan Tümlir and Jérôme Saint-Loubert Bié also involved as founding editors, the publication emerged from Project X, an artist-led curatorial collective. Project X had initially produced newsprint catalogs for its exhibitions, combining documentation with essays and images. The founders saw an opportunity to create a more durable and expansive forum for contemporary-art criticism in Los Angeles, where they believed independent discussion and sustained publishing opportunities were limited. X-TRA was developed to widen the conversation beyond the most established mainstream art outlets. The journal has maintained an artist-driven and collaborative editorial model. Its contributors and readers include practicing artists, curators, dealers, critics, writers, students, and members of the broader contemporary-art public. Rather than functioning primarily as a commercial art-news publication, X-TRA has emphasized long-form criticism, conversations, interviews, artist projects, reviews, and columns. Its editorial program has connected Los Angeles art communities with broader national and international debates about contemporary practice, institutions, politics, and culture. The publication has also commissioned original writing and artist contributions, extending its role beyond conventional exhibition coverage. In 2002, publisher and artist Jeff Beall helped establish Project X Foundation for Art and Criticism, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that supports and publishes the journal. The foundation gave X-TRA a formal institutional structure and enabled it to pursue philanthropic support. Over time, the publication received grants and assistance from organizations including the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, the Mike Kelley Foundation for the Arts, the Getty Foundation, and the Pasadena Art Alliance. This nonprofit model has allowed X-TRA to continue operating as a specialist art publication despite the financial pressures affecting independent print media. X-TRA originally appeared quarterly. In 2020, the journal announced a change to a twice-yearly schedule, beginning with the Spring/Summer 2021 issue, Volume 23, Number 2. The change represented a shift in publishing frequency rather than a move away from print. The publication has supplemented its journal with exclusive online material and public programs intended to build exchange among artists, writers, curators, and audiences. These programs have included lectures, readings, screenings, conversations, concerts, and participatory discussion formats. The journal’s name is deliberately styled as “X-TRA.” According to Ellen Birrell, the spelling grew from an early idea that the editors would publish an issue only when they had an especially strong piece of writing—an extra edition for a publication that otherwise did not exist. The title therefore reflects the publication’s independent origins and its emphasis on editorial selectivity. X-TRA remains associated with Los Angeles’s contemporary-art ecosystem and is described as the city’s longest-running art publication.

X-TRA developed in the Los Angeles art world of the 1990s from Project X, an artist-run curatorial collective formed by Stephen Berens and Ellen Birrell. Project X organized exhibitions and produced inexpensive newsprint catalogs for them. These early publications documented the exhibitions but also provided room for supplementary essays and images. The experience convinced the organizers that Los Angeles needed a more enduring independent venue for criticism and discussion of contemporary art. Berens and Birrell expanded Project X’s publishing activity into X-TRA, bringing Jan Tümlir and Jérôme Saint-Loubert Bié into the founding editorial group. The first issue appeared in spring 1997. From the beginning, the journal was conceived as collaborative and artist-driven rather than as the expression of a single commercial publisher. Volunteer artists and writers participated in its editorial work, and the magazine combined critical writing with interviews, reviews, columns, artist projects, and other forms of conversation. The publication’s name, styled with a hyphen as X-TRA, was linked to the founders’ idea of publishing an issue only when there was an especially worthwhile piece of writing to present—an “extra” edition for a publication that did not otherwise exist. The name consequently expressed the journal’s independent and selective character. A major institutional development came in 2002, when artist and publisher Jeff Beall helped establish the Project X Foundation for Art and Criticism. The foundation was organized as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and became the organizational home for X-TRA’s publishing activity. Its nonprofit structure supported fundraising and grant applications, helping the journal survive despite its limited early resources. The publication later received support from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, the Mike Kelley Foundation for the Arts, the Getty Foundation, and the Pasadena Art Alliance. The journal’s editorial leadership changed after its first decade. Stephen Berens, Ellen Birrell, and Jan Tümlir are identified as founding editors through 2007, while Elizabeth Pulsinelli is identified as executive editor from 2007 onward. Project X’s executive direction has also included Shana Lutker. X-TRA has continued to combine print publishing with online content and public events, using lectures, readings, screenings, concerts, and discussions to create direct relationships among artists, critics, curators, and audiences. Examples of this programming include Artist Writes events with Andrea Fraser and Pope.L, a 2017 screening and conversation involving Aria Dean, Erin Christovale, and Ulysses Jenkins, and the 2012 concert “Chinese Cocktail” by Robert Wilhite. The journal also organized “Kitchen Table,” a 2012 discussion project revisiting conversations associated with Eugenia P. Butler, and staged five editions of “1 IMAGE 1 MINUTE,” including an event at the 2015 Los Angeles Art Book Fair. The latter format related to a column conceived by Micol Hebron that ran in X-TRA from 2006 to 2010. In 2020, X-TRA changed its regular schedule from quarterly to biannual, beginning with Spring/Summer 2021, Volume 23 Number 2. The adjustment marked an important operational change while preserving the journal’s central mission. X-TRA remains an independent contemporary-art publication based in Los Angeles and is described as the city’s longest-running art publication.

1. 2020Publishing frequency reduced to twice yearly

   X-TRA announced a shift from quarterly publication to a biannual schedule, beginning with Spring/Summer 2021, Volume 23 Number 2.

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2. 2015Fifth 1 IMAGE 1 MINUTE event

   X-TRA staged the fifth known edition of its short-form image-and-commentary event at the Los Angeles Art Book Fair.

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3. 2012Expanded public programming during Pacific Standard Time

   X-TRA presented the concert “Chinese Cocktail” and revived the “Kitchen Table” discussion format in Los Angeles programming connected with the wider Pacific Standard Time and art-community context.

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4. 2007Editorial leadership transition

   The founding editorial period is listed as ending in 2007, with Elizabeth Pulsinelli identified as executive editor from that year onward.

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5. 2002Project X Foundation established

   A nonprofit foundation for art and criticism was created with the assistance of publisher and artist Jeff Beall to support and publish X-TRA.

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6. 1997First issue of X-TRA published

   The first issue appeared in spring 1997 after Project X’s exhibition catalog activities evolved into a broader journal devoted to contemporary-art criticism and conversation.

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An independent, artist-driven nonprofit contemporary-art journal that provides sustained criticism, conversation, and commissioned work while connecting Los Angeles art communities with wider contemporary-art discourse.

• X-TRA print journalContemporary art periodical1997

  The core product is X-TRA’s print journal, which publishes contemporary-art criticism, reviews, interviews, columns, artist projects, and related visual material. It was founded as a quarterly and moved to a twice-yearly schedule beginning with Spring/Summer 2021. The journal is produced through the nonprofit Project X Foundation for Art and Criticism and has historically relied on a combination of grants and other nonprofit support.

• X-TRA online contentDigital editorial publishing

  Alongside the print edition, X-TRA produces exclusive online material that extends its editorial conversation. The digital offering complements the journal’s essays, interviews, criticism, and artist-centered work, allowing the publication to reach readers beyond the physical issue cycle.

• Artist WritesPublic art-writing program

  Artist Writes connects commissioned writing published by X-TRA with live public presentations. Examples include Andrea Fraser’s 2018 lecture at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, and a 2019 Pope.L reading at The Underground Museum. The program demonstrates the journal’s broader approach to publishing as a form of community programming.

• 2019Pope.L Artist Writes reading

  Los Angeles

  X-TRA presented a reading of Pope.L’s commissioned essay “The Cypress” at The Underground Museum as part of Artist Writes.

  Outcome. The program brought commissioned journal writing into a public performance and reading environment.

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• 2018Andrea Fraser Artist Writes lecture

  Los Angeles

  X-TRA commissioned and presented a lecture by Andrea Fraser at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, in connection with her essay “Toward a Reflexive Resistance.”

  Outcome. The event linked published art writing with a live lecture and audience engagement.

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• 2017Screening and conversation with Aria Dean, Erin Christovale, and Ulysses Jenkins

  Los Angeles

  X-TRA presented a screening of work by Ulysses Jenkins followed by a conversation with Aria Dean, Erin Christovale, and Jenkins at Human Resources Los Angeles.

  Outcome. The program combined moving-image presentation with critical discussion and expanded the journal’s artist-centered public work.

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• 20151 IMAGE 1 MINUTE

  Los Angeles

  X-TRA staged the fifth edition of a live event in which members of the art community spoke briefly about an image of their choice. The format referenced Agnès Varda’s television series and a related X-TRA column conceived by Micol Hebron.

  Outcome. The event translated an editorial column into an in-person, participatory format at the Los Angeles Art Book Fair.

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• 2012Chinese Cocktail

  Los Angeles

  X-TRA presented a concert by Robert Wilhite at Barnsdall Gallery Theatre as part of the Pacific Standard Time Performance and Public Art Festival context organized by the Getty Foundation and LAXART.

  Outcome. The event extended X-TRA’s role from print publishing into performance and public cultural programming.

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• 2012Kitchen Table, reprise

  Los Angeles

  X-TRA organized a revival of Eugenia P. Butler’s conversation format during the College Art Association Conference, bringing artists and cultural thinkers together around a table to discuss art, politics, and related subjects.

  Outcome. The project reinforced X-TRA’s emphasis on open-ended dialogue and collective discussion.

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• 2020Change from quarterly to biannual publishingStrategy

  X-TRA had historically published quarterly, but the journal announced a change in its regular schedule in 2020.

  What changed. The publication moved to a twice-yearly schedule beginning with the Spring/Summer 2021 issue, Volume 23 Number 2.

  Aftermath. The journal continued its print, digital, and public-program activities under the new schedule.

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• 2020X-TRA changes from quarterly to biannual publication

  X-TRA shifted from a quarterly publishing schedule to a twice-yearly schedule beginning with the Spring/Summer 2021 issue.

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• 2019Pope.L reading presented through Artist Writes

  X-TRA presented a reading of Pope.L’s commissioned essay at The Underground Museum in Los Angeles as part of its Artist Writes programming.

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• 2018X-TRA expands its public programming

  The journal’s Artist Writes program included a commissioned lecture by Andrea Fraser at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, connected with her writing for X-TRA.

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1. X-TRA