Laboratory for the Future: Flow and Form; Invisible Systems of Santa Monica

Join us for a guided walkthrough of Laboratory for the Future with Debra Scacco, who assembled this exhibit to summarize her work as the first civic-appointed resident artist at City Yards. Scacco worked with the Resource Recovery and Recycling Division and the Water Division of the Public Works Department from 2023-2025.

Laboratory for the Future showcases these two years of research and creative exploration, from visits to well sites and sanitation stations to new sculptures made from Santa Monica water well excavation clay and Pacific Ocean driftwood. Learn more about GIS-based and sculptural interpretations of the city’s water pathways, Scacco's discoveries while researching compost and waste streams, and other works that illuminate and celebrate the invisible systems (and the often unseen people) that sustain Santa Monica. Experience how art, science, and civic engagement intersect in this unique exploration of water, waste and urban ecology.

Laboratory for the Future is a project of City Yards Artist in Residence Debra Scacco, made possible by the city of Santa Monica Cultural Affairs Division and Percent for Art program, and the city of Santa Monica Public Works Department. More about the project here.

Events:

The Laboratory for the Future exhibit is on view at the Airport Arts Center Propeller Gallery, 3026 Airport Ave. 10/11/25 - 1/4/26, hours: Thursday - Sunday, 12-5pm.

10/11/25, 12-3pm: Opening Reception for Laboratory for the Future exhibit, Propeller Gallery

10/18/25, 11am-12:30pm: Composting session, following the 9-11am “Oh My Gourd” event and garden exploration, Ishihara Park Learning Garden, 2909 Exposition Blvd.

10/25/25, 12-2pm: Flow and Form: The Invisible Systems of Santa Monica, an artist talk and exhibit walkthrough with Debra Scacco, Propeller Gallery

11/1/25, 12-1:30pm: Woven Waters: Protection, Resistance, Renewal, a conversation with Emma Robbins (Diné Water Activist & Artist) and Debra Scacco, Propeller Gallery

1/3/26, 12-2pm: Exhibit closing event with Debra Scacco, Propeller Gallery

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Interdisciplinary artist Debra Scacco investigates the ecological and cultural consequences of human activity. Fusing rigorous research with personal narrative, her work maps the histories of land, water, and the beings transformed by human intervention. She is the inaugural artist-in-residence at the city of Santa Monica Public Works (2023–25) and the first artist-in-residence at the Ellis Island Museum (2012). Scacco co-founded the Getty PST ART Climate Impact Program (2022–25) and founded the climate-focused residency Air Projects (2016–20). Her work has been supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the City of Los Angeles, and the Durfee Foundation, featured in Art in America and the Los Angeles Times, and exhibited and collected internationally. More at https://www.debrascacco.com.

The Propeller Gallery at the Airport Arts Center, 3026 Airport Ave, hosts exhibitions and events throughout the year. By Bus, closest stop is Metro 44 SMC Bundy Campus, more frequent is Metro 14 at Airport and Bundy. Parking available onsite. Programs at Airport Arts Center are made possible by the Recreation and Arts Department.