ABOUT TARFEST

Tarfest: Beacon 250 will be Launch LA’s 23rd annual free music and arts festival, and a signature America 250 commemorative event in Los Angeles, CA. Taking place over two days-June 13 and 14, 2026 at LA’s Pan Pacific Park, the festival celebrates 250 years of the American story through community gathering, creative expression, and exceptional music and art. This free, public event invites all attendees to reflect on America’s evolving identity and cultural richness through participatory and inspiring experiences. Tarfest: Beacon 250 uses the power of the arts to foster civic pride, encourage connection, and spotlight the creative diversity that defines both Los Angeles and our nation.

Since its first presentation in 2003, TARFEST has grown into one of Los Angeles’s signature free multidisciplinary arts and music festivals, uplifting artists while strengthening community. Created as a platform for emerging artists, the inaugural festival was held in the penthouse of the former May Company Building—now the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures—and has since activated notable cultural venues including the Craft and Folk Art Museum, the A+D Museum, the El Rey Theatre, the Korean Cultural Center, and the La Brea Tar Pits Park, from which the festival takes its name.

In 2010, LAUNCH LA, a 501(c)3 non-profit arts organization, was founded to carry forward the vision of TARFEST and expand programming year-round through exhibitions at its gallery, public art presentations, and collaborative showcases throughout LA. Since then, LAUNCH LA has produced hundreds of exhibitions and performances as well as TARFEST, reflecting the creative diversity of Los Angeles. TARFEST’s core programming has included live music supported by KCRW 89.9 and KCSN 88.5, world-class DJs, dance performances, live painting, an artisan marketplace, site-specific installations, and family friendly creative activities.

LAUNCH LA
170 S. La Brea Ave., Suite 202
Los Angeles, CA 90036
Thursday – Saturday 12 – 6pm

James Panozzo, Executive Director
Email info@launchla.org
Phone 323.899.1363

MISSION:

LAUNCH LA believes exposure to the arts enhances quality of life and strengthens community through the shared appreciation of creative expression in all its forms and hybrids. LAUNCH LA is passionate about providing artists with quality opportunities to present themselves and their creations that reflect our times to a curious and enthusiastic audience at important happenings throughout Los Angeles.

LAUNCH LA addresses these core values by presenting arts and culture programming throughout the year at its gallery and project space on La Brea Avenue, through multidisciplinary programs at TARFEST, our free music and arts festival held annually at the La Brea Tar Pits Park, now in its 13th year, as well as periodic showcases and collaborations in important Los Angeles communities.

James Panozzo – Founder/Executive Director
James created the non-profit social enterprise LAUNCH in 2010 to oversee the production of TarFest annually while also providing unique programming and exhibition opportunities to important artists in Los Angeles. He served as the Director of Lawrence Asher Gallery from 2004 – 2010, exhibiting emerging and mid-career painters, sculptors and installation artists. James co-founded TarFest in 2003 and continues to develop and manage its programs which provide opportunities to emerging artists at venues in the Miracle Mile District of LA.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS:

Steve Kramer – Chair
Stephen Kramer is an attorney practicing with the Kramer Law Group in the Miracle Mile District of Los Angeles. Steve graduated from USC in 1970, after studying at the American College in Paris. He went on to pursue his legal studies at UCLA School of Law and was admitted to practice in 1976. After spending over fifteen years in the “large firm” arena, Steve decided to open his own practice and he and his colleagues have been established in the Miracle Mile District of Los Angeles for almost fifteen years. Steve’s own practice emphasis is in the areas of Trusts, Estates and Probate, as well as serving as counsel to various non-profit organizations based in Southern California. In addition, Steve serves as President of the Miracle Mile Chamber of Commerce and is a member of the Mid City West Community Council.

Peter B. Cury
Peter B. Cury is the former Creative Director of The Hollywood Reporter. A native New Yorker, he moved to Los Angeles in 2010 for the opportunity to refresh, re-brand and redesign the eighty-year-old entertainment publication. Since joining the magazine, he has helped shape the look and feel of the magazine by focusing his attention on typography, illustration, photography and infographics.

Before making his move to Los Angeles, Peter was an award-winning magazine art director for InStyle Magazine and Condé Nast Portfolioamong other titles, and helped redesign People Magazine, Entertainment Weekly and Fortune Magazine. His illustrations, under the name Brunoillo, have appeared in GQ, Esquire, T Magazine (The New York Times Style Magazine) and Men’s Journal.

He has also designed several custom fonts, logos, books, infographics and marketing materials for a range of clients including The San Francisco International Airport, Coca-Cola, American Illustration, New LA Charter School, Big Brothers and Sisters of Los Angeles and ThePointsGuy.com.

Peter received his bachelor’s degree in Environmental Design from U.C. Berkeley.

Erica DeBear
Erica DeBear joined Launch LA in 2018. She was raised in Paris, France, and Westchester, New York.  Upon receiving a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art and Philosophy at Mount Holyoke College, she worked at an art gallery on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. In 2010 she moved to Los Angeles to work as a VFX artist and concept artist for film, television, and commercials; Clients included: Disney, Apple, Marvel, and Activision.  In 2015 she made the transition into residential real estate.  She is a lifetime lover and creator of the arts and is excited to help expand Launch LA’s reach and impact on the creativite community that is Los Angeles.

Todd Carpenter
Todd Carpenter is an artist based in Los Angeles. His paintings, which examine the role of light in landscapes, have been exhibited in venues across the United States and Asia. He currently teaches painting in the Santa Monica College community education department, and has previously taught photography, environmental science, and the neuroscience of design at the Newschool of Architecture in San Diego. Prior to going into the arts, he worked as a product engineer and head of research and development for CircAid Medical Products. He holds a Master's Degree in Neuroscience from UCSD, and a Bachelor's degree in Psychobiology from UCLA.