Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, James Turrell to be honored by LACMA

Alejandro González Iñárritu, the Mexican filmmaker who won three Academy Awards this year for “Birdman,” including statuettes for best director and picture, will be honored by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in November at its fifth annual Art + Film gala, organizers will announce this week.

Artist James Turrell, the subject of a major LACMA retrospective in 2013, also will be honored. The museum said that the gala will take place Nov. 7 and that Leonardo DiCaprio and trustee Eva Chow are returning as co-chairs of the event.

DiCaprio stars in Iñárritu’s upcoming movie, “The Revenant,” which is in post-production and is expected to be released later this year. The movie, based on the Michael Punke novel, is a revenge story set in the 19th century on the American frontier.

LACMA’s Art + Film gala typically honors two individuals — one from the world of cinema, and one from the art world. Last year’s gala, which spotlighted Quentin Tarantino and Barbara Kruger, raised about $3.9 million, with proceeds going toward LACMA’s film initiatives and future exhibitions, acquisitions and programming.

A Southern California native, Turrell is noted for his conceptual installations that explore light and space. His land-art project Roden Crater in Arizona has been in the works for years and is widely regarded as his most important piece.

LACMA is currently exhibiting the artist’s “Breathing Light,” a large-scale installation that allows visitors to walk through a light field.

“Birdman” won four awards at this year’s Oscars ceremony. The movie stars Michael Keaton as a former superhero movie actor who is attempting to revive his career with a Broadway play. Iñárritu, who also shared an original screenplay Oscar for “Birdman,” was nominated in 2007 for the movie “Babel.”

Despite a recent leadership shake-up that saw the departure of its chief executive and creative director, Gucci will be back as the presenting sponsor of the gala.

LACMA CEO and director Michael Govan said in a statement accompanying the announcement that in just a few years, the gala “has established its reputation for honoring artists and filmmakers whose impact can be felt worldwide and that have particular relevance to Los Angeles.”

Twitter: @DavidNgLAT