The relationship between the art world and the gentrification of neighborhoods is close and complex. Lauren Halsey uses her energetic, neon-colored installations to address the issue—and other social problems as well. Of her latest exhibition, Halsey comments “These works are like South Central L.A. business taxidermy.” By using boxes to critique the “big box” format employed by large-scale developers, she invokes the lost landscape of small businesses. Her magical creations embody the creeping corporate takeover of … everything. —E.C.