A note to readers: we're trying something new here. From now on, our weekly events listings will begin on Thursdays of every week.
To do this week: scope out some interior decor at WestEdge Design Fair; reminisce about movie palaces at a screening of "Going Attractions"; attend a discussion on architecture and capitalism; get a foot in the door at Sneakertopia; and learn how parking rules have shaped LA, at Second Home Hollywood.
X Tendo Bench in Griffith Park, designed by Thomas Musca, an exhibitor at WestEdge Design Fair; photo by Bairn Sweeney1) WestEdge Design Fair
WestEdge Design Fair returns to the Barker Hangar at Santa Monica Airport for the seventh year, with an opening party Thursday evening. Founded by Megan Reilly and Troy Hanson, the three day event will bring plenty of eye candy and talks -- on topics ranging from brand development and what's new in kitchen design (Sweeten's Jean Brownhill, heard on this DnA, is among speakers) to what the modern world would be without Frank Lloyd Wright.
Local designers displaying their talents include: Anoma, Bend Goods, Dunn Edwards, Küdd:krig HOME (Long Beach), Lamps Plus, Living Spaces, Fred & Cathy who are exhibiting a new tile collection in collaboration with RCH Studios, ZIMARTY (jewelry), Marc Phillips Rugs and WhyrHymer who will be hosting a woodworking class and maker workshop with Bench Dogz during the fair. Also find fiber + ceramic works by Long Beach artist Karen Gayle Tinney and concrete benches (seen above) created by Thomas Musca, an architecture school grad who has thrown his energies into designing and building "Cassius Castings" seating that he and friends have been depositing in locations that could use a place to rest and enjoy the view.
When: Show runs daily Friday, October 25 - Sunday, October 27, 2019; opening night party (benefiting A Sense of Home), Thursday, October 24; 7-10 pm
Where: The Barker Hangar, 3021 Airport Avenue, Santa Monica, CA 90405 (Parking: $10 cash only)
Tickets: General admission, $25 in advance or $30 on-site for one day entrance Friday-Sunday; VIP All-Access pass, $125; Opening night party, $95 ticket. Click here for tickets and add the code KCRW for $10 discount.
2) Screening of GOING ATTRACTIONS: The Definitive Story of the Movie Palace
Filmmaker April Wright grew up in a movie-loving family and has shown the love in a new documentary movie entitled “Going Attractions: The Definitive Story of the Movie Palace,” a valentine to the ornate movie theaters of the 20s and 30s that offered rich and poor a fabulous movie-watching experience. Her film tracks the demise and demolition of many of these places, as well as the adaptive reuse of some into new kinds of venues, like LA's United Artists Theater, now The Theater at Ace Hotel. It will be screened in several LA movies theatres starting Thursday through next Wednesday.
When: Premiere screening on Thursday, Oct. 24 at the Laemmle Fine Arts, followed by a weeklong run at the Laemmle Music Hall Oct. 25-31. Also playing on Monday, Oct. 28 and Tuesday, Oct. 29 at four additional Laemmle venues (the Royal, Claremont, Playhouse and Town Center) as part of their Culture Vulture series.
Where: Laemmle theaters around Los Angeles. Get screening times here.
Tickets: Adult tickets $12.50; Seniors and children $9.50
3) Symposium: Architecture, The City and Democratic Capitalism
Capital is intertwined with architecture. No matter how bold a vision, the architect must sell their ideas to developers and investors. Meanwhile, low-income communities struggle to attract the same kinds of well-designed structures and civic spaces, from Los Angeles and Mexico City to Detroit and Houston. USC School of Architecture is taking a critical look at the relationship between architecture and capital in this day-long symposium that will consider housing displacement and gentrification, income inequality, community investment, planetary warming, technology and more.
When: Thursday, October 24, 8 am to 5 pm
Where: Town and Gown at USC, 665 Exposition Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90089
Tickets: Registration is closed but walk-ins welcome. More info here.
4) Sneakertopia
Sneakers and street art come together in a pop-up called Sneakertopia opening this weekend at HHLA (formerly The Promenade at Howard Hughes). Described by the organizers as “one part pop art gallery, one part insanely huge sneaker closet,” Sneakertopia CEO Steve Harris and curator Justin Fredericks invited 20 artists/sneakerheads -- including Michael Murphy, James Haunt, Ben Fearnley, David Kaul, Stomping Ground Customs, Jason Dussault, Kickstradomis, Mimi Yoon, Ricardo Gonzalez and Tommii Lim -- to create artworks and activations inspired by "the biggest sneaker brands in the world.”
When: Friday, October 25, 2019 for limited run (closing date TBD); 10:00 am through 9:00 pm, except closed on Tuesdays
Where: HHLA (formerly The Promenade at Howard Hughes) 6081 Center Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90045. Convenient on-site parking is available.
Tickets: General admission: $38; Kids 4-12: $23; click here for tickets and information.
Second Home Hollywood is in a repurposed parking lot and remodeled Paul Williams-designed building. Photo by Iwan Baan. See how it look at start of construction, below.5) Parking to Place, a conversation about reshaping LA, at Second Home Hollywood
Parking has driven the planning and physical form of Los Angeles since the advent of the car. Rules about parking minimums have shaped our streets, houses and mobility patterns. But those are starting to change, as transportation and housing design undergoes a transformation towards greater density, more mass transit and alternatives to the car. Where will the new rules take us? How will LA look and feel with less land given over to parking spaces? Will a drop in parking lead to a reduction in driving, or a lot of annoyed Angelenos used to easy access to parking spaces?
DnA host Frances Anderton will talk this over with parking researchers Mark Vallianatos and James Sanders; and Chris Nichols, editor at Los Angeles Magazine and expert on 20th Century Los Angeles. Second Home co-founder Rohan Silva will explain the transformation. The conversation will take place in a location ideally suited to the topic: Second Home Hollywood. This coworking space designed by architects Selgascano features 60 yellow-roofed acrylic office pods amidst a garden of 6,500 plants that have taken the place of a huge surface parking lot. Check out the landscape and Second Home's remodeled, Paul Williams-designed building before the talk.
When: Tuesday, October 29, 2019; talk: 7 - 8:30 pm; self-guided walkabout: 6:30pm
Where: Second Home Hollywood, 1370 St. Andrew's Place, Los Angeles, CA 90028
Tickets: Free; click here to RSVP.