This week, you can: learn about the YIMBY movement; consider Barbie as a barometer of social progress; contemplate architectures and infrastructure made exclusively by... and for... machines; celebrate the oldest known living thing - with a snow globe; and recognize the artists of the black power era.
The $300 Million Ivy Station in Culver City will put the backyard at the epicenter of mass transportation, retail and jobs.
1) Hammer Forum: The Growing YIMBY Movement - YES In My Back Yard!
We've all heard about NIMBYism, when something is great in theory as long as it's Not In MY Back Yard. But what about YIMBYism? As housing costs rise, for a growing number of people - and the numbers are on their side - high density living, mass transportation and convenient access to jobs, entertainment, and services is exactly what they want in their backyard. YIMBY activist Sonja Trauss, housing advocate and Abode Communities president Robin Hughes, and moderator Dana Cuff of UCLA cityLAB discuss the intersection of class and economic issues surrounding urban development. You can read more about the panelists here.
When: Tuesday, March 19, 7:30 pm
Where: Hammer Museum, 10899 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90024. Parking is available under the museum for a $7 flat rate after 6 pm. Cash only.
Tickets: Free tickets are required and available at the Box Office one hour before the program. One ticket per person; first come, first served. Members receive priority ticketing until 15 minutes before the program. Learn more about membership.
The documentary Tiny Shoulders - Rethinking Barbie reveals the progression and regression in the fight for gender equality - as seen through the evolution of the iconic doll. 2) ArtCenter Dialogue: Tiny Shoulders: Rethinking Barbie, film screening and panel discussion
In the beginning, Barbie came in one size, wore sexy dresses and had beautiful hairdos. The same was true for flight attendants (or air hostesses as they were called at the time). Today, Barbie and flight attendants alike no longer conform to a single model (pun intended). Tiny Shoulders: Rethinking Barbie takes a powerful look at the fight for gender equality as seen through the evolution of the iconic doll. Featuring interviews with Gloria Steinem, Roxane Gay, Peggy Orenstein, Mattel insiders and cultural historians, the documentary frames 60 years of women in popular culture and the changes in gender expectations.
Following the screening, ArtCenter President Lorne Buchman will moderate a discussion with Andrea Nevins, producer, writer and director of Tiny Shoulders; and Kim Culmone, senior vice president and global head of design, Barbie & Fashion Dolls at Mattel.
When: Wednesday, March 20, 7 pm
Where: ArtCenter College of Design, 1700 Lida St, Pasadena, CA 91103
Tickets: Free. Seating is limited. You can RSVP here.
Liam Young explores what architecture looks like when no one is there. Photo Liam Young.3) Machine Landscapes: Architectures of the Post-Anthropocene - Discussion and B ook Signing with Liam Young
W hat will it look like when the people are gone, or even just not needed anymore? Machine Landscapes: Architectures of the Post-Anthropocene considers the Post-Anthropocene period where technology and artificial intelligence computes and constructs the world. The book is an atlas of sites, architectures and infrastructures that are not built for us, and whose form and function is configured to anticipate the needs of machines rather than our own. The data centers, telecommunications networks, distribution warehouses, unmanned ports and industrialized agriculture that define the very nature of who we are today, are in this new era occupied by server stacks and hard drives, logistics bots and mobile shelving units, autonomous cranes and container ships, robot vacuum cleaners and internet-connected toasters, driverless tractors and taxis. You can read more here.
Australian-born architect Liam Young is Fiction and Entertainment Coordinator of Design Studio at SCI-Arc, Los Angeles. He is the founder of the think tank Tomorrows Thoughts Today, a group whose work explores the possibilities of fantastic, speculative and imaginary urbanisms. He co-runs Unknown Fields Division, a nomadic research studio that travels on expeditions to the ends of the earth, documenting emerging trends and uncovering the weak signals of possible futures.
When: Saturday, March 23, 7 - 9 pm
Where: Archinect Outpost, 900 E 4th St, Los Angeles 90013
Tickets: Free. You can RSVP and purchase a copy of the book here.
4) Artist Talk: Art writer Carolina Miranda in conversation with Jeff Weiss Collective
A Greek myth, an ancient tree and a snow globe converge at ICALA. The Prometheus Project by the Jeff Weiss Collective honors the death by chainsaw of a 5,000 year old tree named Prometheus (after the Greek titan who stole fire for humanity, then paid for the sin by being chained to a mountain, where an eagle ate his liver on a daily basis) - later determined to have been the oldest known living thing on earth. Prometheus Part 1 created a Rememberence in 2014, marking 50 years since the tree's tragic fate. Prometheus Part II is a commemorative snow globe which resembles the gnarled Great Bason Bristlecone Pine that took root at the beginning of the Bronze Age. In conjunction with the availability of the limited edition snow globe at the Mega Collector's VIP Gallery at ICALA, LA Times staff writer Carolina Miranda and Jeff Weiss Collective will discuss the inspiration, the project and remembering the Remembrance. You can read more about Prometheus Project here.
When: Saturday, March 23, 3 - 5 pm
Where: Instittute of Contemorary Art, LA (ICALA), 1717 E 7th St, Los Angeles 90021
Tickets: Free.
Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power shines a light on the vital contribution of Black artists made over two decades, beginning in 1963 at the height of the civil rights movement.5) Soul of a Nation: Art in the age of Black Power
Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power 1963-1983, curated by Mark Godfrey and Zoe Whitley of the Tate Modern, shines a light on the vital contribution of Black artists made over two decades, beginning in 1963 at the height of the civil rights movement. Featuring the work of more than 60 influential artists and including vibrant paintings, powerful sculptures, street photography, murals, and more, Los Angeles-based artists appear throughout the exhibition, foregrounding the significant role of Los Angeles in the art and history of the civil rights movement and the subsequent activist era. You can read more about exhibition here.
When: Opens Saturday, March 23; Exhibition runs through Sept 1.
Where: Oculus Hall at The Broad, 221 S. Grand Ave., Los Angeles 90012
Tickets: $18, includes general admission access. Tickets are timed with entry every 30 minutes. You can get tickets here.