This week: see tiptop modern and contemporary design at Nilufar's SQUAT Los Angeles; hear how Southland cities plan to build lots of new housing; attend the opening of Anish Kapoor's latest show at Regen Projects; bask in experimental sound in the House of the Book; and join community efforts to preserve Boyle Heights heritage.
SQUAT Los Angeles showcases design favorites by curator Nina Yashar, including chandeliers and sconces by Bethan Laura Wood.1) SQUAT Los Angeles
Nina Yashar has brought a blue chip mix of vintage and contemporary design to her Milan-based Nilufar Gallery since the 1990s. Now she's testing the waters in Los Angeles with a pop-up on Highland called SQUAT Los Angeles, timed to coincide with Frieze Los Angeles. With support from The Italian Cultural Institute, she has filled 5,000 square feet of exhibition space with carefully curated vignettes showcasing the works by 40 designers past and present, including ceiling lamps by Hans Agne Jakobsson, an extendible desk by Finn Juhl as well as the Criss Cross chandelier and Wisteria sconces by the fantastical designer Bethan Laura Wood, who will talk at the space on January 18 with Palm Springs Museum design curator Brooke Hodge.
When: Now through Feb 18, 2020
Where: 830 North Highland Avenue, Los Angeles 90038
Tickets: Free; click here for more information about Nilufar.
2) How will the LA region accommodate 1.3 million housing units?
Governor Gavin Newsom has called for the construction of 3.5 million new housing units in the state of California, with 1.3 million designated for Southern California. The question is, how will this number be realized and where will dwellings go? SCAG (Southern California Association of Governments) wants housing to be built closer to jobs, meaning more for the Westside and less for the exurbs. But cities and communities hostile to greater density are preparing for a fight.
At a discussion Thursday evening, co-hosted by the Westside Urban Forum and the Los Angeles chapter of the American Planning Association, a large panel of speakers will talk with Curbed's Alissa Walker about how municipalities are planning for the new housing. That means updating zoning codes and general plans as well as fighting lawsuits and reconsidering civic identities. Speakers include Elizabeth Alcantar, City of Cudahy; Shana Bonstin, City of Los Angeles; Paavo Monkkonen, UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs; Kevin Kane, SCAG; Mark Motonaga, Rios Clementi Hale Studios; and Meghan Sahli-Wells, Mayor, City of Culver City. Find out more about what's at stake on this DnA segment on the new SCAG decision.
When: Thursday, Jan 9, 6:30 - 9 pm
Where: Rios Clementi Hale Studios, 3101 West Exposition Place, Los Angeles 90018
Tickets: General admission $45 (student and member discounts available). Click here for tickets.
Concave Convex Mirror (Acute Triangle), 2019. Stainless steel, 59 1/8 x 59 1/8 x 19 5/8 inches.3) Artist Exhibition: Anish Kapoor
Anish Kapoor is a British Indian sculptor (known as Sir Anish Mikhail Kapoor in the UK, where he was given a knighthood) who has spent several decades making installation and conceptual art that is often elemental in form and materials. He has also collaborated on several signature architectural commissions, perhaps the most famous of which is the ArcelorMittal Orbit public sculpture, designed with engineer Cecil Balmond for London's Olympic Park. This Saturday his Los Angeles gallery Regen Projects will launch a show of his reflective "mirror works that challenge optical perception and phenomenological experience through experiments in shape and form." Kapoor will be present at the opening reception Saturday evening.
When: Opening reception Saturday, Jan 11, 6 - 8 pm. Exhibition runs through Feb 16.
Where: Regen Projects, 6750 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles 90038
Tickets: Free; click here for more information.
The 1973 House of the Book was designed by Sidney Eisenshtat, renowned designer of Modernist synagogues and Jewish cultural buildings.4) Wild Up | darkness sounding | Satsang 4 - Nini | House of the Book
Within the cavernous and curved walls of House of the Book, Los Angeles-based experimental composer and vocalist Odeya Nini will lead an evening of chants, harmony, resonance, and ritual. Focusing on themes of endings and new beginnings being born out of the dark days of winter, the group will make mindful, joyful and maybe even melancholic music, creating the sounds of community being drawn together in contemplation.
Designed for the Brandeis-Bardin Campus of American Jewish University in 1973 by architect Sidney Eisenshtat, House of the Book is the largest hall on campus. The futuristic, cylindrical building serves as a performance hall and library, and has moonlit as a location for sci-fi productions. The corridors and breakout rooms are highlighted by stained glass windows designed by Brandeis-Bardin alumni Jerry Novorr.
You can read more about the event here.
When: Saturday, Jan 11, 5 - 7 pm
Where: House of the Book, 1101 Peppertree Ln, Brandeis, CA 93064
Tickets: $15. You can get tickets here.
5) Boyle Heights Historic Preservation Community Workshop
Boyle Heights is changing at a rapid pace, and with gains come losses. You can be part of figuring out how best to shape those changes at Sunday's Historic Preservation Community Workshop. Learn about the rich and multi-textured history, culture and community of Boyle Heights from speakers from The Office of Historic Resources; Boyle Heights Community Partners; Boyle Heights Historical Society; Los Angeles Conservancy; Los Angeles City Planning "Boyle Heights Community Plan Update".
When: Sunday, Jan 12, 10 am - 2 pm
Where: 2839 E. Third St., Los Angeles 90033
Tickets: Free; click here for more information.