5 design things to do this week

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Designing cities for Mars, live scoring silent films, the latest Berlin fashion trends, tours of historic Santa Barbara, and live drawing in Highland Park. Here are five design things to do this week.

mars-city-design
‘Neuro’; a finalist in the Mars City Design competition. (The original image is no longer available, please contact KCRW if you need access to the original image.)

1)  Mars City Design Gala Ceremony

No longer just the purview of little green men and fantastical sci-fi thrillers, Mars is fast becoming the new frontier, and modern-day pioneers are eagerly imagining what our settlements might look like there. On Thursday night, Mars City Design will feature winning designs and innovations for the first sustainable cities on Mars. Exhibits will include 3D printed models, panels, videos, poetry, engineering drawings and the results of the Kickstarter crowdfunded PowerLab Workshop. Come out and meet the Marschitects, and maybe even famed astronaut Buzz Aldrin. We are told he will be in attendance! Dress code = Martian Cocktail.

When: Thursday, Sept 29, 5:30 – 9 pm

Where: Wallace Annenberg Hall (campus of USC, The Robert F. Erburu Memorial Auditorium), 3630 Watt Way, Lower Level L105A, Los Angeles 90089

Tickets: $0-50.  Get tickets here and input MARSKRCW (a discounted code exclusively for our listeners).

easy-street-1917-1016
UnSilent Cinema is a 2-day event that pairs live music specifically scored for classic silent films by contemporary artists. (The original image is no longer available, please contact KCRW if you need access to the original image.)

2)  UnSilent Cinema

A mash up of historic films with the music of the future — yet another example of the explosion of free and innovative cultural events overtaking Los Angeles, and DTLA in particular. Cutting-edge silent films from a century ago are paired with scores from some of the hottest and most innovative musicians today in a fusion sponsored by FIGat7th owner Brookfield, in collaboration with events producer Rum & Humble.  Films include Charlie Chaplin’s Easy Street, The Kid and One A.M. (among others), and composers include Daedelus, Jimmy Tamborello and Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith as well as guitar masters Alvin Youngblood Hart and Marc Ribot.  Scores will be performed live with the films. DJs starting at 7 pm.  Dinner and drink options available.  Free blankets while supplies last.

When: Thursday and Friday, Sept 29 and 30, 7 – 10 pm

Where: FIGat7th, 735 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA 90017

Tickets: Free. Details here.

berlin-colors
Berlin-based Studio Blond&Bieber’s Berlin Colors is a fusion fashion project that brings the creative potential of Germany’s capital to LA Fashion Week. (The original image is no longer available, please contact KCRW if you need access to the original image.)

3) Berlin Color: Fusion Fashion Showcase

Long an international center of avant-garde and new wave design, Berlin continues to redefine the edges.  In Berlin Color: A Fusion Fashion Showcase, Berlin-based designers Blond & Beiber offer an original perspective on the impact of science and technology on contemporary fashion.  In collaboration with young Berlin designers and German shoe brand Trippen they have produced a collection of “sustainable” shoes, and, together with Swarovski, Blond & Beiber have reinterpreted an exclusive piece from Michael Sontag’s current collection. You can see their runway show at the Goethe-Institut Los Angeles on Friday, as well as a discussion and short film screening on the processes behind the cutting-edge color innovations Algaemy and Blackcurrant. It’s a kick-off event for LA Fashion Week.

When: Friday, Sept 30, 7:30 – 10:30 pm

Where: Goethe-Institut, 5750 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036

Tickets: FREE.  Register here.

santa-barbara-architectue
The Courthouse in downtown Santa Barbara is an example of the Spanish Colonial Revival style. It was completed in 1929 and stands today as one of the city’s most iconic buildings. (This building may or may not be on the tour.) (The original image is no longer available, please contact KCRW if you need access to the original image.)

4) ArchitecTours 2016:  The Spirit of Santa Barbara Past and Present

Between the mountains and the ocean, from pier to peak, lies an architectural landscape loved by Santa Barbarians and visitors alike.  Spend a day exploring seven sites — private, public, commercial, and residential projects; new and old — that have withstood the test of time as well as more recent contemporary architecture.  This AIA tour is intended to illustrate how Santa Barbara’s architectural past and present inform each other and infuse the city with its unique feel.  

When: Saturday, Oct 1, 10 am – 4 pm Self-Guided Tour; 4 – 6 pm Happy Hour After Party

Where: Acheson House, 229 E Victoria St. Santa Barbara, CA 93101

Tickets: $25-$75.  Get tickets here.

Chicano Steel brings the artist's studio to the gallery in this real-time live artist and patron experience.
Chicano Steel brings the artist’s studio to the gallery in this real-time live artist and patron experience. (The original image is no longer available, please contact KCRW if you need access to the original image.)

5) Chicano Steel

Artists become performers, while the audience become patrons, at this unique community experience where you watch artists at work, then have a chance to buy the results.  Based on the popular Monster Drawing Rally, developed in 2000 by San Francisco organization Southern Exposure, Chicano Steel is a community and artist oriented public event featuring live drawing. Local artists are publicly showcased and their work is sold immediately for $75 on a first-come basis. The event features three, one-hour drawing shifts with up to 25 artists drawing simultaneously.   Music, food and cocktails will also be on hand.

When: Sunday, Oct 2, noon – 6 pm

Where: Avenue 50 Studio, 131 N Avenue 50, Los Angeles, CA 90042

Tickets: Donation requested.