5 design things to do this week: Oct 7-13, 2019

This week: Let the  independent  games begin; shop for great design deals on La Cienega; consider "soft Schindler" and modernism from diverse perspectives; celebrate Culver City arts about mobility.

1) IndieCade International Festival of Independent Games

Game on! A decade in and going strong, IndieCade is to the gaming industry what Sundance once was to the film industry: an opportunity for independent game developers to showcase their innovation, diversity and artistry in all forms of interactive media. Located this year at Santa Monica College's Center for Media and Design (by KCRW's station), party with industry peers and review newly-created games from around the world.

Highlights this year include location-based games like The Headlands Gamble, in which two or four partners play detectives in an "immersive mystery story set amidst some of the most beautiful locations in the North Bay" or ARBox, an Augmented Reality-powered Room Escape in a Box. The box lets your living room become "the Restricted Wing of an occult library complete with a haunted book that maybe can’t be trusted" while your office can be transformed into "a branch of a spy organization trying to stop the spread of dangerous magical spells." You can also hear a keynote conversation between Meow Wolf Executive Producer Jenny Weinbloom and No Proscenium editor Kathryn Yu. Events and programs are available individually or in packages.

When: Thursday - Saturday, Oct 10 - 12. You can see the complete schedule here.

Where: Santa Monica College's Center for Media and Design, 1660 Stewart Street, Santa Monica 90404

Tickets: $15+. You can see ticket options and purchase on line here.

2) LCDQ Sidewalk Sale

Start the weekend early and go shopping for some great decorating deals! The La Cienega Design Quarter – bordered by Santa Monica Blvd, Melrose Ave and La Cienega Blvd – has long been a destination for shoppers and professionals looking for top quality home design.  This weekend, store owners spill onto the sidewalk for the  LCDQ  Sidewalk Sale.

Arteriors, Hollyhock, Jasper, Kreiss, Paul Ferrante, Waterworks and many more will open their showrooms with heavily discounted antiques, carpets, design objects, furniture, lighting and more.  Recharge while there at local favorites Fig & Olive, Ago, Lucques or Taste on Melrose.

When: Friday, Oct 11, 10 am - 7 pm

Where: La Cienega Design Quarter, primarily between the intersections of La Cienega, Melrose and Santa Monica Blvds. You can see a map here.

Tickets: Free and open to the public; more information here.

3) Modernism Reconsidered x 3: Soft Schindler, Diversity in Modernism, Bauhaus Beginnings

Under / Represented: A Conversation about Diversity in Modernism

Despite the utopianism of modernism, the architectural firms of the 20th century were so dominated by white men that history has tended to overlook the contribution of women and people of color in the creation of schools, airports and homes for Hollywood's elite. This Saturday, Docomomo US/SoCal presents a conversation about four architects -- Gin Wong, Norma Merrick Sklarek, Robert A. Kennard -- who created landmarks in LA, and overcame significant institutional barriers throughout their distinguished careers.

Relatives, associates, and admirers will share stories of the four designers, in an apt setting: the 1960 Founders Church of Religious Science, designed by Paul R. Williams. Urban designer and preservationist Luis Hoyos will moderate the discussion with Janna Wong, professor and daughter of Gin Wong; Margot Siegel, architect and former partner at Siegel Sklarek Diamond; Gail Kennard, architect and daughter of Robert Kennard; and Janna Ireland, artist and photographer, who has made Paul R. Williams’ designs the subject of her recent work. The panel discussion will be preceded by self-guided tours of the church and a small reception. 

When: Saturday, Oct 12, 4:30 - 7 pm

Where: Founders Church of Religious Science, 3281 West 6th Street, Los Angeles 90020

Tickets: Free for Documomo members; $10 general admission; click here for tickets

Soft Schindler

In 1949 Pauline Schindler, estranged from her architect husband but living in half of the house they built together, painted her side of the interior salmon pink. To R.M. Schindler, Pauline's intolerable act violated a sanctum of modernism and his desire for honest expression of natural materials. Whether to spite him or whether she just liked the color, this exhibition, curated by Mimi Zeiger, interprets her act as softening our rigid design perspectives and opening space for plural narratives of contemporary art and architecture.

Zeiger has invited designers -- including AGENdA agencia de arquitectura; T​anya Aguiñiga; Design, Bitches; Bettina Hubby; Leong Leong and ​Bryony Roberts -- to reflect on the "incompleteness of binary ideas in architecture, sculpture, and design" with sculpture, collage, ceramics and other interventions in the celebrated space.

When: Opening reception Saturday, Oct 12, 7 - 9 pm; Exhibition runs through Feb 16

Where: MAK Center for Art and Architecture at the Schindler House, 835 North Kings Road, West Hollywood 90069

Tickets: Opening reception free and open to the public; General admission $10; more information here.

Bauhaus Beginnings

In the event you have not yet checked out the show that takes you back to a primary source of Modernism, make sure to get to the Getty Center's 'Bauhaus Beginnings', ending this weekend. Amidst displays of early visual exercises conducted at the school you'll find the imprint of women, many of whom were consigned to textiles. Ironically, the textiles wound up attracting a more enthusiastic audience than some of the other media. You'll also find blow-ups of playful photos of the students, both women and men.

When: Exhibition runs through Sunday, Oct 13

Where: The Getty Center, 1200 Getty Center Dr, Los Angeles 90049

Tickets: Free (but parking costs $20); click here for more information.

4) Art Walk and Roll Culver City

Culver City's Arts District welcomes the public this weekend to their annual street festival, a self-guided arts and culture tour along Washington Boulevard featuring art, live music, eclectic food trucks, wine and beer gardens, tastings, fun kid’s activities and much more. The range of attractions includes the Square Off/LA photography show at the Washington Corridor Gallery at Helms Bakery and a presentation about 'New Mobility' by Dan Sturges.

Sturges' talk is  part of the Speaker Series that's been offered to the public as work unfolds on Culver City's General Plan update. His  presentation, taking place at Envoy on Washington Boulevard, will be followed by a one-time screening of the Dutch documentary film  Why We Cycle .  

When: Saturday, Oct 12, 11 am - 6 pm. The presentation by Dan Sturges will be from 11 am to 12:30 pm and the screening of Why We Cycle will begin at 1:30 pm.

Where: Culver City Arts District, Washington Blvd between National and La Cienega; full road closure between Helms and Roberts Avenues.

Tickets: Free and open to the public; more information here.

NOTE for fashion enthusiasts: on Sunday, October 13, Arcana Books will host a book party for legendary British designer Dame Zandra Rhodes. She will be joined by Joan Agajanian Quinn in discussion followed by a reception and book signing. 

5) 10 Columns, by Phillip K Smith III