The Future Is Now — DIEM: Talks Design

Do you like going to talks but wish the chairs could be more comfortable? Then come out Friday, November 13, for

DIEM: Talks Design.

This is a day of discussions about some current issues relating to design that takes place every year in the showrooms of the West Hollywood Design District. It is curated this year by Mallery Roberts Morgan, with DnA’s Frances Anderton, and it’s free and open to the public.

Basically, you get to sit in comfy surroundings (if you are lucky you get a sofa) — and listen to, and engage with, really smart people talking.

The day starts (at Design Within Reach) by asking, Is LA Losing Its Cool as It Becomes Cool?

Remember this article in the New York Times, which inferred LA had arrived because Brooklyn hipsters now felt at home here? Well, that set off a divided reaction, with newcomers to the region happily nodding their heads in agreement, and veteran Angelenos feeling glum because this crystallized a growing feeling that LA was losing the character, its essential LA-ness, not to mention its affordability, that had long made it the target of jokes by New Yorkers, Parisians and other global elites.

Both sides of the argument will be represented by Please Do Not Enter’s Nicolas Libert, essayist Ann Friedman, LA/London-based Christopher Farr and WHDD board member and retailer Darren Gold.

Another hot topic is art and why it dominates right now. The art market is fit to explode. And it has been said that between 2000 and 2015 more museums opened worldwide than the entire 19th and 20th century.

Forever Fabulous Beatrix Ost

Is this because society loves art or because museums provide a tax write-off for art collectors? Or both? But what does all this mean for art itself? Are we in a golden age? Or is art commodified to the point that collectors defer their art choices to consultants and put their art in storage, like gold in a vault?

Two provocateurs will tackle the questions: producer and art dealer Stefan Simchowitz and LA Times arts writerCarolina Miranda, along with art attorney Stephen Goldberg.

Do you and your friends find yourselves talking about how you plan to grow old, as in, what kind of environment do you hope to live in, especially if you are single and don’t welcome growing old alone? As boomers hit their 60s and 70s, they are coming face to face with mortality and are saying no to the traditional retirement home.

We’ll look at the new thinking about spaces to grow old for people who don’t feel old, from cohousing to retirement homes reconsidered, to the new granny flat. Speakers are architects Barbara Bestor, Elizabeth Timme of LA-Más, Rick Corsini and Ilaria Mazzoleni.

That panel will be kicked off in great style by the forever fabulous Beatrix Ost, sharing her idiosyncratic views on how to stay forever fabulous.

Also on the schedule for Friday, Mallery Roberts Morgan will talk to Katharine Ross, producer of the WearLACMA line, DwellStudio’s Christiane Lemieux and Eric Vecchione of Uhuru on what luxury means to Millennials; and interior designer Madeline Stuart will plum the depths of a topic of great importance to many: dogs, and how they fit in our homes.

In Dog Day Afternoon Madeline will deliver a photo story about how her beloved Mr. Peabody and Beatrice are “living the life of luxury” — as in, enjoying the freedom to chew everything in sight — in her very coiffed and lovely interior.

Hope to see you there.

When: Friday, Nov. 13th, 9:30 am through the evening

Where: Various locations in West Hollywood

Tickets: Register for events here.