Neighborhood News DTLA Arts District
June 11, 2011
Lots of Arts District News!
Nola’s Soul Food Kitchen to open this Summer. The new restaurant is replacing E3 Steakhouse (734 E 3rd St). I’m hoping for authentic yumminess.
Bloom’s General Store (716 Traction Ave) will reopen with a new name. At first the new owner was going to name it “Little Tokyo Shopette” Arts District Residents were not happy with the new name (as it’s in the AD not LT), so the new name is still being decided. It will still be a convenience store of sorts. More about Joel Bloom and the old Bloom’s General store here.
Also, there is news that the old Ay Caramba (714 Traction Ave) will be a pie shop! I hope it’s old-fashioned and fun.
And don’t forget about:
“Presented at 3rd Street and Traction Avenue in the Downtown Arts District, BloomfestLA offers live indie music, local artisan wares, and good food amidst a rotating outdoor gallery of street art by renowned artists.”
Last week I attended the cast/crew premiere screening party of “Million Dollar Decorators”. The party was held at a gorgeous private residences (one of the producers). It was such a fun party ! The only one who couldn’t make it was Martyn. It was amazing watching the premiere with everyone involved in the show. We laughed the entire time…seriously…even during the guacamole scene.
Here’s a few photos I snapped of the cast/crew:
Mary and JAM before the screening.
Me and Melissa
We love tacos and MARGARITAS
They must have been talking about the show.
I see Nathan.
Jacqueline
The House….
The Art
The screening….Kathryn
Jeffrey and Ross…
Nathan, Mary, girls and me (Shazz).
according to my friend Eliza who was there. She has impeccable taste, and her job requires she travel the Film Festival circuit around the world (that has to be like one of the best jobs ever!)
I had to share her recommendations because the films look so good. Thanks Eliza!
The Artist (a silent film about the silent era):
Drive ( starring Ryan Gosling as a professional stunt car driver by day, and a getaway driver by night). The clip below features the Arts District. I can even see my building in it! There’s some small geographical errors, but I’m still excited my neighborhood sees some action.
Yay! Finally some good movies to see.
Rad Documentary coming to Downtown Independent #DTLA
May 15, 2011
Nearly twenty years later, still profoundly affected by his experience at Showbiz Pizza, small-town disc-jockey Chris Thrash sought out Fechter and purchased a Rock-afire band of his own. Some clever programming on Chris’ part, and the band was once again performing for millions, this time on YouTube.
The Rock-afire Explosion reveals how Chris came to revive this fallen 80′s gem, explores his and a number of other fan’s obsessions with the animatronic band, and chronicles the rise and fall of Showbiz Pizza and what was once a 20 million dollar per-year venture for inventor Aaron Fechter. More than this, the film is a look at the importance of nostalgia, ever-changing media culture, and the eternal quest to stay young.”
Wednesday, May 18th, 2011 – $10
7:30 PM – Downtown Independent
251 S. Main Street
Art in the Streets @MOCALosangeles
April 24, 2011
I’m a huge fan of street art. My friend Matt introduced me to the beauty of graffiti and other urban art ages ago. We’d drive around town and look for new work. I actually think that’s how I ended up finding my loft in the Arts District six years ago. No one would come over here. It was pretty bare–except for the walls of the old buildings, which were decorated with spray paint. I fell in love with the industrial part of the city.
Shortly after I moved into my loft, I traveled to France, where I discovered one of my favorite street artists- Fafi. I used one of her pieces as the inspiration for my commercial design thesis.
I’m still so inspired by the work I see on the streets. Right now, The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA as an exhibit completely devoted to Street Art. If you get a chance–you simply must check out this collection. It’s more of an experience than merely a trip to the museum.
See below for my experience in photos:
Reinventing Recycling Through Art
April 6, 2011
I just ran into one of my super cool neighbors in the elevator. He told me about his awesome job. He’s part of the Global Inheritance team. He invited me to a rad “TRASHed” party-TOMORROW NIGHT in Hollywood. See invitation above. It’s a preview party for this year’s Coachella TRASHed recycling bins. I wish I knew about this organization earlier. Last month they had a call for artists for this year’s Coachella Festival. I totally would have submitted an idea. There’s always next year! (Moral of the story-talk to your neighbors in the elevator more often. Put your iphone away, and make a real, live connection. It’s fun -and you may learn something.)
“The TRASHed :: Art Of Recycling campaign is an ongoing recycling education program that redefines the way people view recycling and trash collection. Global Inheritance arranges the artistic redesign of recycling bins, then integrates the bins at high visibility events to encourage recycling and provide additional outlets for people to appreciate the artwork. Live paintings often occur at events in addition to the ongoing display of artist bins created beforehand.
TRASHed appoints the right talent to match each event’s aesthetic. Artists who have worked with us in the past include: pro-skateboarder Bob Burnquist, artists from Volcom and RVCA, rock musicians Blink-182, pro-surfer Jodie Nelson, Freestyle Motocross rider Mike Metzger, artists like Mear One and Freddi C., author Hunter S. Thompson, and many more.
Events: Coachella Music Festival ESPN Summer & Winter X Games Treasure Island Music Festival Virgin Festival Canada & USA National History Museum – LA Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival Hollywood Bowl CMJ Music Marathon Dew Tour Epicenter Music Festival Live Earth Sundance Film Festival Swerve Festival SXSW and many more.”
Also, check out the Global Inheritance Recycling Store….get free stuff just by collecting recyclable material.
*images from Global Inheritance.
The Ultimate Pillow Fight-TOMORROW in DTLA!
April 1, 2011
Tomorrow is International Pillow Fight Day!
Here are the rules:
“Bring a pillow. Preferably feather.
Yes, it makes a mess, but we’ll do our best to clean up afterwards.
Leaving no trace would be awesome
ONLY HIT PEOPLE WITH PILLOWS—-my favorite
DO NOT HIT PEOPLE Carrying CAMERAS
Here are the FAQS:
Will it cost me anything? - No
Where will we meet? - Pershing Square
When does the fight start? - When you hear the air horn
What time will that be? - 2pm Sharp
Can I help clean up? - Yes
Do you have permits? - No
Do you need permits - No
Will I get arrested? - No
Who is in charge? - No one is in charge”
More about the Urban Playground Movement here.
*Photo and info via LAist.com and pillowfightlosangeles.com
Quick….Get Super Creative Before March 11th.
March 7, 2011
Okay…so I was totally going to keep this one to myself. My friend Josh told me about this awesome online swap meet through Blu Dot, and it’s so cool that I have to spread the word.
“Are you a fan of modern furniture but not so much a fan of money? At the Blu Dot Swap Meet, you can trade your amazing talents or odd collections into your very own piece of Blu Dot.
No cash? Who cares! Here’s how it works:
- Pick out any Blu Dot item you want. Come up with an interesting offer (collections, creations, talents, taxidermy, etc.) and upload it to this site between February 28 – March 11, 2011. (If you submit a video, keep it under five minutes.)
- Check this site throughout the period to see the status of your bid. Blu Dot may like it enough to swap, or may want you to up the ante.
- If your bid becomes a successful swap, you will be additionally notified via email.
PLEASE NOTE: Sorry- no minors allowed. One bid per piece of Blu Dot furniture. Blu Dot will not accept human babies, “self love” videos, and/or mean/inappropriate things. In other words, be creative but don’t be stupid. See the full terms here.“
SO RAD! RIGHT?
Everyone can vote on their favorites, but ultimately, Blu Dot will select the ideas/products they feel worthy of a swap. Some of the things they’ve accepted so far: feeding homeless animals for a bed, throwing an epic College Kegger for a chair, appearing as a life-size worm in 25 documented places for a sofa-sleeper, a spork collection for a chair, photos of a hundred sleds for a bench, sound machines that makes weather noises for a sectional, fencing lessons for a table, and Texas-style bbq for 60 people for a sofa….So many fun ideas:
Get crackin’ creative people..Friday is the deadline!
The Men and Women of Marc Jacobs
February 13, 2011
A few weeks ago, I picked up this AMAZING book about the Men and Women of Marc Jacobs. Photographed by celebrity photographer, Brian Bowen Smith, this book is one of my favorite new coffee table adornments!!!
From the intro: “Many things can be said about the appealing men and women that Brian Bowen Smith has captured in these photos. They all work for Marc Jacobs, in the company’s stores and corporate offices, all over the United States and the world…..The thing that you keep coming back to is that these look like people who actually like what they do for a living…People want to work there- and not because of the clothes. The men and women in these photographs look like they belong to something they actually want to belong to….”
The best part about this book? It was free! I heard about the give-away through a girl who had seen a twitter post by the official Marc Jacobs Twitter account- @MarcJacobsIntl. Robert Duffy was appearing at the Marc by Marc Jacobs store nearby–signing these beautiful books. By the time I got to the store, Duffy was gone, but one of the super nice employees gave me a copy. I haven’t had much free time to look through the book yet. But, below find some of the fab photos of the “Men and Women of Marc Jacobs”.
Also- This week, you can watch the 2011 Fall/Winter Marc Jacobs and Marc by Marc Jacobs fashion shows streaming live from NYC:
From Twitter: Join us for the FW11 shows in 9:16 HD! web/smartphone – http://bit.ly/Web_LIVE – or on Facebook – http://bit.ly/FB_LIVE
Rodarte: States of Matter @ MOCA– 4/4/11-6/5/11
February 7, 2011
Above: Sketch courtesy of Rodarte shows design for the “Demon” ballet costume in the film “Black Swan”. (Rodarte/AP)
hared a link via facebook regarding MOCA’s upcoming Rodarte exhibit. I am so excited. I’ve been following Kate and Laura Mulleavy for a while.
