Curating the City: Modern Architecture in L.A.
As part of Pacific Standard Time Presents: Modern Architecture in L.A., the Los Angeles Conservancy's Curating the City: Modern Architecture in L.A. will look at L.A. architecture from 1940 to 1990, venturing for the first time into the relatively new preservation territory of the 1970s and '80s.
Fittingly, the special series will treat Greater L.A. as a living museum with architectural tours, panel discussions, youth activities, a film screening, and a permanent online resource to highlight L.A. County’s modern architectural heritage and the need to preserve it.
The series kicks off on April 20 with a much-anticipated one-day-only tour of Venice art and architecture, Venice Eclectic: Modern Architecture from the 1970s and '80s. Guests will have an extremely rare opportunity to tour the home built for the late actor and artist Dennis Hopper, as well as visit artist Chuck Arnoldi in his studio. The studio of artist Ed Moses will also be open to tourgoers for two hours.
The tour will explore how affordable land, a culture of creativity, and an open-minded community made Venice of the 1970s and '80s the right place and time for experimental young architects like Steven Ehrlich, Brian Murphy, Frederick Fisher, Frank Gehry, and Frank Israel, to cut their teeth on new designs using unorthodox materials in limited spaces. The day includes a 45-minute panel discussion with architects Ehrlich, Fisher, and Murphy.
Other can't-miss events in the series include the L.A. Conservancy’s signature Modern Skyline Walking Tour (Saturdays in May and June), which highlights the skyscrapers, plazas, and public art that make up downtown’s Bunker Hill, and two special nighttime Modern by Moonlight Tours on May 23 and 24 under the light of a full moon, which will conclude with a spectacular view from the top of the Bonaventure Hotel.
And, of course, Curating the City wouldn't be complete without an evening spent at Last Remaining Seats, the Conservancy’s ever-popular series of classic films in historic theatres. A special screening of My Fair Lady will take place on June 12 at The Music Center's Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, built in 1964.
In concert with the series, the LA Conservancy is also holding an Instagram Contest designed to inspire and engage tour goers; judges include Tim Street-Porter, Frances Anderton, and Elizabeth Daniels, among others.
