2015 Los Angeles Design Festival

LOS ANGELES - April 29, 2015 - PRLog -- Next month, the Los Angeles Design Festival (LADF) returns for its 5th year. The citywide creative celebration will feature 70+ events showcasing the diversity & talent of Los Angeles. LADF also delivers its own curated events, organized with the support of the Los Angeles Office of the Mayor. This year, LADF programming will focus on design issues that affect our city & region. “Design is a driving force in our regional economy,” states LADF Co-Founder Haily Zaki. “Our intent is to galvanize the individuals and organizations who make LA such a creative and productive city to celebrate design during the same collective moment on the calendar, shining a spotlight on LA as the global design capital that it is.”

“Los Angeles is the creative crossroads of the world, with a diverse and dynamic design scene,” said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. “Our creative economy is a cornerstone of our city’s success, and the Los Angeles Design Festival celebrates and highlights L.A.’s identity as a global destination for art, culture, and creativity.”

LA DESIGN FESTIVAL CURATED PROGRAMS

OPENING NIGHT PARTY + ICON AWARD CELEBRATION AT THE HOLLYHOCK HOUSE
Co-hosted by the Los Angeles Office of the Mayor and the Department of Cultural Affairs
LADF kicks off with an opening night party & ICON Award celebration co-hosted by the Los Angeles Office of the Mayor and the Department of Cultural Affairs at the Hollyhock House on May 28. The historic Frank Lloyd Wright-designed residence was re-opened to the public in 2015. Tours will be offered during the event.

LA RIVER SERIES
In collaboration with the Los Angeles Office of the Mayor
The LA River Series includes 3 events that will take place along the LA River, showcasing the diversity of innovative urban design projects. The series includes the “River Makers Bash” (May 30), bringing together design professionals & community members along the LA River for an evening of riverly revelry on Mission Street; “Food Desert to Food Zone” (June 6), a conversation about the transformation of Lincoln Heights into an urban agricultural zone with the LA River Corporation, Perkins+Will, and guerilla gardener Ron Finley; and “Riverly Reflections” (June 13), a conversation with LA River Works Director Carol Armstrong, landscape architect Mia Lehrer, and Chief Deputy City Engineer & architect Deborah Weintraub at Brendan Ravenhill Studio.

LA SUSTAINABLE LANDSCAPE TOUR
In collaboration with the “Save The Drop LA” Campaign
The LA Sustainable Landscape Tour (June 7), in collaboration with the City’s “Save The Drop LA” Campaign, features some of the city’s most innovative landscape designs, demonstrating how Angelenos continue to lead the way in water conservation, responding creatively & effectively to increasing water restrictions & drought conditions.

CITY DESIGN TOURS
Self-Guided Exploration of LA’s Most Creative Communities, Spaces & Places
The DTLA City Design Tour (May 30) takes a peek inside Please Do Not Enter’s store, Cerre’s leather atelier, and supermodel-turned-welder (wh)OreHaus' studio. The Inglewood City Design Tour (June 6) includes fashion designer Onna Ehrlich & industrial designer Joel Bell’s studio; the 1930s Rudolf Schindler-designed home of graphic designers and Otis faculty Kali Nikitas & Rich Shelton; (fer) studio, an innovative architecture design studio; and Three Weavers Brewing Company, Inglewood’s first craft brewery, co-founded by Lynne Weaver and Alexandra Nowell, CA's only woman Master Brewer.

LA DESIGN FESTIVAL HOME TOUR
Self-Guided Tour of Notable Modern Homes in Venice and Santa Monica
For the first time, LADF will be offering a Venice/Santa Monica Home Tour (Sunday, June 14). Homes include Walnut House by Modal Design/Daniel Monti, Venice House by Sebastian Mariscal, and McKinley House by David Hertz, a/k/a the “Californication” House.

CHINATOWN DESIGN NIGHT
In collaboration with the Chinatown Business Improvement District, Fifth Floor Gallery, & Preen
This art & design street party serves as the LADF's closing party. In addition to Chung King Road galleries and shops staying open late, a pop-up design market will showcase local artisans and designers (see full list online).

DESIGN MARKETS & FAIRS

Dwell on Design (May 29-31), the nation’s largest modern design event, returns to LA. Among the highlights: a keynote by design star Marcel Wanders, exclusive home tours, the largest showcase of modern design products to date, and on-stage programming.

Parachute Market (June 5-6) satisfies the conscious collector’s appetite for object art and design. Presented by set designer Coryander Friend, Parachute Market offers a platform for timeless objects and enduring design with innovative marketplace for furniture, decorative objects, and fashion by emerging and established artists, designers, and collectors.

PROFESSIONAL MIXERS

DIGITAL MAKEOVER
Hosted by AIGA Los Angeles
AIGA’s Digital Makeover (June 10) is a Dancing-with-the Stars-Meets-American-Idol live web design critique; the first in a series of design charette events conceptualized by AIGA’s local LA chapter.

LA RIVER SERIES: RIVER MAKERS BASH
Co-Hosted by Local Chapters of AIA, APA, ASLA, and ASCE
The River Makers Bash is an outdoor celebration co-hosted by professional design organizations involved in the revitalization of the LA River and the City at-large. Join the river revelry! The event will be held on Mission Street, a river-adjacent neighborhood experiencing an arts-driven renaissance.

COMMUNITY EVENTS

URBAN GARDENING WORKSHOP
Hosted by Ron Finley and LA Public Library
Guerilla gardener & community advocate Ron Finley hosts a day of community activities to educate the public about urban gardening & sustainable landscapes, including workshops & demos at the Vermont Square Library, one of LA’s only remaining Carnegie libraries.

DESIGN-N-DIM SUM BIKE RIDE
Hosted by design east of La Brea and Flying Pigeon
de LaB hosts the ever-popular design-n-dim sum bike ride, starting in Highland Park at Flying Pigeon. Head up river to Clockshop & the Bowtie Project, the Women’s Center for Creative Work, and The Elysian before biking to Chinatown for dim sum!

“The LA Design Festival continues to grow each year,” said LADF Co-Founder Michael Sylvester.  “With the level of engagement of LA’s diverse design communities, organizations, and individuals, we truly feel like we’re entering a new chapter in our collective story.”

For more information visit www.ladesignfestival.org. Individuals, organizations & institutions are invited to submit their own events online by May 8th. There is no cost to list an event as part of LADF. Event organizers are responsible for programming & producing their own events.

For more information/images, contact:
Emily Nerad: emily@ladesignfestival.org, 213.925.7485
Christine Kim: christine@ladesignfestival.org, 562.882.5648