2023 / locations

Free to the Public.

EXHIBITION OPEN DAILY / 10am-4pm

Thursday 06/22

3PM / MDAP Project 

ROW DTLA | Unit B2|198

[Powered by AGNTES and curated by Illya Haro for LADF.]

Biofeedback audiovisual performance with: brainwaves, heart rate, respiration rate and body tracking data by artist Mario Alvarado.

7PM / Reform x Dezeen cocktail party

ROW DTLA | Reform Showroom

Together Dezeen and Reform invite you to a celebratory cocktail to toast the LA Design Festival on Thursday 22 June at the Reform showroom.

Please RSVP to attend: rsvp@reformcph.com

Friday 06/23

1+5PM / MDAP Project 

ROW DTLA | Unit B2|198 [Open from 10am-930pm]

[Powered by AGNTES and curated by Illya Haro for LADF.]

1pm / Conversation - Sensing Soundscapes: Exploring the Symbiosis of Biofeedback and Artistic ExpressionExploring the Symbiosis of Biofeedback and Artistic Expression

5pm / Biofeedback audiovisual performance by artist Mario Alvarado 

2PM / Building for Community and Connection with HOK and The United Way

ROW DTLA [MAIN STAGE] | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

Join global organizations, the non-profit United Way and architecture and design firm HOK as they discuss their individual and collaborative efforts centered around the creation of supportive and welcoming spaces that prioritize community and connection. This conversation will delve into HOK's expertise and process in the field of trauma-informed design and will discuss the United Way’s initiatives to construct supportive spaces for the citizens of Los Angeles.

Speakers: Nambi Gardner of HOK and Denise Ocana of United Way Los Angeles

3PM / THREE PILLARS OF DESIGN LEADERSHIP WITH JAAN ORVET

ROW DTLA [MAIN STAGE] | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

Design leadership is about understanding, and through insight helping others do better. Many of the answers to key strategic, product, and communication questions posed across organisations are found through solid design leadership. And it all starts with getting three foundational pillars in place.

4PM / JUSTIN DAUER ‘OUR IMPERATIVES: CONNECTION & FULFILLMENT’

ROW DTLA [MAIN STAGE] | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

The designer's legacy isn't built upon their choice of tools. The designer's legacy is built upon the choices they make-as macro and micro as that implies. When we're aware of where our fulfillment is derived from, we've taken a grand leap toward making meaningful work—work that connects to us as designers (nay, human beings), and to those who will ultimately engage with it.

5PM / ARRAY's LEAP @ LA Design Festival

ROW DTLA ‘BLACK LIGHT’ EXHIBITION SPACE | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

This immersive pop-up exhibit culminates with a one-of-a-kind conversation with artist Julian Stephen on Friday, June 23, reflecting on his work with LEAP and his project, ‘The Aura’.

An initiative launched in response to George Floyd’s murder in 2020, ARRAY’s LEAP, the Law Enforcement Accountability Project, debuts its two newest artist commissions. ‘The Reckoning’, a dance film by acclaimed dancer and choreographer Francesca Harper, reflecting on the case of seven-year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones; and ‘The Aura’, an audio drama experience by multimedia artist Julian Stephen that uses varied perspectives to highlight the case of 23-year-old Elijah McClain.

6PM / TO LIVE + THRIVE IN LA

ROW DTLA A+R Store | 777 S Alameda St, Building M1 | Suite 100, Los Angeles, CA 90021

‘To Live + Thrive in LA’ is a conversation and book signing with Frances Anderton, the pre-eminent voice on design and architecture in LA, and A+R’s own Rose Apodaca. Swing by this Friday at 6pm, talk starts at 6:30, followed by the book signing and party. 

RSVP: rsvp@aplusrstore.com

6:30–9:30PM / DESIGN BLOCK PARTY

Come explore the exhibits in the evening and connect with community…

Benny Boy Brewing Pop-Up | Jimmy Marble Gallery Opening [Garage Suite 120] | Studio Left 12th Year Anniversary Party [@Suite B2-126] | M-Dap Show Opening [@Suite B2-198] | Schessa Garbutt’s People Powered Screenprinting Workshop [outside @B3-170] + Music by DJ Noble

Saturday 06/24

PEOPLE POWERED: A SCREEN PRINTING WORKSHOP

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, June 23-25, 2023 | ROW DTLA [CREATIVE WORKSPACE]

What happens when art, resistance, and intention meet? Join designer Schessa Garbutt for a screen printing demo and short talk about Black, queer, and Indigenous (Otomi) histories of using graphics and sigils as a means to manifest abundant futures. Bring up to three cotton garments of your choosing (t-shirt, tote bag, hoodie, etc). Cotton swatches will also be provided for those who want to make patches! Print your own wearable talismans of resistance with a Firebrand design.

Tickets are $25 per person. PURCHASE TICKETS

10:30AM / SILAS MUNRO: ON THE CONSIDERATION OF A BLACK GRId

ROW DTLA [MAIN STAGE] | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

Graphic designer Silas Munro presents his latest work, a brief visual essay that charts a series of experimental meditations on how grids can shape Black liberatory forms. This talk will accompany the exhibit.

12PM / THE BIG, SMALL, AND MESSY DESIGN HISTORY: LOS ANGELES

ROW DTLA [MAIN STAGE] | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

Design history is changing. Through a messy but exciting process, so much more work and many more makers are being acknowledged for contributing to LA’s rich cultural history. Today research can be done by anyone, not just historians but citizen scholars as well. Louise Sandhaus launches the conversation by taking us on a journey of understanding LA’s past in order to imagine vibrant new futures for design going forward. The conversation about discovering LA’s rich, overlooked design history will be moderated by design historian and educator Silas Munro, with graphic designer, art historian and educator Lorraine Wild, arts and culture journalist Eva Recinos, and design researcher Jason E.C. Wright.

1:30PM / Add-a-Thon Live!: Expanding Los Angeles’ Graphic Design History Together | Led by Louise Sandhaus [WORKSHOP]

ROW DTLA [CREATIVE WORKSPACE] | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

What belongs as part of LA’s rich graphic design history that has been overlooked? Gather works in your attic, in a dusty box, or from a flea market. Photograph or scan the work and gather as much information as you can, then bring your treasure(s) and laptop to this Add-a-Thon event. We’ll collectively add to The People’s Graphic Design Archive (PGDA), a crowd-sourced virtual archive of inclusive graphic design. This fun, hands-on gathering will begin with an overview and demo of  PGDA and basic research techniques. We’ll collectively help create a new Los Angeles graphic design history.  

1PM / KATO | Design + Food

ROW DTLA [AT KATO] | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

Connecting food and design challenges and opportunities, Jay Holzer of Tastemade will moderate a conversation with partners of Michelin Star restaurant Kato Ryan Bailey, and Chef Jonathan Yao, Stephen Kenn of Stephen Kenn Studio, and Amber Earl of Earl Home about the creation of inventive and elegant food service within a considered design space, by collaborating with local artisans and designers. 

1PM / A drawing party with Jimmy Marble

ROW DTLA [Garage Suite 120] | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

Get ready to release your creativity at our Drawing Party! This in-person event is perfect for meeting new people, having fun, and creating amazing art together! Whether you're a seasoned artist or just starting out, this event is open to everyone.

IMPORTANT DETAILS : Bring your own drawing supplies and notebooks. Supplies will not be provided.

We can't wait to see what you create!

1PM / Decolonial Poiesis: Unsettling through Art and Design

ROW DTLA [MAIN STAGE] | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

"Decolonial Poiesis: Unsettling through Art and Design" interrogates what it means to "decolonize design" and explores potential vectors to pursue decolonial outcomes as artists and designers. The questions, research, and methodologies put forth in the presentation draw from lessons learned during Black and Indigenous decolonial movements in the United States, including Indigenous water protector and land back movements and Black abolitionist movements.

Speaker: Bobby Joe Smith III

2+3PM / MDAP PROJECT 

ROW DTLA | Unit B2|198 [Open from 10a-4pm]

[Powered by AGNTES and curated by Illya Haro for LADF.]

2pm / Conversation -  Sensing Soundscapes: Exploring the Symbiosis of Biofeedback and Artistic Expression

3pm /Biofeedback audiovisual performance by artist Mario Alvarado with special participation of Haydeé Jiménez

2PM / Designing for Commerce + Culture + The Human Experience

ROW DTLA [MAIN STAGE] | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

A moderated conversation by Alexis Jeffries around the intersection of business, culture + the human experience with zero of Ronin House and Onyeka Obiocha the Executive Director of CTNext. The discussion will   challenge generational perceptions and divides, who we are and how we connect by design and with understanding how creative industry drives culture and commerce.

4PM / SISTER CORITA KENT PANEL DISCUSSION + BOOK LAUNCH

ROW DTLA [MAIN STAGE] | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

Panel discussion and book launch for ‘New Rules Next Week.’

In the late 1960s, she and her students at the Immaculate Heart College developed their Art Department Rules. From “Consider everything as an experiment” to “Be happy whenever you can manage it,” these ten deceptively simple principles capture the magic of Corita’s approach to creativity, culture, and activism. In this volume, ten writers and ten artists look back at the rules and show us how vital and resonant they remain today.

Contributors Juliette Bellocq, Lenore Dowling, Haven Lin-Kirk, and Karina Esperanza Yánez will appear in conversation with Sheharazad Fleming.

7PM / DESIGN FOR THE PEOPLE DINNER: ASI ASI PROJECTS X LA DESIGN FESTIVAL 2023

ROW DTLA [ROOFTOP] | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

Hosted by asi asi projects, a creative agency that owns and operates a Los Angeles social house and supper club, with gifting by Converse, the most iconic sneaker in the world. This design-centered dinner includes a four-course menu, drinks, and table talk with a special guest from the design community seated at each table to facilitate conversation and connectivity, on a rooftop at ROW DTLA.

Price: $125 per person.

Sunday 06/25

PEOPLE POWERED: A SCREEN PRINTING WORKSHOP

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, June 23-25, 2023 | ROW DTLA [CREATIVE WORKSPACE]

What happens when art, resistance, and intention meet? Join designer Schessa Garbutt for a screen printing demo and short talk about Black, queer, and Indigenous (Otomi) histories of using graphics and sigils as a means to manifest abundant futures. Bring up to three cotton garments of your choosing (t-shirt, tote bag, hoodie, etc). Cotton swatches will also be provided for those who want to make patches! Print your own wearable talismans of resistance with a Firebrand design.

Tickets are $25 per person. PURCHASE TICKETS

10AM / RAD FURNITURE: ICED TEA AND SKATEBOARDS

ROW DTLA | @RAD FURNITURE PARKLET [TREE AMPHITHEATRE]

Drink iced tea and check out two LA-grown brands, RAD Furniture and Lander, looking at design in two different industries. How do furniture and skateboards meet?

2PM / MDAP PROJECT 

ROW DTLA | Unit B2|198 [Open from 10a-4pm]

[Powered by AGNTES and curated by Illya Haro for LADF.]

2pm / Conversation -  Sensing Soundscapes: Exploring the Symbiosis of Biofeedback and Artistic Expression

2pm / NOT TOO SWEET: L.A. STORIES FROM AAPI CREATIVE LEADERS

ROW DTLA [MAIN STAGE] | 777 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90021

A panel of ​LA based and ​grown ​AAPI ​talent speak on the brightest and toughest moments from their own lives and ​careers ​in our local culture. Together, we’ll ​share the joys and challenges in ​the​ ​design community with generosity, wisdom, and excellent taste.

Speakers: Paul Mendoza [moderator], Nikki Reginaldo, Samadhi Bishop, Jonathan Lo and Dyan Jong

Thursday 06/22

5PM / THE LATINX/E EXPERIENCE IN DESIGN

Helms Design Center | 8745 Washington Blvd, Culver City

A panel of Latinx/e Designer/Educators discuss their pathway to graphic design as students, professionals and educators. They will discuss how their experiences inform their teaching, practices and how design, as an industry, can become more inclusive and supportive of Latinx/e design and designers.

Speakers: Shannon Doronio + Michelle LeClerc + Alma Juarez + Ana Llorente + Hazel Mandujano + Julia Camara Calvo

7pm /  Adobe: Creating Gen AI Tools with and for Designers

Helms Design Center | 8745 Washington Blvd, Culver City

Join members of the Adobe Design and Community teams for a very special event, as they host a conversation with local designers about the design process behind Adobe’s Gen AI tools.

Panelists will discuss how they’re currently using AI in their design workflows, touch upon what’s ahead, and talk about how it takes a human touch to make and create the next generation of design tools. There will be a brief demo, followed by the panel discussion, and wrap with audience Q&A.

Speakers: Tomasz Opasinski + Annie Lu + Lisa Carney + Nick Longo + Chrysanthe Tenentes

Friday 06/23

2-6PM / Open Studio with artist Marcos Lutyens

Room & Board @ Helms Design Center | 8745 Washington Blvd, Culver City

Join Room & Board and local artist Marcos Lutyens, to view and explore one of a kind Olfactory Haptic therapeutic sculptures. 

Olfactory Haptic sculptures aim to provide therapeutic benefits to neurodivergent people, enhancing their engagement with the environment and aiding in recovery. By activating multiple senses, these sculptures have the potential to evoke emotions, trigger healing responses, and contribute to overall mental well-being, with prospects for further development and application in treating various mental health challenges. The smells within the sculptures will include evocative aromas such as bubble gum, freshly cut grass, the fresh breeze of the ocean and more.

These fascinating Olfactory Haptic therapeutic sculptures will be on display and can be experienced during Open Studios at Room & Board. 

4PM / ILLUSIONISTIC DESIGN: ART INFORMED BY THE VISUAL AND EMOTIONAL EFFECTS OF COLOR [CURATED BY SAATCHI ART]

Helms Design Center | 8745 Washington Blvd, Culver City

We will discuss the ways in which artists use principles of color theory to inform their art practice and ultimately how that affects the design space in which the artwork is placed. We will explore how color is able to evoke profound sensations, stir emotions, and communicate ideas and how artists harness the power of color to create visually captivating and emotionally resonant works.

Speakers: Kelsey Overstreet + Jayes Caitlin + Seda Saar + Erin Remington + Nicole Garton

Burntsienna Reading Room | Cisco Home

Friday-Saturday 10am–4pm / Sunday 12pm–4pm 

Cisco Home | Helms Design Center | 8705 Washington Blvd, Culver City

Focus of Study : California Design

A third-space of artbooks and design furniture, programmed for casual research, new discoveries, and a restful space to recharge the mind amidst the festival. 

A space for introversion and minor decompression, inside of Cisco Home, a three-decade furniture practice rooted in Los Angeles.

Burntsienna will programme the space with a curated selection of art and design books and periodicals in the theme of ‘California Design’.

Jason E.C. Wright will be on hand to welcome guests into the space with the hospitality of an attendant librarian or a warmly engaged concierge.

5-8PM / Wine + Weave

The Rug Warehouse, 3260 Helms Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90034 [Helms Bakery District]

Sip some wine, socialize, and snack while you peruse our Custom Rug possibilities and get to have an exclusive hands-on look at new rugs. A night for designers and trade members to see what is new in our showroom.  A short talk by George Haroonian, expert rug trader with 47 years experience, covering the status of the rug industry today, and more about our services. Gift bags will be given to our first 50 guests.

Saturday 06/24

3pm / Close to the Edge: Hip Hop Architecture Curator Led Walk-Through

Close To The Edge Exhibition | 8707 Washington Blvd, Culver City

Join the A+D Museum and curator Sekou Cooke for a walkthrough and insightful discussion of "Close to the Edge: The Birth of Hip Hop Architecture". Gain unique insights into the exhibit as Sekou shares  behind-the-scenes details and the innovative minds that bridge the world of hip hop and the built environment. From vibrant energy to evolving urban landscapes, explore how the ethos of hip hop has influenced architectural form and design. 

3pm / FORESIGHT, FUTURING AND PROSPECTIVE DESIGN

Helms Design Center | 8745 Washington Blvd, Culver City

Nu Goteh in conversation with Radha Mistry about foresight as practice and industry.

Radha Misty is Arup’s Americas Foresight Leader and an Associate Principal in the Los Angeles office.Radha’s background spans architecture, narrative environments, and strategic foresight and, she has been a leading voice in the development of foresight both in professional practice and academia, building foresight fluency across organizations like Autodesk, where she served as Foresight leader, and working with executive leadership to drive key foresight-led initiatives. Radha serves on the Foresight Advisory Council for the Middle East Institute, and teaches as part-time faculty on the MFA Transdisciplinary Design program at The New School (Parsons) and the DesignMBA program at the California College of the Arts.

5pm / CURATOR Interview: Sekou Cooke

Helms Design Center | 8745 Washington Blvd, Culver City

Nu Goteh in conversation with Sekou Cooke about Hip Hop architecture and his traveling exhibition “Close to the Edge,” at LA’s A+D Museum.
 

6:30PM / CLOSE TO THE EDGE: THE BIRTH OF HIP-HOP ARCHITECTURE OPENING PARTY

Close To The Edge Exhibition | 8707 Washington Blvd, Culver City

Opening in Los Angeles at LADF is Curator Sekou Cooke’s exhibition surveying the movement of Hip-Hop and its impact on the urban built environment.

Sunday 06/25

4PM / CALIFORNIA DREAMING MODERATED BY FRANCES ANDERTON

Helms Design Center | 8745 Washington Blvd, Culver City

Celebrate with architects and writers one of the last issues of Architectural Design magazine: California Dreaming

California has historically provided a fertile breeding ground for radical modes of architectural thinking, practice and building which from the 1920s onwards was sparked by the presence of eminent émigré architects. It was also central to the birth of ‘cool’ mid-century modernism——all in parallel with the intense concentration of design and experimentation in the film, aerospace and tech industries.

Tickets to all Downtown Long Beach LA Design Festival events are available here:

Friday 06/23

4PM / BEYOND THE FRAME LIVE PODCAST RECORDING AND DISCUSSION WITH THE PEOPLE’S POTTERY PROJECT

Long Beach Museum of Art | 356 E 3rd Street, Long Beach, CA 90802 

Beyond the Frame Podcast welcomes the artist collective People’s Pottery Project, an artist-driven initiative to empower formerly incarcerated women and trans ppl through the arts. Founders Domonique and Ilka Perkins will be in conversation with curator Paul Loya. 

5PM / Studio One Eleven Studio Tour

DESIGN HUB | Studio One Eleven, 245 E. Third St, Long Beach, CA 90802

Studio One Eleven is an integrated architecture, urban design, and landscape architecture firm dedicated to repairing cities. Their DTLB studio was designed to be an Urban Lab, a space that inspires innovation and promotes economic and social justice, education, and dialogue within design fields that impact cities. Join Studio One Eleven Partner, Michael Bohn, for a studio tour and reception.

6PM / DTLB Design District Opening Night Block Party

DESIGN HUB | Studio One Eleven @ Mosaic Promenade 300 North Promenade, Long Beach, CA 90802

Studio one Eleven and LB Living are throwing a block party on the Mosaic Promenade to celebrate the launch of the LA Design Festival at the DTLB Design District. 

The event will feature LB design community demos by City Fabrick, S111-RDC, and the LB Community Design Center, vendors, DJs, food trucks, and a beer garden as well as an exhibition by artist Mario Ybarra Jr., entitled ‘Like a Cow Visiting a Butcher Shop.’ The installation was originally shown at ARCO Madrid and for the first time being shown in the artist's hometown. 

Also, on display at Studio One Eleven and throughout the promenade is an International Poster Exhibition by designers and graphic artists from all over the world to celebrate design creativity, inclusiveness, freedom and love inspired by this year's LA Design Festival Theme ‘Design for the People.’ The exhibition was curated by PosterTerritory and sponsored by Velvet Hammer.

Saturday 06/24

11AM / For Friends and Neighbors Since 1880: Past, Present and Future Talk + Tour of Lincoln Park @ LB Civic Center

Billie Jean King Library | 200 W Broadway, Long Beach, CA 90802

Take a tour of the Billie Jean King Library and Lincoln Park, DTLB’s oldest, newest park at the LB Civic Center, recently redesigned by Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill (SOM). The guided walk will share the past, present, and future of this community gathering space by Long Beach Heritage, SOM, and the People’s Architecture Office, designers of the park’s future COVID-19 memorial. This event is organized by the DLBA, Studio One Eleven, and City Fabrick.

1PM / THE CRITICALITY OF QUEER CRAFT WITH CHRISTINA WEBB

Design Hub | Studio One Eleven 245 East Third St., Long Beach, CA 90802

Join Christina Webb for a conversation about work, stories, beauty, and resistance in Queer design. This will look at past and present work that embodies innovation and activates change through diverse ways of creating, while making space in critical ways.

Christina will be in conversation with designer Carolina Ibarra-Mendoza and Carol Wells, founder and executive director of the Center for the Study of Political Graphics.

1PM / ARTIST WALKTHROUGH OF ‘VIRGINIA KATZ: TRANSITORY NATURE’ AND OPEN-AIR MARKETPLACE 

356 E 3rd St, Long Beach, CA 90802

An artist walkthrough of LBMA Downtown’s exhibition “Virginia Katz: Transitory Nature,” which looks to the human connection with landscape for insight. The exhibit and tour will run in tandem with an open-air market featuring The People’s Pottery Project and other local artists’ wares from noon to 4 pm.

3PM / Unearthing A Black Aesthetic:  A Discussion with Demar Matthews + Kevin Sherrod

Design Hub | Studio One Eleven 245 East Third Street, Long Beach, CA 90802

Long Beach- and Los Angeles-based architectural designer, theorist, and writer Demar Matthews, Principal of OffTop Design and adjunct facility at Long Beach City College, will be in conversation with Kevin Sherrod, Arts and Culture Practice Area Leader from Gensler, LA and design faculty at USC. They will discuss their collaborative work, which investigates the power of architecture as a cultural signifier and vehicle of traditions, values, and identity for Black communities.

4PM / Psychic Temple of the Holy Kiss Tour and Kick-Off Reception for Long Beach Walls Mural Festival and Art Renzei

Intertrend | 228 East Broadway, Long Beach, CA 90802

Tour Long Beach’s second oldest building, The Psychic Temple of the Holy Kiss. The recently renovated landmark built in 1905 has a curious and sordid history. Originally erected by a cult leader for “psychological treatments,” the building was then a brothel and hotel and is now home to the creative agency, Intertrend. 

As if that weren’t enough to entice you, the tour with founder and CEO Julia Huang will be followed by a special reception hosted by the non-profit arm of Intertrend, Creative Class Collective, to announce the much-anticipated opening dates of the Long Beach Walls and Art Renzei festival, a celebration of art that promises to be nothing short of extraordinary. Don’t miss out on this dazzling and intriguing event.

Thursday 06/22

5-8pm / Garden Party @ Plant Material

3025 Rowena Back Gate - Enter On, La Paz Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90039

A shop-able garden party introducing our new line of seating and the announcement of our direct to consumer website.  The party will be hosted amongst the native plants of Plant Material in Silverlake and will feature garden inspired cocktails and snacks.  Anyone attending the event will receive a weekend long discount code.

530pm / Nueuhouse | wine & design

NeueHouse Bradbury | 3304 South Broadway, Los Angeles, California 90013

NeueHouse partners with the LA Design Festival for a unique opportunity to explore the historic architecture and stories of DTLA’s iconic Bradbury Building. Led by a docent from the LA Conservancy, this half hour tour will grant members and guests insider access to the city’s oldest buildings that has served as the backdrop to silver screen notables from Blade Runner (1982), to Chinatown (1974), to 500 Days of Summer (2009).

Stay for drinks, bites and a DJ at our NeueJazz with the legendary pianist Gerald Clayton and bassist Jermaine Paul starting at 6:30 PM.

5pm / Kick-off event to celebrate the beginning of LADF

719 S Los Angeles St. Suite 807, Los Angeles, CA 90014

Get ready for the LA Design Fest Kick Off! This in-person event is the perfect way to kick off the summer with a bang. Join us on Thursday, June 22nd 2023 at 5:00 PM PDT at 719 South Los Angeles Street Suite 807, Los Angeles, CA 90014 for a night of design, creativity, and fun. Throughout the night, you'll have the chance to participate in Coffee Ground Readings, Henna Tattoos and a create your own scent bar. You'll also have the chance to enjoy delicious food and drinks and chat the night away with your fellow creatives. Don't miss out on this exciting event! Mark your calendars and get ready to kick off the summer in style at the LA Design Fest Kick Off.

[Limited Street Parking, Lot, rideshare recommended]

Friday 06/23

11am, 1pm & 3pm / Comfort & Light: Vitsœ & Mud Australia

8216 W 3rd Street, Los Angeles, CA 90048 – Lots of Street Parking.

Vitsœ’s 620 Chair Programme: Designed by Dieter Rams in 1962 as a kit of parts.

Using pioneering materials and a concept of modular adaptability, the 620 chair is engineered to outlive its owner. Rams speaks of “wanting to achieve the comfort of a classic armchair, while remaining visually light”.

Join us for a hands-on demonstration to discover how separate chairs can be joined to become a sofa; a low back can be changed for a high back; and a swivel base can replace castors and feet.

Mud Australia’s Flared Table Lamp: Designed collaboratively by Zachary Hanna and Shelley Simpson for Mud Australia.

Part of an innovative light collection, a timeless lamp for intimate spaces, made from three handmade porcelain pieces. The lamp's light source is cleverly nestled within the base, casting a warm glow.

More information about this exciting new collection in store and online.

3PM / CASE STUDY IN COLLABORATION: BEVERLY GROVE, A SOCAL MODERNIST RESIDENCE

Assembledge + Henrybuilt, 806 Mateo Street, Los Angeles, CA 90021

Join us for a lively discussion featuring David Thompson, founder and principal designer of Assembledge+, Julianna Morias, Vice President of Design at Henrybuilt, and Peter Terpinski, the owner and founder of (the aptly-named) Collaborative Construction. This trio (along with several other talents) were the team behind the widely published Beverly Grove, a SoCal modernist residence atop the Hollywood Hills.

The panel, moderated by Kelly Sanchez, Dwell’s Los Angeles-based contributing editor, will use the Beverly Grove Residence as a jumping-off point to discuss designing for place, building a successful project team, and implementing a collaborative ethos across various disciplines and studios to create the best outcomes.

4PM / Burntsienna Artbook Review

RIVIAN Venice Hub | 660 Venice Blvd

Focus of Study : Photography & Design books

The ‘Burntsienna Artbook Review’ gatherings are where artbook collectors and design enthusiasts meet up to share books and engage with one another in thoughtfully designed spaces. 

Guests are invited to bring up to two (2) art or design books from their own collections to share on our long display tables. Each gathering begins with a formal review of  two books from the Burntsienna Research Library, moderated by Jason E.C. Wright, followed by open exploration and engagement among guests, their books brought, and the space itself.

Limited to 18 spaces.

4PM / NeueHouse Venice Beach House Tour

73 Market St., Venice, CA 90291

A special art, architecture and design tour of NeueHouse Venice Beach during the 2023 Los Angeles Design Festival. Stay for drinks, bites and a DJ at NeueHouse Venice’s Summer Fridays event until 8 p.m.

Nestled on a one-block street in the heart of Venice Beach, NeueHouse Venice was once the creative home to some of the most influential creative luminaries in art & entertainment including Hal Ashby, Oliver Stone, and David Hockney. Defined by the handcrafted aesthetic of coastal California, NeueHouse Venice Beach is designed to exude the warmth of home, foster new connections, and set the stage for unforgettable cultural experiences. Inspiring work and meeting spaces come together with relaxed yet refined social spaces, encouraging members to flow seamlessly between work and play.

Saturday 06/24

12–5PM / 2023 OTIS MFA GRAPHIC DESIGN ART BOOK FAIR [SAT + SUN]

Otis College of Art and Design /  Mei-Lee Ney Design Studio
9045 Lincoln Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90045

2023 brings back the MFA Graphic Design Art Book Fair for two full days of beautiful and insightful books, zines, publications, objects, happenings, people, and much, much more!

Join us at the Mei-Lee Ney Design Studio on Otis College of Art and Design’s Goldsmith campus in the Westchester neighborhood of Los Angeles. We look forward to seeing you there!

4–7PM / WET WOOL BY REST ENERGY

Wet Wool by Rest Energy / Slow Ode Gallery 
1701 Fremont Ave (behind residence)
South Pasadena, CA 91030

Los Angeles design practice Rest Energy introduces its inaugural furniture collection, Wet Wool, at Slow Ode. Slow Ode is a gallery behind a home in South Pasadena, CA. 

5PM / Object Permanence Edition 8

Denvir Enterprises and Laun Showroom 719 S Los Angeles St., Suite 807 Los Angeles, CA 90014

Edition 8 of Object Permanence will bring together twelve designers asked to interpret a piggy bank for a one night event taking place on Saturday, June 24 from 5-8 PM at the Denvir Enterprises and LAUN showroom in Downtown Los Angeles. An auction will take place on Instagram for 24 hours surrounding the show starting on Saturday, June 24th at 2 PM PST. Each iteration of Object Permanence revolves around individual interpretations of a specific prompt, keeping the brief loose and allowing participants the freedom to express their vision and highlight their particular expertise in a broad range of materials.

In the past, designers have been tasked with reimagining candle holders, tennis rackets, clocks, picnic baskets, and more. As we face an uncertain economic future and tensions are rising around global financial stability, people collectively are thinking more about saving and what their future financial security looks like. As such, Object Permanence is asking designers to iterate on piggy banks for this exhibition. Often used as a tool by parents to teach children how to save their money, the Piggy Bank recalls childhood memories of saving toward an important (however small) goal and the sense of security from having coins collected for a rainy day.

Starting in 2020, Ring and Denvir have chosen a non-profit for the proceeds of sales to be donated to. This year, Object Permanence is partnering with Haven Neighborhood Services, an LA-based organization that provides financial education to high-risk communities (i.e. people at risk of facing homelessness) as well as working with non-profit partners on affordable housing, homelessness intervention, legal services, food security, and other similar initiatives.

Since 2020, Object Permanence has donated over $10,500 to non-profit organizations including the LA Food Bank, Black Art Futures Fund, Common Cause and Downtown Women's Center.

Designers: Alex Hsu | Another Human | Ben Tetro | Constance Hockaday | DeWinter MetalWorks | HubbaHubba | La.Land | LAUN | PapiBoyBabyBoy | Plastics Enjoyer| Spiritual Objects | Studio Sam Klemick

Sunday 06/25

11AM / CASA ZERO HOME TOUR

1359 Killarney Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90065 [Limited street parking, Rideshare recommended.]

CasaZero serves as a case study, representing a comprehensive approach to green construction by lowering both the operational carbon footprint as well as the embodied carbon footprint. This all-electric home with a solar array produces more energy than it consumes but the main innovation is the use of materials either salvaged within the City of Los Angeles, or produced within 100 miles, to create an artful and beautiful home that resonates with, but does not harm, the environment. 

The CarbonShack team worked with one of the homeowners, artist and Full Professor at Harvey Mudd College, Rachel Mayeri, whose work focuses on the intersection of art and science, to fill the house with unique designs inspired by nature, specifically the microbiome, with custom light fixtures, tile, fabrics, furnishings cabinetry & millwork, to highlight our need to shift from being consumers of the environment to stewards of it.

12–5PM / 2023 OTIS MFA GRAPHIC DESIGN ART BOOK FAIR [SAT + SUN]

Otis College of Art and Design /  Mei-Lee Ney Design Studio
9045 Lincoln Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90045

2023 brings back the MFA Graphic Design Art Book Fair for two full days of beautiful and insightful books, zines, publications, objects, happenings, people, and much, much more!

Join us at the Mei-Lee Ney Design Studio on Otis College of Art and Design’s Goldsmith campus in the Westchester neighborhood of Los Angeles. We look forward to seeing you there!