glowing hair

The pieces are finally starting to come together for our Glow installation, "Soft Underbelly". We've been working on this for 6 months now... only one more day left. We made a last minute decision to paint all of the hairs with UV glow in the dark paint and I think it was well worth the effort.

We're almost there! Glow is this Saturday

I've been hard at work lately working on our installation for Glow 2010 in Santa Monica this coming Saturday.  It's been an intense past week weeks and I haven't had the time to update this blog with our progress. This morning Joshua Howell and Aaron Zeligs were quoted in an Los Angeles Times article about Glow. Here is the link: Glow 2010 
Also please check out our new website for more project images, plus some other projects we've got in office. Popup Design
If you are in LA this weekend, come by and check out the event! I'm sure it will be a bit crazy, but there are some cool projects.

GLOW selected artists announced

From the official GLOW website:

Over 100 artists responded to an open-call for proposals to Los Angeles County artists for Glow and ten were picked for funding.  There is a vast range in approaches, from projects that use very advanced technologies to more traditional media.  All projects do invite the audience to become engaged in the work in one form or another.  Artists’ concepts were developed in response to the physical and/or cultural conditions of Santa Monica Beach and its environs.  One project includes scuba divers, another uses the gymnastic equipment of Muscle Beach and a third uses the historic trellis structure in Crescent Bay Park.  All projects are unique and Glow is delighted to make these artists and their work available to the large audience we expect on September 25.  The artists (and artist teams) are:

• Claudia Bucher
• John Carpenter and Jerry Digby
• Robert Chapin & team
• Anne Herlihy
• Joshua Howell & Aaron Zeligs
• Gil Kuno
• Corey Madden, Bruno Louchouarn & Keith Mitchell
• Chris Nelson & team
• Christopher O’Leary
• Hadrian Predock & John Frane

The proposals were reviewed and artists selected by a panel composed of the following:

• Rita Gonzalez – Assistant Curator, Contemporary Art, LACMA
• Lisa Melandri – Deputy Director for Exhibitions and Programs, Santa Monica Museum of Art
• Aram Moshayedi, Assistant Curator, LAXART
• Marc Pally - Artistic Director, Glow
• Pam Posey - Artist & Director, Sam Francis Gallery, Crossroads School
• Jay Yan - Artist, Glow 2008 participating artist

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner

I did actually have chicken for dinner tonight, and it was delicious.
I received an email today from the City of Santa Monica informing me that my design was selected for part of GLOW 2010, being held on Santa Monica pier/beach. I co-designed the proposal along with my good friend Aaron who I knew from grad school and we're both quite honored and excited to be one of the selected teams.  One of the exciting things about working in the public art realm is that it provides the opportunity to create experiential spaces without many of practical restrictions of architecture.  If you are unfamiliar with GLOW, it is an all night festival held on the beach and consisting of dozens of interactive lighting based installations.  Aaron and I were able to come up with a scheme that choreographed an experience for the visitor, without having to worry about long term durability, weatherproofing, seismic forces, etc.  As an architect, I am interested in defining space, but the art arena seems to be an ideal testing ground for ideas.  This installation will fall somewhere between an object (ie. sculpture) and an enclosure.
More musings to follow.  Today is the first step in a long process.  I will be sure to post updates along the way and show images/video of our process.

Loney Dear live at KCRW

Probably my favorite artist at the moment.  Video of a live session at KCRW in Santa Monica.

Santa Monica Parking Garages

Since completing school in June, there isn't much work that I am able to post on this blog. Most of my professional work at the moment is still in schematic design and somewhat secret for the time being. I did stumble across the following post on Curbed LA Blog for the Santa Monica Parking Garages renovation that I worked on while at Pugh Scarpa. One of the garages is a renovation to Frank Gehry's original Santa Monica Place parking garage from I believe 1967. Didn't double check the date on that, but I seem to remember reading that at one time.
I did most of the design and presentation work on the garages and were the last project I worked on prior to leaving P+S.
http://la.curbed.com/archives/2008/08/santa_monica_approves_pugh_scarpa_parking_garage_designs.php

Fall '06 - Purple Line Subway Terminal

The terminal developed through the transformation of a single surface, embedded with program and funicular logic. The upper, exterior surface is walk-able and intended for primary circulation from bluff to beach. Sectionally, the “pocket” space is the interstitial condition created by the sandwiching of two materially dissimilar surface conditions.
The exterior surface is rendered with a uniform consistency and subtle texture. Linear flow is implied through surface line work created by planking/board formed concrete. This tactility is intended to delineate high-usage surfaces in a rugged manner. The intense sunlight will create small, but distinct shadow patterns which will shift throughout the day, creating subtle animation and highlighting the exterior condition.
Much attention was given to construction techniques. Where surface curvature is the most extreme, the surface was divided into two foot sections and individually pre-cast using a standard set of rubber inserts to create the window openings. This created a distinct cross grain to the project which was carried into the interior as well as immediate site for continuity.



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