Friends of Franklin Avenue Get Busy

From time to time, friends ask me if I can plug events that they’ve masterminded or are participating in. It just so happens that I’ve heard from three different people this week: Apparently my friends are busy.

So here’s what’s up. Consider it a “Friends of Franklin Avenue Events Calendar”:

:: Our friend Lizzy organized “Immigrant Experience,” which begins showing next month at the American Friends Service Committee.

According to the website, “Immigrant Experience” highlights art that demonstrates “the spirituality that immigrants bring to their new landscape, symbolizing not only their connection to their cultures and inheritance, but also what helps them live out their lives and sustains their spirit.”

The exhibit opens with an artists reception on Dec. 6 at 6 p.m.; after that, the show continues through March 12.

“Immigrant Experience”
American Friends Service Committee
634 S. Spring St., 3rd Floor
Los Angeles, California 90014
(213) 489-1900

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:: An old Northwestern friend, Kevin F. Sherry, alerted me to Ruby Lake, the sketch/improv soap opera spoof that he’s involved with. The Ruby Lake team have condensed the soap opera’s various episodes into one short play, which will run during the Los Angeles Comedy Festival.

Details here. Tix are $10.

Friday, November 21, 2008; 8 p.m.
The Art/Works Theatre
6569 Santa Monica Blvd.

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:: Another old NU friend, Maggie Bandur, writes that she recently penned a short play in an evening of easy, bite-sized pieces for <a href="www.thenextarena.com
” target=”_blamk”>The Next Arena, “a very good small theater company I recently got involved in.”

The show is called “HISTRIONICS: An Evening of Historical Proportions”; Maggie’s play, directed by Stuart Meltzer, is “More White Meat.”

Opening night gala takes place Nov. 7 at 8 p.m.; after that, shows are also Nov. 8, 13-15, 20-22, and 28-30. General admission (except opening night) is $18.

The Lounge Theatre
6201 Santa Monica Blvd
(@ El Centro, one block East of Vine)

Berd’s High-Wire Act Returns

Remember Berd (also known as Browne, also known as 4eightyone), the artist who was somehow hanging birds on wires all over town?

Looks like he’s back with a new design. Check out the variation of the hanging bird above — this time, it’s actually a capital “B” hanging from a wire near the Beverly Center.

Berd’s hanging birds have intrigued Angelenos all over the city. The LA Weekly caught up with Browne/Berd in 2007:

Browne hand cuts the Berds out of wood — nice wood, new wood, big sheets of Home Depot plywood, lest his Berds be sullied by the errant spots or slivers found in skanky scrap. He primes ‘em, stencils ‘em and ties ‘em with a thick twine to a combination padlock. All told, he’s shelling out two dollars a Berd, not including labor and love. He launches them over power lines at various intersections — big intersections, important intersections, populated, well-traversed intersections, where they dangle and spin above our congested city, beckoning us to look upward. The kinetic component is but an accident that continues to grate on the young artist’s fragile nerves.

And here’s a shot of one from 2006:

Marilyn/Spock Gets Prominent L.A. Times Display

On the front page of the LAT web site right now, a story about a recent string of robberies on Melrose over the past week. But look who pops up unannounced in their Melrose photo: That Marilyn Monroe/Spock lovechild!

If Spock and Marilyn Monroe Had A Love Child

As spotted on the streets of Los Angeles. Spock never looked so good.

Have A Kid, Get Into LACMA For Free

One of the best deals in town — if you have a kid — is easily LACMA’s NextGen program. LACMA offers free youth membership to anyone 17 and under — and NextGen members not only get free admission to the museum’s permanent collection gallers, but so does an adult guest.

On Saturday, as Maria got her hair cut nearby, I took Evan to the museum. We parked a block south on 8th (didn’t want to deal with the parking situation) and headed to LACMA — although, at least on Saturday, we only had time to hit the Boone’s Children’s Gallery at LACMA West.

The ongoing exhibit at the Boone is “Construct,” which continues through October. The site explains:

Be your own architect! Work at drafting tables to draw floor plans, build a model using a variety of materials, and display your buildings and designs in the Construct gallery. Or work in creative teams to build cities and structures using wood blocks.

Be inspired by the plans, drawings, and models that architect Renzo Piano developed as he went through the design process for LACMA’s Transformation Project.

Below, projects from pint-sized architects have started to populate a mini-city.

Other pics:

Above, more crafts as made by kids. The gallery provides the materials.

Painting area — smocks provided.

LACMA is indeed cool. Not a bad way to spend the afternoon with the Kid Formerly Known As Blogger Toddler.

Los Angeles Draws Itself

The Center for the Arts/Eagle Rock — a member of Northeast Los Angeles Arts Organization — will bow the exhibit “Drawing Los Angeles” this Saturday.

The juried exhibition examines “the trends, themes, and terrain of drawing in Los Angeles today.” Opening reception takes place May 10 at 7 p.m.; exhibit continues on display through June 14.

Center for the Arts, Eagle Rock is located at 2225 Colorado Blvd., and is open weekdays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

L.A.’s Most Functional Jogging Suits

Conceptual artist Sarah Ross’ “Archsuits” don’t look all that comfy, but they are quite functional: “Archisuit consists of an edition of four leisure jogging suits made for specific architectural structures in Los Angeles. The suits include the negative space of the structures and allow a wearer to fit into, or onto, structures designed to deny them.”

(Link via Funny Pages 2.0.)

Exploring Downtown’s Brewery Art Colony

Twice a year, more than 100 of the Brewery’s residents throw open their live/work lofts to show off some of their wares. The Brewery Art Walk took place this past weekend, and the Franklin Avenue trio checked it out.

As interested I was in the art, the L.A. nerd in me was even more interested to get a good look at the lofts, and how a one-time brewery had been adapted.

A hodge-podge of 22 buildings on 23 acres, the complex dates back to 1888. Much of the site began as the Eastside Brewery, and later the Maier Brewery. Still later, Pabst Blue Ribbon took over the brewery, and operated there until 1981. The complex’s buildings also include what was once one of Los Angeles’ first power plants.

The Brewery functions as a mini community, which hundreds of residents creating a wide range of art. The doors open during the Brewery Art Walk, in which artists show off and sell their works; several studios also sell clothes at sample sale prices, among other things. Parking and admission is free.

It’s obviously too late to attend this past weekend’s events, but another one is scheduled for fall.

Some pics:

“Since 1894 – Paradox Iron,” the sign on the warehouse reads. This is the building from which the famous smokestack, with the words “THE BREWERY” painted on the side, soars.

Once upon a time, where beer was sent to ferment. Now, artists lofts.

“Pabst believes in safety.” 28 years later, this bulletin board still exists, now highlighting news and info for the Brewery tenants.

With the Brewery smokestack in the backgound, event attendees dine on food from Barbara’s, the art colony’s restaurant/bar.

In this piece, Arnold Schwarzenegger sprouts horns and holds a dead bunny. Much like the real governor.

A cat sculpture next to the studio of artist Bruce Gray.

No lie, this is a rug of Britney Spears’ face. No takers as of Saturday morning.

Joy Division!

Yes. That is a dress made of sporks.

The artists colony even boasts its own bookstore, Bookfinger.

Exploring Downtown’s Brewery Art Colony

Twice a year, more than 100 of the Brewery’s residents throw open their live/work lofts to show off some of their wares. The Brewery Art Walk took place this past weekend, and the Franklin Avenue trio checked it out.

As interested I was in the art, the L.A. nerd in me was even more interested to get a good look at the lofts, and how a one-time brewery had been adapted.

A hodge-podge of 22 buildings on 23 acres, the complex dates back to 1888. Much of the site began as the Eastside Brewery, and later the Maier Brewery. Still later, Pabst Blue Ribbon took over the brewery, and operated there until 1981. The complex’s buildings also include what was once one of Los Angeles’ first power plants.

The Brewery functions as a mini community, which hundreds of residents creating a wide range of art. The doors open during the Brewery Art Walk, in which artists show off and sell their works; several studios also sell clothes at sample sale prices, among other things. Parking and admission is free.

It’s obviously too late to attend this past weekend’s events, but another one is scheduled for fall.

Some pics:

“Since 1894 – Paradox Iron,” the sign on the warehouse reads. This is the building from which the famous smokestack, with the words “THE BREWERY” painted on the side, soars.

Once upon a time, where beer was sent to ferment. Now, artists lofts.

“Pabst believes in safety.” 28 years later, this bulletin board still exists, now highlighting news and info for the Brewery tenants.

With the Brewery smokestack in the backgound, event attendees dine on food from Barbara’s, the art colony’s restaurant/bar.

In this piece, Arnold Schwarzenegger sprouts horns and holds a dead bunny. Much like the real governor.

A cat sculpture next to the studio of artist Bruce Gray.

No lie, this is a rug of Britney Spears’ face. No takers as of Saturday morning.

Joy Division!

Yes. That is a dress made of sporks.

The artists colony even boasts its own bookstore, Bookfinger.

Donald T. Sterling Discriminates Against Grammar

Just when you think those horrible Donald T. Sterling ads couldn’t get any worse… they do.

Check out this ad from Sunday’s Los Angeles Times. Not only is it visually offensive, but it’s grammatically painful as well.

“DONALD T. STERLING HAS CHECK FOR YOU.” Has Sterling gone caveman on us? Does he no longer have time for articles like “a” and “the”? What’s the follow-up conversation? “DONALD T. STERLING LIKE BUY YOUR BUILDING FOR DIRT CHEAP PRICE. SELL NOW, OR DONALD T. STERLING BUY BUILDING FOR CHEAPER PRICE AT FORECLOSURE AUCTION.”

I’m thinking Sterling’s people purposely now are trying to make their LAT ads as ugly as possible, just to piss off these folks.