KCRW's Design and Architecture

Hats and High Culture, Reconsidered

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 15 May 2012 18:33:20 EDT

From an opera designed by Frank Gehry and Rodarte to Philip Treacy's futuristic hats, a look at how some old traditions are being reconsidered for our time.

A Bridge to the Imagination

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 18:14:58 EDT

Mayor Villaraigosa on rebuilding the iconic 6th Street Bridge. Plus, lessons from a cardboard arcade, taking chairs back to the basics, and retro in the age of Instagram.

Creative Meets Corporate in 'Delirious' LA

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 19:13:29 EDT

Moby on his passion for LA architecture and the photo blog he's writing about it. Also, the rise, fall and reinvention of the former Arco Plaza.

Swimsuits, Swimming Pools and the Birth of Modern Body Culture

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 17:58:49 EDT

We explore the evolution of body culture in post-war LA, through the radical designs of Rudi Gernreich, and the rise of the suburban swimming pool.

Metropolis II: The City in Art

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 17:45:37 EDT

An LA where cars self-drive at over 200 miles an hour. Also, Chinese-American postwar architects in Los Angeles and the Temporary Insanity of installation design.

Holidays 2011: Keeping it Simple After a Turbulent Year

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 15:14:39 EDT

It?s been a tumultuous year. We turn to several mavens of good living for tips on how to celebrate in style. Plus, the architecture of protest.

Building Their Dream: The Chinese Car Industry

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 18:12:38 EDT

The biggest hybrid and electric car company you've never heard of has put down a beachhead in Los Angeles. Plus, are you ready to have your car parked by a robot?

From Calligraphy Buff to Design Guru: Steve Jobs Remembered

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 18:14:38 EDT

We honor Steve Jobs with a look at how the Apple Mac changed lettering, and hear what "design" meant to him and his chief collaborator, Jonathan Ive.

Back to the Future: Design in Pacific Standard Time

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 17:40:58 EDT

When experimental art was "happening" in post-war LA, so too was design, craft and architecture. Pacific Standard Time is showcasing it all....

Preserving the Past without Losing the Future

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 18:31:53 EDT

Chris Nichols and Christopher Hawthorne on preservation and the fight over Richard Neutra's Kronish House. Plus, Jonathan Louie and others "Rethink LA."

Battle for the Bottom: TOTO, Kohler and the Luxury Toilet

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 18:27:07 EDT

"Is the world ready for a toilet with its own foot warmer, heated seat, bidet washlet and built-in music system, all controlled by a touch-screen remote?"

A Field Operation in Santa Monica

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 19:11:52 EDT

Can you design a great park by committee? Also, Japanese design, on display at Dwell on Design and Little Tokyo Design Week. Plus, the new Los Angeles Design Festival.

L.A. Noire: The Game

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 17 May 2011 17:30:00 EDT

Rockstar's newest video game turns the gamer into a methodical detective in a hyper-realistic recreation of L.A. in 1947. How did they do it and will they please fans?

Art in the Streets, In and Out of the Art World

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 19:53:49 EDT

Street art gets the spotlight in a huge MOCA show. Also, Artecnica-Homeboy Industries' "quote" bag collaboration to give a voice to the graffiti work of ex-gang members.

Architecture and the BIG Idea

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 17:30:00 EDT

A wow factor without waste, SF MOMA's How Wine Became Modern, Facebook's design "hackathon," and engineering to withstand catastrophe.

The Art of Rodarte: Black Swan and Design for the Movies

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 17:31:41 EDT

What?s in a frock? Schlock, horror, and much more, when it?s designed by the Mulleavy Sisters of Rodarte. Join Kate and Laura Mulleavy as they discuss creating the ballet costumes for Oscar-nominated Black Swan, their upcoming MOCA show and their fall line. Also, Cathy Whitlock on the sets that tell a story and Nick Verreos on the movie costumes you can see in the flesh. And a visit with Jerome and Evelyn Ackerman, on a life of love and creativity, now on display in the Craft and Folk Art Museum's Marriage of Craft and Design.

Grand Visions, Rare Earths and Design's Fictions

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 17:48:09 EDT

High Line designers Diller Scofidio Renfro have unveiled their "veiled" new Broad Museum for Grand Avenue. But can architecture alone fix what ails Grand Avenue? Find out from architect Elizabeth Diller, critic Sam Lubell and Councilwoman Jan Perry. Plus, science researcher Richard Seymour on the dirty story of rare earths, hidden behind our clean technologies and glistening gadgets. And Art Center's Tim Durfee on the show that explores how fantasy feeds real world design.

It Wasn't All Bad: Bright Spots in LA in 2010

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 17:30:00 EDT

2010 was hard on the design and construction industry in LA. But at the end of a difficult year, DnA looks at the upside and finds the place with "no there there" uniting around a quest for community. LA design experts share their favorite projects. Later, design by women for women at the Downtown Women?s Center. Finally, designer Raul Rodriguez, and others discuss the collective design spirit that animates the Rose Parade.

The Cadillac Reconsidered; LAMOTH Re-rooted, Permanently

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 19:10:18 EDT

The quintessential American car is large and luxurious, but one Detroit giant hopes to change that perception. GM designer Niki Smart talks about rethinking the Cadillac for urban centers. Then, LA Metro?s Paul Taylor discusses an LA-Beijing alliance aimed at getting people out of their cars. In the second half of the program, the new home of the Los Angeles Museum of the Holocaust in Pan Pacific Park has opened. Bobbye Tigerman recounts her grandfather?s role in founding the museum, and architect Hagy Belzberg explains how he uses design to educate young Angelenos about that atrocity.

When Is a Logo a No-Go?

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 17:47:49 EDT

After a lengthy and costly redesign process, Gap unveiled a new logo, to outrage from customers. So they went back to the old one. Frances Anderton talks with branding consultant Sasha Strauss and graphic designer Michael Hodgson about logos. Also, industrial designer Yves Béhar on a Herman Miller chair for our times.

Piano's Resnick at LACMA; CicLAvia and Biking in LA

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 18:19:41 EDT

Renzo Piano's new Resnick Pavilion opens soon at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. LACMA director Michael Govan discusses how it fits into his art and architecture vision for the campus, and architecture writer Sam Lubell explains why Piano is the go-to architect for so many art museums. Plus, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Stewart Reed and Amanda Bromberg discuss CicLAvia, biomorphic bikes and the joys and challenges of urban cycling in LA.

John Leighton Chase: Grand Poobah of West Hollywood

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 17:54:56 EDT

John Leighton Chase was a fantastic character and dear friend to many. He also worked below the radar to make a profound impact on West Hollywood, where he was urban designer. John died suddenly last week at the age of 57. Frances Anderton remembers him with Ann McIntosh of the City of West Hollywood; Richard Loring, developer; Alan Hess, architecture historian; Margaret Crawford, professor of architecture. Also, we get under the surface of Mad Men's costumes with Emmy-nominated costume designer Janie Bryant.

Action-Reaction: Design and Transformation

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 14:40:28 EDT

What's the connection between a new fan and a house in Malibu? Airplane technology. Find out when Frances Anderton talks to James Dyson about his new air multiplier, and to David Hertz about a house made of a mothballed Boeing 747. Plus, California Design and a conversation with Rose Apodaca, Alissa Walker and Stewart Reed about what you'll find at the new Biennial at the Pasadena Museum of California Art.

Let There Be Shade

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 19:41:01 EDT

Los Angeles is a hot place and the sun can be dangerous, but LA has a puzzling aversion to shade. Find out why with Jane Houlihan, Emily Green, James Rojas and Lorcan O?Herlihy. Also, Christopher Hawthorne and Coralie Garandeau discuss Eli Broad?s latest project and why the French find him fascinating. And Michael Sylvester has the highlights at Dwell On Design.

Oil, Plastic and the Stuff that Surrounds Us

webmaster@kcrw.org (Frances Anderton) — Tue, 18 May 2010 18:34:24 EDT

Today on DnA, oil, plastic and the stuff that surrounds us. As oil spills into the gulf, we examine our dependence on products derived from petrochemicals, with Chris Lefteri, Sara Banaszak, Carla Denker and Kevin Hanley. Also, a look at an icon of the oil age: the newly renovated LAX Theme Building, with guests Scott Markle, Millard Lee and Alastair Gordon.