November 18 > Letterpress Workshop with Lala Press > Silver Lake

In the spirit of the holidays (yep, we're already thinking about them), we're thrilled to announce our first-ever Letterpress Workshop with the exceptional Mable Lee of Lala Press and Dee & Lala.

On November 18, Mable will open her Silver Lake studio to a very lucky group for a hands-on letterpress experience. We will have the chance to work with Mable's existing wood and metal type in order to typeset our own greeting card design. The best part is that we then get to walk away with 12 of our own cards!

Since this workshop is incredibly limited due to the size of the studio, we encourage you to act fast if you're interested. Please also keep in mind that if you miss the chance to join our workshop, Mable offers several workshops throughout the year, as well as private one-on-one instruction.

When: Sunday, November 18th 10am-12pm

Cost: $50, includes the cost of supplies. (Note: It will be possible to purchase additional blank cards and envelopes on the day of the workshop.)

What to Wear: Be sure to wear clothes you don't mind getting messy. Please also remove any dangling jewelry and tie back loose hair before arriving to the studio.  

Where: Lala Press, 3716 Tracy Street, Los Angeles, CA 90026

PURCHASE TICKETS HERE.

**Tickets will not be available at the door, so please buy your ticket early. No refunds will be given less than 24 hours before the event. Thanks!

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October Recap > Halloween Printmaking Workshop with NOMAD

On the Saturday before Halloween, 60 de LaBbers found the 6,000 foot semi-hidden studio of printmakers NOMAD studio, run by Damon Robinson in Frogtown.

Fueled by copious amounts of Halloween candy, we gathered in the workshop to learn about the process of printmaking and silkscreens, with step by step instructions and a tour through the darkroom. Robinson and his family had already prepared over 60 vintage album covers by painting them in various colors, leaving the design below barely visible.

One by one, every attendee was able to make their own Halloween-themed silkscreen print, choosing between a skull, the Creature from the Black Lagoon, and a Mexican wrestling mask. After pulling the paint through the silkscreen, the prints went under the heat to quick-dry and voila! A handmade, completely unique print. Towards the end of the afternoon, de LaBbers got creative, adding prints to the records themselves, to paper, and to even more albums.

Big thanks to Damon, his wife Lisa and their daughter for graciously letting us into their home/gallery and teaching us how easy it is to silkscreen. NOMAD is available for amateur printmakers to make their own designs. Contact Damon at http://www.nomadlosangeles.com/.

And stay tuned for discounts on future NOMAD printmaking workshops!

de LaB at the AIA|LA Design Awards

Last week, all four de LaB hosts attended the AIA Los Angeles Design Awards at the Broad Stage in Santa Monica, where Marissa and Alissa were honored to present the Next LA Awards, 17 different projects that were very much in the spirit of de LaB's mission. It was a great night, and the highlight was meeting our fellow co-presenter Moby, who is—who knew?—a huge architecture junkie and writes the awesome Moby Los Angeles Architecture Blog.

Here's a video of his remarks, which opened the awards show. We like when he calls L.A. an "architectural shitshow—in the best way possible":

Thanks to AIA Los Angeles for having us be a part of the evening and thanks to Tibby Rothman for the photo!

November 8 > Grand Park Night Tour > Downtown LA

Since its grand opening on this month, Grand Park has made quite a splash in LA quickly becoming our city's official backyard. If you missed the block party and dancers, here's your chance to explore LA's newest urban oasis.  Join us for a special tour in collaboration with LA Forum as part of their Supercession series.  We can't promise choreographed dancers, but Tony Paradowski of Rios Clementi Hale Studios will be on hand to give us the guided tour and the inside story on how this amazing park came to be. 

One of the biggest parks in all of Los Angeles, the 12-acre Grand Park stretches from The Music Center on the west to City Hall on the east. Under the direction of the county, Grand Park was developed by Related Companies with an award-winning creative team, including landscape architect, Rios Clementi Hale Studios; general contractor, Charles Pankow Builders; environmental graphic design firm, Sussman/Prejza; and fountain design consultants, Fluidity.  Grand Park was also recently awarded The Building Team of the Year award by AIA Los Angeles.



Meet in front of the fountain.  It will be dark so bring headlamps or flashlights.  We'll provide glow sticks.  

Tickets: General admission $10, buy tickets HERE to reserve a spot on the tour.  LA Forum Members are FREE and Students admission is $5 but you will have to register on-site.
When: Thursday, November 8th 7pm to 8:30pm
Where: 210 N. Grand Avenue, LA, CA 90012 (Metro: Civic Center).  More info on getting there, HERE.


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Photo via LA Times, Los Angeles Grand Avenue Authority

October 27 > Halloween Printmaking Workshop at NOMAD > Frogtown

Halloween is almost here! Come celebrate the season with our friends at NOMAD Studio in the heart of Frogtown. NOMAD is a 6,000 square foot printmaking studio, fully equipped for fine art silkscreen editions, specialty printing and etchings/intaglio. The space functions as an art studio, event and exhibition space, as well as home to art/apparel lines Praise the Lowered and Black Van.

We're going on a studio tour and hosting a printmaking workshop with owner Damon Robinson. For the printmaking workshop, Damon will help us print Halloween-themed monster faces on old record covers - yours to keep, frame, or use as a costume (if you can figure out how).

Printmaking Overview and Demonstration:
1. Printmaking Image selection and preparation for film
2. Preparing screens (coating film and exposure)
3. Printing (ink selection, paper or other mediums, registration)

When: Saturday, October 27th 2pm-4pm
Fee: $10 covers the cost of supplies, sales end Oct 26th at 7pm.
Where: 1933 Blake Ave, Los Angeles CA 90039

Space is limited, so please buy your tickets here. Halloween candy will be provided, children are welcome. Children are free, unless they are making their own print.

There will not be any tickets available at the door, so please buy your ticket early. No refunds will be given less than 24 hours before the event. Thanks!



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September recap > Highland Gallery Hop

On September 25th, de LaB had the distinct pleasure of touring two of Los Angeles' most important galleries - Redling Fine Art and Perry Rubenstein - in the city's latest (and most unlikely) burgeoning art corridor: Highland Ave. and Santa Monica Blvd. 

At Redling Fine Art, owner Erica Redling led everyone through the small storefront gallery space to carefully explain artist Liz Glynn's current body of work entitled HOARD.

Then at the recently opened Perry Rubenstein gallery, director Jennifer Holmes and architect Kulapat Yantrasast of wHY Architecture led a fascinating tour through the exceptionally designed gallery, which will soon boast a rooftop level with views of the Hollywood sign (see more on that below) for parties and related gallery events.

Thanks to Jennifer, our group was treated to a fascinating explanation of Zoe Crosher's photographic series, The DISAPPEARING of Michelle duBois, currently on view through October 27th. (Word to the wise, run, don't walk, to see the show.)

We also learned from Kulapat about the relevance of several nuanced design moves. For example, though you may not notice it at first glance, the skylight above when viewed directly from below (as seen in the next photo), is a direct replica of the Hollywood sign's famous "O." 

September recap > Park(ing) Day LA @ LOCAL

Right on cue, de LaB hit the streets in September to continue our beloved tradition of hosting a parklet in front of Silver Lake's LOCAL cafe.

Designed by Art Center grads at The Rare Studio, the inspirational park made from the studio's Soft Publics line created the most amazing pop-up green museum disguised as a construction site.

And despite fierce competition from the Endeaver that day, we were thrilled with the coverage that Parking Day LA received. Read the LA Times' story here and hop over to Secret Agent PR's blog here. 

To learn more about the City of LA's recent announcement to develop three permanent parklets as part of a new pilot program to add green space to unlikely areas of the city, click here!