Party On: The Creative Class Swoops into Owl Bureau

West Coast art and book lovers descended on Highland Park for the opening of Owl Bureau, a cool new bookstore concepted by Richard Christiansen

Words by MARIE LOOK

Chandelier Creative and its founder, Richard Christiansen, celebrated the opening of the media agency’s impeccably curated bookstore and cultural hub, Owl Bureau, on Saturday, March 16, with a pair of tasteful affairs. To conceive the aesthetically driven shop, Chandelier Creative collaborated with Paris-based Studio K.O., ultimately charging designer Shin Okuda of Waka Waka (a Los Angeles studio focused on wood furniture and functional objects) and design collaborative MachineHistories with building the inspired space.

1/8: Dita Von Teese and Richard Christiansen at Flamingo Estate. PHOTO BY CHARLEY GALLAY FOR CHANDELIER CREATIVE

2/8: Alice Ryan and François Halard at Owl Bureau. PHOTO BY BLUE GABOR FOR CHANDELIER CREATIVE

3/8: Nicole Richie at Owl Bureau. PHOTO BY CHARLEY GALLAY FOR CHANDELIER CREATIVE

4/8: Andie MacDowell at Owl Bureau. PHOTO BY BLUE GABOR FOR CHANDELIER CREATIVE

5/8: Sarah King and Michael Scanlon at Owl Bureau. PHOTO BY BLUE GABOR FOR CHANDELIER CREATIVE

6/8: Peter Shire at Owl Bureau. PHOTO BY BLUE GABOR FOR CHANDELIER CREATIVE

7/8: Raphael Parpex and Michaela Dosamantes at Owl Bureau. PHOTO BY CHARLEY GALLAY FOR CHANDELIER CREATIVE

8/8: The scene at Flamingo Estate, with François Halard’s photography on exhibition. PHOTO BY CHARLEY GALLAY FOR CHANDELIER CREATIVE

For Owl Bureau’s opening soiree, notables such as actors Nicole Richie and Andie MacDowell and gallerist Jeffrey Deitch ventured to its location on Figueroa Street in Highland Park. Guests from the realms of luxury, fashion, hospitality, the arts and beyond admired the mix of rare and vintage tomes and magazines as well as coffee-table books curated by Christiansen and New York purveyor Mast Books.

Also in the crowd was honored guest and iconic photographer François Halard, who, along with Christiansen, invited select guests to continue the party at the latter’s home, the Flamingo Estate, in Eagle Rock. There, the lensman exhibited some of his as-yet-unseen work featuring Villa Oasis, the Marrakech home of Pierre Bergé and Yves Saint Laurent. Entertainer Dita Von Teese and artist Garance Doré were among those who flocked to the flamingo-pink 1940s Spanish-style complex, where some guests indulged in cocktails, music and Moroccan delights well into the evening.

March 18, 2019