Meet the six movers and shapers putting L.A. and its surrounds on the map

Photography by CHRISTIAN ANWANDER
Words by DEGEN PENER

On the heels of its fine art surge, Los Angeles has a next act. The metropolis is poised to flex its creative muscles as the next great hub for design. Of course, L.A. has long been a fount of innovation, from Gustav Stickley in the Craftsman era and midcentury visionaries Charles and Ray Eames to Frank Gehry turning cardboard into chairs beginning in the late 1960s. Now, thanks to a confluence of factors, the city has come of age when it comes to an interest in collectible furniture, decor, and ceramics.

“Everyone is wanting to know what’s happening in Los Angeles. L.A. has that history, from the aerospace industry to Hollywood, as a place for experimentation.”

In addition to a deep bench of makers and artisans, there’s a rising class of collectors. Major galleries have opened L.A. outposts, including Carpenters Workshop, R and Company, Friedman Benda, The Future Perfect, and Hostler Burrows, joining homegrown visionaries Blackman Cruz, Gallery Half, Joel Chen, Twentieth, and the new Marta.

Fairs are making an impact too. The acclaimed Design Miami, already in Paris and Basel, chose L.A. for its latest expansion, bringing together nearly 50 galleries and designers last May at a Paul R. Williams-designed estate in Holmby Hills, and will return next year. The debut LA Design Weekend, also unfurled across downtown and Northeast L.A. with more than 150 participating designers, artists and galleries.

“I’ve been visiting Frieze L.A. since its inception, and I would start to notice that there were more and more design galleries in Los Angeles. And interior designers in L.A. are really exploring more and more collectible design for their clients,”says Grela Orihuela, SVP of fairs at Design Miami. Interior designers including Kelly Wearstler, Nicole Hollis, and Jamie Bush are also tapping into the creative wave, as is L.A.-based Oliver Furth, who feels the pull.

“Everyone is wanting to know what’s happening in Los Angeles,”he says.“L.A. has that history, from the aerospace industry to Hollywood, as a place for experimentation. Now it’s happening in design. There are a lot of creative people making beautiful things.” Previously pieces may have been snapped up by New York collectors, but now, he says, “it’s being sold through galleries here in Los Angeles and a lot of hometown collectors are buying it and it’s staying here.”

With workshops across the region, six leading lights of Southern California’s design revolution offer a look at their practices and the pieces they’re currently shaping.

SoCal Design