Each month we share five unmissable things to see and do in the Golden State. You heard it here first.
Words by DAVID NASH
SAN FRANCISCO
This Bay Area July 4th Celebration Is One for the Record Books
In honor of America’s 250th anniversary, the Red, White, and Blue will get a celebratory semiquincentennial assist from International Orange when the GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE serves as the launchpad for a patriotic fireworks display this Independence Day. For only the third time in the reddish-orange hued bridge’s 90-year history, it plays host to an extraordinary (and free) pyrotechnics extravaganza that will illuminate the night sky with as much pomp and circumstance as befits such a momentous occasion. Not since the bridge’s 75th anniversary in 2012 — and before that, its 50th anniversary in 1987 — has the 1.7-mile expanse closed for such pageantry. Because the show is launching from the bridge itself, the most optimal public viewing locations are on the northern waterfront as opposed to the downtown embarcadero. Crissy Field, Pier 39, Marina Green, or The Presidio — replete with additional amenities and food trucks — are prime spots to take in the explosion of emotion. The show, two-and-a-half centuries in the making, is scheduled to begin at approximately 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, July 4. sf.gov/july4.
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MALIBU
A Much-Loved Wine Bar Waves Hello to the Pacific Coast
What began in 1968 as a quaint neighborhood wine shop in Westwood has become one of California’s most beloved destinations to wine and dine thanks to its very fashionable stewards, the Guess-founding Marciano family. Now they are opening WALLY’S MALIBU, a six-acre open-air destination for world-class wine and alfresco dining just off Pacific Coast Highway, with a gourmet market with more than 4,000 bottles of wine and spirits, artisanal cheeses, and innumerable ounces of caviar. On the dining side, you’ll find locally inspired concepts like a Wally’s smash burger and a forthcoming fondue experience. The menu also includes customer favorites like the truffle brie baguette, which can be found at its outposts in Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, and Las Vegas, as well as new dishes like quiche Lorraine, lasagna bolognese, and caviar cones. The indoor-outdoor space, designed by John Sofio of Built, Inc., reflects the laid-back coastal vibe through the use of natural materials and artworks culled from the Marciano Art Foundation. “Malibu is the beginning of something new for us,” Nicolai Marciano says. “It’s all about the community, it’s fun, it’s a place where you can grab a bottle and a burger on the way to the beach.” 23465 Civic Center Way, Malibu; wallywine.com.
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LOS ANGELES
This Contemporary Art Exhibition Is an Homage to Emily Dickinson
To coincide with the recent opening of the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago — where his commissioned tile wall mural installation, Memory Landscape (Nairobi, Chicago, Honolulu, Jakarta), has been unveiled — multimedia artist Spencer Finch has descended on Los Angeles for his first show there with LISSON GALLERY. Balboa of House and Garden — an exhibition that includes more than 50 works on paper, an enormous outdoor sculpture, and a site-specific skylight installation — explores the artist’s preoccupation with light, perception, memory, and the emotional resonance of everyday experiences. Central to the show is a series inspired by 19th-century poet Emily Dickinson’s habit of drafting poems on old envelopes. Finch re-creates collected envelopes, personal correspondence, and junk mail by hand on archival paper and reinterprets them in the tradition of trompe l’oeil using watercolor, pastel, ink, and collage. Within the gallery space, he’s also installed colored filters across the skylights to transform the light quality from L.A.’s warm yellow daylight to cooler blues as seen in Amherst, Massachusetts, as informed by passing clouds over Dickinson’s garden there. Through August 22. 1037 N. Sycamore Ave., L.A., 213-224-7550; lissongallery.com.
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WEST HOLLYWOOD
An Italian Interior Powerhouse Taps Design Royalty for Its New Showroom
Over the past 92 years, MOLTENI&C has established itself as a powerhouse in Italian design, as both an artisan workshop and purveyor of modern furnishings. Founded in 1934, just outside Milan, by husband-and-wife team Angelo and Giuseppina Molteni (he was one of the original 14 founders of Salon del Mobile in 1961), the family-run business continues to thrive as a global icon of masterfully crafted lifestyle solutions as evidenced by its newly renovated flagship in Los Angeles. Conceived by creative director Vincent Van Duysen as an “art collector’s house,” the two-level retail experience sits at the intersection of architecture, design, and art. Within the space, it’s a Who’s Who of works by the world’s most renowned architects and designers, including Herzog & de Meuron, Foster + Partners, Van Duysen, and Jean Nouvel. Guests can discover pieces like Gio Ponti’s D.151.4 armchair (from the brand’s Heritage Collection), the Theo bed by Yabu Pushelberg, Hannes Wettstein’s Turner modular sofa, and the Blevio table by Ignazio Gardella throughout the many well-curated vignettes that highlight pieces from the 2026 Indoor and Outdoor Collections. 147 N. Robertson Blvd., L.A.; molteni.it/us.
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SILVER LAKE
From Gaultier to Gucci, It’s Vintage Specs Galore at This Concept Store
Seeing is believing where vintage eyewear and Garrett Leight California Optical (GLCO) are concerned, so the 16-year-old optical brand has launched an eye-popping store dedicated to rare, vintage, and deadstock pieces aptly named ARCHIVES. Founded by Garrett Leight — and inspired by his personal collection and that of his father, Oliver Peoples cofounder Larry Leight — the Silver Lake neighborhood boutique has a curation of styles from the 1980s through the 2000s, including sunglasses and optical designs by Gucci, Paul Smith, Jean Paul Gaultier, Ray-Ban, Cazal, Eyevan — and, of course, Oliver Peoples. Geared toward both customers and collectors, the shop also includes in-store refurbishment services like updating existing frames with modern lens technologies such as custom tints, anti-reflective coatings, and polarization options. “Since 2010, we’ve created hundreds of designs and built a rich history,” Leight says. “ARCHIVES gives us the opportunity to celebrate that journey [through] access to special pieces and vintage finds from some of the most iconic designers in eyewear.” 3818 W. Sunset Blvd., L.A., 310-392-2100; archives.garrettleight.com.
July 2026
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