Free
Join us for a public viewing and conversation at Low Rise, Mid Rise, High Rise: Housing in L.A. Today, an in-person, pop-up exhibition of residential buildings in the pipeline taking place at the Helms Design Center on June 19th. The exhibition will remain open to the public through June 27th from 12:00 to 4:00 PM daily and by Appointment Only until July 1st.

While life slowed down for many Angelenos, the L.A. cityscape did not stay still. For the past year, architects and builders have been busy, working on designs to address L.A.’s biggest need: Housing. And they are doing so in multi-unit buildings, at multiple scales, that advance the idea of home.

30+ design teams will display Low Rise dwellings from ADUs to four-story multifamily dwellings; Mid Rise affordable and market rate housing on transit corridors; High Rise towers for downtown, Hollywood and the Miracle Mile.  The show is presented by Helms Bakery District in partnership with Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo LA Metro Program. It is organized by Frances Anderton and Stephen Phillips (Director, Cal Poly LA Metro).

WHAT:

Much of the public dialogue around housing in Los Angeles today has to do with the politics around it, and the crisis of homelessness. But while these debates continue, housing is being built, in a patchwork of starkly different scales and styles. It is shaped in part by zoning, code, and parking requirements, costly land, construction and materials, as well as competing development and neighborhood pressures. Yet despite this web of constraints, designers are building on the tradition of innovative SoCal living.

At Low Rise, Mid Rise, High Rise: Housing in L.A. Today visitors will see dense, high, multi-unit housing with apartments filled with natural light, flowing space and a taste of the outside. Projects will demonstrate planning for sociability, as well as new material and structural solutions to housing affordability. They will show how new developments can still express the distinct and eclectic Los Angeles character. Finally, visitors will see how the pandemic may have altered planning priorities in the homes of tomorrow. The exhibition will feature models and renderings of projects in design or under construction. Displayed alongside these real-world schemes will be an exhibition of designs by Cal Poly LA Metro students.

Public Opening and Conversation Schedule
1:00 – 2:00: Meet + Mingle with the Architects

2:00: Welcome with Frances Anderton + Stephen Phillips
2:05: ADUs (Custom) Ben Warwas founder of Byben and Elizabeth Timme, of LA Más
2:20: ADUs (Factory) with Natalya Dobrinyna of Mighty Buildings, Gordon Stott of Connect Homes and Steve Glenn of Plant Prefab
2:35: Low Rise and Zoning with Barbara Bestor of Bestor Architecture and Angela Brooks of Brooks Scarpa
2:50: Low Rise as Equity Opportunity in South LA with Michael Anderson, author of “Urban Magic: Vibrant Black and Brown Communities Are Possible”
3:05: Mid Rise, 5 Over 2s and How to Make Them Lovely with Lance Simon of Egan Simon, Herwig Baumgartner and Scott Uriu of B+ U and Patrick Tighe or Patrick Tighe Architecture
3:20: High Rise, Can we Build an LA-specific Tower? with Farooq Ameen and Pariya Mohammaditamar of City Design Office, Lorcan O’Herlihy of LOHA, Marcello Spina of P-A-T-T-E-R-N-S, and Li Wen of Gensler

3:40: Finale – Collapsing Boundaries with Eric Owen Moss

The exhibition will remain open until 5:00 PM.

WHEN: 

Opening Reception: Thursday, June 17th; 6:00 to 8:30 PM (Invite Only)

Public Opening and Conversations: Saturday, June 19th; 1:00 to 5:00 PM; TICKETS are Free to the public

Open Studio Hours: Monday, June 21st to Sunday, June 27th; 12:00 to 4:00 PM

By Appointment Only: Monday, June 28th to Thursday, July 1st by contacting Angela Anthony.

WHERE: Studio A, Helms Design Center at Helms Bakery District, 8745 Washington Boulevard, Culver City, 90232.

COVID RESTRICTIONS: To comply with State and County guidelines for public gatherings, please provide proof of Covid-19 vaccination(s) or mandatory masks are required at the door.

BIG THANKS to the participating architects and designers:
Baumgartner + Uriu; Bestor Architecture; Brooks +Scarpa Architects & Plant Prefab; Bureau Spectacular; Byben; City Design Studio; Clive Wilkinson Architects; Connect Homes; Design, Bitches; Egan / Simon Architecture; Eric Owen Moss Architects; Gensler; Keating Architecture; kdA Kevin Daly Architects; KFA Architecture; Koning Eizenberg; Lance Collins (Partner Energy); LA Más; Lehrer Architects; Lorcan O’Herlihy (LOHA); Michael Anderson (Anderson-Barker); Michael W. Folonis Architects; Michael Maltzan Architecture; Mighty Buildings; Neil M. Denari Architects; P-A-T-T-E-R-N-S; Patrick Tighe Architecture; Stephen Phillips Architects (SPARCHS); Studio Antares A+E; THECALIFORNIAOFFICE; Warren Techentin Architecture [WTARCH]

Special Thanks to our sponsors AVRP Studios and ARC Document Solutions.