The holiday-reated local events keep rolling along this weekend, but we’ve also got garden-related options, school events, arts and crafts workshops, movies and more.
It all starts at 9 a.m. Saturday, with a free home composting workshop sponsored by the Los Angeles Bureau of Sanitation at Griffith Park’s composting facility, 5400 Griffith Park Dr. Participants will learn how to turn kitchen scraps and garden trimmings into a nutrient-rich soil amendment, and there will be discounted compost bins for sale for $20. Note that proof of City of Los Angeles residence is required for the discounted bin sales, but the workshop itself is open to everyone, regardless of residency. See the flier at right for more information.
Next, starting at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, and continuing the garden theme, Larchmont Charter School‘s Fairfax campus, 1265 N. Fairfax Ave., will hold its annual Harvest Festival to celebrate and benefit the school’s Edible Schoolyard program. The full day of fun will include lunch, a student cook-off competition, baked goods and holiday foods for sale, a kids crafts sale, and food, art, and music from LCS’s K-12 students. Also, note that the cook-off will be judged by LCS chef/parents Valerie Gordon (Valerie Confections) and Karen Hatfield (Sycamore Kitchen) along with the LCS Fairfax chef, Hugo Silva…and the winning dishes will be adapted for inclusion on the LCS lunch menu.
On both Saturday and Sunday, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., the Hauser + Wirth Gallery, 901-909 E. 3rd St., downtown, will be holding its annual Holiday Market, with a large roster of vendors selling hand-crafted products and locally-made wares, as well as family workshops led by educators such as the Garden School Foundation, which provides garden-related educational programs at several of our neighborhood schools. (The GSF craft workshop will be held from 12-3 on Saturday…and they’ll also be selling works by local artists, dried herb mixes harvested from our school gardens, and more – all to benefit the organization’s programs.)
For some grownup craft-making on Saturday, the Craft Contemporary will hold a “Honey I Blew up the Weavings: A Giant Weaving Workshop with Mimi Haddon,” from 1-4 p.m. According to the museum, “participants will weave, knot, and tie to create their very own oversized weaving using a variety of fibers, wool roving, and chunky yarn.” Advanced registration is required at the link above. Cost, including materials, is $150 for CC members, and $160 for non-members.
At 3 p.m. on Saturday, the William Grant Still Art Center, 2520 South West View St., will hold an opening reception for “Psychodollia,” the 39th Annual Black Doll Show , this year featuring dolls representing the 1960s soul and funk scene, and 1990s hip hop and techno culture. According to the organizers, “The exhibition cites 1960s soul and funk as a source of inspiration while also referencing flower power genres of the 1990s hip hop and house/techno scenes, contemporary practices of futurism and transgression through delight and bliss. Psychedollia is a celebration of the monumental and small, ordinary and extraordinary events that depict Black life in all its facets. This year’s theme is a deep exploration of cultural imagery as depicted through the beauty and diversity of dolls. It seeks to positively reshape the dialogue on Black life & identity as portrayed in media and dominant society by highlighting Black is Beautiful, natural hair, counter culture, self-empowerment, Black liberation and agency.” The exhibition will also feature full-scale, thematically-related installations by local artists…and the opening reception will include psychedelic DJ sets by Zofia, Streetlife, and Simone Trinidad. The exhibition itself will be open from December 14 through February 15, Tuesdays through Saturdays from 12-5 p.m. Both the exhibit and opening event are free to attend.
Moving into the holiday music category, starting at 5 p.m. on Saturday, the Silverlake Conservatory of Music, a non-profit music school that also provides music education and scholarships to the city’s neediest families, will bring more than 75 carolers to the Larchmont Village neighborhood, singing Christmas and Hannukah favorites in exhchange for donations. For $100, you will get two beautiful songs sung right on your doorstep by members of the Conservatory’s children’s and adult choirs. If you would like to donate and receive the gift of music in exchange, contact [email protected]
For even more music (and art!), the Big Sunday organization, 6111 Melrose Ave., will host its 6th Annual In It Together Music and Art Night on Saturday. The first-time art gallery (open from 5-7 p.m.) will feature sculptures, paintings, illustrations and more by local artists from the community…and the music (starting at 7 p.m.) will feature local performers who have helped Big Sunday “in all kinds of important ways.” There will also be a special comedy performance by Bill Devline. Admission is free, but everyone is asked to bring new socks and/or underwear as part of Big Sunday regular Adam Breall’s annual collection to help the teens and young adults at My Friend’s Place. Also, please note that the event is limited to those 18 and over. Beer, wine and light snacks will be served.
For film fans, the American Cinematheque has two fun events starting at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, on different screens at the Egyptian Theater, 6712 Hollywood Blvd. The first, celebrating the 10th anniversary of the organization’s “Retroformat” screenings of rare silent films, will present several films featuring “artists from Felix the Cat to Erich von Stroheim, always with great live accompaniment by Retroformat musical director Cliff Retallick.” The shorts include Lillian Gish in “The Mothering Heart” (1913), Felix the Cat in “Felix Dines and Pines” (1924), Gloria Swanson and Wallace Beery in “Teddy at the Throttle” (1917), plus the William S. Hart feature, “The Darkening Trail” (1915), “a disturbingly film noir-ish melodrama about jealousy and revenge, set in the Alaskan gold rush, with typically brilliant acting plus masterful, brooding direction by Hart himself.” The program will be hosted by Tom Barnes, with live musical accompaniment by Cliff Retallick.
Meanwhile, on another screen at the Egyptian, and also starting at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, the Cinematheque will present a double feature of the Spike-Jones-related “Being John Malkovich” and “Three Kings.” The first is a surreal fantasy in which a puppeteer discovers a secret portal leading into the mind of actor John Malkovich…and the second is the story of three Gulf War soldiers who attempt to steal some stolen Kuwaiti gold, but are caught between Iraqui loyalists and rebels.
On Sunday, events start early again, as the Petersen Museum’s monthly Cruise-In event begins at 8 a.m. on the third floor of the museum’s parking garage. This month, you can “enjoy the holiday season as you stroll through rows of classic, custom, exotic cars, trucks, motorcycles, and more!” There will be free parking , coffee, and bagels for all attendees, and members will have early access to the museum starting at 9 a.m.
Starting at 9 a.m. on Sunday, the Mid City West Community Council will canvass the 300 block of N. Ogden Drive, and on the adjacent block of Oakwood Ave., to find neighbors willing to have free trees planted in their parkways. According to the MCWCC, “The trees will beautify our streets, provide shade, and create a positive change for our climate. We will be looking for neighbors to commit to watering the trees so they can be thrive and grow.” The plantings will be provided by the Koreatown Youth + Community Center. If you’d like to help out, meet at the patio in front of Erewhon Foods, 7660 Beverly Boulevard, and teams will head out from there. For more information, contact Amy Goldenberg at [email protected].
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or kids and families, starting at 11 a.m. on Sunday, the place to be is the Ebell of Los Angeles, 743 S. Lucerne Blvd., which will hold its annual Family Holiday Brunch with dancing fairies, arts and crafts, story time and, of course, photos with Santa. The Bob Baker Marionettes will also perform for attendees. Tickets are $45 for Ebell members, $55 for non-members, $20 for children ages 2-12, and free for children under 2. See the event link above for tickets.
For even more holiday cheer on Sunday, head back to the Big Sunday headquarters, 6111 Melrose Ave., for a big Holiday Sing Along, starting at 3 p.m. Join all kinds of wonderful people to sing (with a live band), deck the halls, light a menorah, make arts and crafts, and consume delicious holiday treats with the guests of honor, the kids from Ability First. There will also be a collection of toys and winter coats, for both kids and adults, so please bring a donation. If you’d like to attend, please RSVP at the link above.
The carols will continue on Sunday evening, as the Brookside neighborhood holds its annual holiday caroling caroling event starting at 6 p.m. at 835 S. Tremaine. The caroling will be done from a horse drawn carriage (starting at 7 p.m.), and there will be sweets, hot cocoa for the kids, and a little stronger cheer for the adults…as well as a visit from Santa. If you’d like the procession to visit your home in Brookside, please contact the Brookside Homeowners Association at with your address.
And finally on Sunday, it’s back to the American Cinematheque, at the Egyptian Theater, for a double feature of movies starring Adam Driver. The first, starting at 7:30, is the very current “Marriage Story,” in which Driver stars with Scarlett Johanssen as a couple dealing with divorce and separation…and the second is 2016’s “Paterson,” in which Driver and Golshifteh Farahani star as a quiet bus driver and his ambitious wife in Paterson, New Jersey. The program will also feature a live, in-person discussion with Driver between the films.
Have a great weekend!
