We’ve got some really fun events this weekend…especially for kids, art aficionados, Native American arts lovers, and fans of Craftsman architecture, arts and crafts.
First, if you’re up for a trip to Griffith Park this weekend, you can start with some unique holiday shopping at Southern California’s largest Native American Arts Fair at the Autry Museum (4700 Western Heritage Way) in Griffith Park. Browse and buy one-of-a-kind sculptures, pottery, beadwork, basketry, photography, paintings, jewelry, textiles, carvings, and more, including both contemporary and traditional items by 200 artists representing more than 40 Native American tribes. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday, and the event also includes film screenings, food, performances, children’s activities, artist demonstrations, and the annual Short Play Festival from Native Voices, the Autry’s award-winning resident theatre company. Tickets available at the event link above, or at the door.
Also running for the full length of the weekend, but slightly further afield, is the huge annual Pasadena Heritage Craftsman Weekend, “the largest most comprehensive celebration of the Craftsman Movement in the Western United States.” Events actually began yesterday (Thursday), but will continue through Sunday and include a large number walking and bus tours (focusing on individual locations, specific neighborhoods, and/or certain kinds of cultural or thematic influences), workshops, lectures, demonstrations, and sales of both antiques and contemporary furnishings and decorative arts. See the link above for the full (very, very full) schedule and tickets. Also, as long as you’re in the neighborhood and in a Craftsman frame of mind, be sure to check out the big Pasadena Arts & Crafts Show at the Pasadena Hilton, 168 S Los Robles Ave. The event is described as “a new show and gift market, direct from artists, artisans, and special makers and purveyors of handmade apparel, jewelry, art, food and drink.” More than 200 vendors will be participating, including jewelers, clothiers, gemcutters, and ceramicists, along with events focusing on wine tasting, metalworking, soap making and jewelry design. Tickets are available through the event link above, and you can receive a free guest entry pass (save $10) by entering code ACNO18.
Back in our neck of the woods on Saturday, the Miracle Mile Toy Hall “will join independent toy stores all over the country to kick off the holiday season by hosting Neighborhood Toy Store Day to celebrate their community, the value of shopping local, and the joy of play” with very full day of family-friendly activities, in-store specials and not one, not two, not three…but FOUR special shows. First, the Bob Baker Marionette Theater returns with a heartfelt, holiday-themed puppet show at 11 a.m., followed by a meet and greet with the puppets. Next, at 1 p.m., Funny Eddie, a former Ringling Bros. clown, will perform “the funniest magic show you’ve ever seen,” followed by balloon art until 3 p.m. Then, at 3:30 p.m., Captain Tall Tale, “the 8’3″ Adventurer,” will promote health, fitness, dancing (come learn the Captain Tall Tale Victory Dance!), animal ambassadorship, and culture with “3 steps to a safe Adventure: “Prepare/Explore/Share!”” And, finally, at 5 p.m., you can meet author Alva Sachs and hear the story of “Dancing Dreidels,” about a girl named Rebecca and her four favorite dreidels, Sheila Shin, Gail Gimmel, Harry Hey, and Neil Nun. In the story, Rebecca waits for Hanukkah every year when the family gathers to celebrate. The smells of yummy foods fill the air. Singing, dancing, and the lighting of the menorah take center stage, until it is time for the dreidels to spin for the evening’s grand finale. But, Sheila can’t stop falling down. Will she be able to ‘dance’ at the Hanukkah party? Stop by the store and find out! Tickets are available for each event at the individual event links above.
Just a few blocks down the street, families can also enjoy the new show at the Petersen Museum, Legends of Los Angeles: Southern Race Cars and their Builders, which opens to public on Saturday and runs through the end of the month. According to the exhibit’s description, “Due to its ideal weather, geography, and topography, Southern California offered endless hours of racing on many different track types. Coupled with the multitude of skilled laborers that settled in Southern California post-WWII, Los Angeles saw a veritable explosion of building within the automotive industry. Home to manufacturers of competition vehicles ranging from quarter midgets to Indianapolis 500 cars, Los Angeles was vital to the racing landscape as we now know it today.” The exhibit features 11 of these historic vehicles and racing legends, “constructed in and around Los Angeles by renowned designers and engineers such as Fred Offenhauser, Harry Miller, Frank Kurtis and Max Balchowsky, along with artifacts and a dramatic 180-degree panoramic video.” It also explores the stories of the region’s racing cars, builders and tracks. “Visitors will learn that, while they may associate other places more directly with car racing, Southern California’s broad role in the sport is perhaps the most consequential of any locale in the world.”
Moving into Saturday afternoon, Memorial Branch Library, 4625 W. Olympic Blvd., will celebrate Veteran’s Day a day early, with a 12:30 p.m. free screening of director Ming Lai’s documentary film, “Visions of Warriors.” The film follows veterans from the Vietnam War era to the Iraq War as they participate in the groundbreaking Veteran Photo Recovery Project.
Later, on Saturday evening, art fans will get their turn with two receptions. The first is the 8th Annual Keller Williams Larchmont Pop-Up Art Gallery, which runs from 6-9 p.m. at the Keller Williams Larchmont office, 118 N. Larchmont Blvd. Every year, the office “opens its doors to the surrounding Larchmont/Hancock Park/Miracle Mile/Hollywood Hills communities and clients, transforming its offices into a venue for a festive evening of art, music, mingling, and delicious food and drinks from neighborhood restaurants and vendors.” The featured artists will display their artwork, while sponsors (including the Larchmont Buzz) showcase their products and services.
Also from 6-9 p.m. on Saturday, the LaunchLA gallery, 170 S. La Brea, will host an opening reception for its newest show, “Marie Thibeault: By Water, By Fire.” In the show, California artist Thibeault “examines the power of natural forces” – including the “consuming qualities” of both water and fire – “pitted against the vulnerability of architectural structures. In this ongoing conflict between man and nature, both our natural and built environments exist under the strain of environmental collapse.” According to the gallery, Thibeault’s work has been recently featured in exhibitions at the Pasadena Museum of California Art, and Huntington Beach Art Center, as well as a number of solo exhibitions, in Dusseldorf, London, San Francisco, and Torrance. Thibeault received her BFA in painting from Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA from UC Berkeley. She is currently a Professor Emerita of Art at California State University Long Beach where she teaches painting and color theory. The event is free, but space is limited, so if you’d like to attend, please RSVP…or contact [email protected] for more information.
Sunday is Veteran’s Day, and looks fairly quiet, event-wise…but it could also be a great time to catch up with Oz!, a new version of the venerable children’s story, “The Wizard of Oz,” now running (with lots of new music and special effects) at the Nine O’Clock Players – Southern California’s oldest children’s theater company – which has been staging plays since 1929 in its vintage barn-style theater at 1367 N. St. Andrews Place. Tickets are $15 and include a meet-and-greet with the cast after the show.
And finally this weekend, a heads-up that the Bureau of Street Services will be resurfacing Crenshaw Boulevard between Wilshire Boulevard and 8th Street on Saturday, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. So if you’re heading south, be sure to plan ahead or take alternate routes (Wilshire Blvd., Bronson Ave., 8th St. and/or Lorraine Blvd.). Questions about the project can be addressed to [email protected].
Have a great weekend!
