Wednesday, January 28, 2009

FIDM Annual Motion Picture Costumes Exhibit


The Motion Picture Costume Design Exhibit is one of Downtown LA's most anticipated annual exhibits displayed every year at the FIDM Museum. The ExperienceLA Project had the chance to take photographs during the opening reception for the exhibit, and you can see the entire set here. Since this exhibit is organized before the Academy announce their Oscar nominations for costume design, there is never a guarantee that all of the nominated costume designers will have their productions on display. For the record here are the 2009 Oscar nominations and the costumer designer announced in mid-January:

Australia - Catherine Martin
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - Jacqueline West on display at FIDM (and shown as the lead to this posting)
The Duchess - Michael O’Connor on display at FIDM
Milk - Danny Glicker on display at FIDM
Revolutionary Road - Albert Wolsky

In addition to these nominated costumers, the 2008 Oscar winner, Alexandra Byrne has her award winning costumes from Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Two of this year's displayed costume sets are graduates of FIDM, Marlene Stewart from Stop Loss (who also did the costumes from Tropic Thunder) and Mona May from the House Bunny.

Last year the pictures I took became very popular as many of the costume bloggers linked to those 2008 FIDM pictures on flickr attracting over 3,000 views, as there were many popular pictures in 2007 that had captured the imagination of the audience. The costumes likely to be of interest to the general public will mostly likely be from the Dark Knight andIndiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. You can also see the costumes from Best Picture Oscar nominated films of Milk, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and Doubt.

FIDM is only a few blocks from the Blue Line station at Pico/Chick Hearn, or a little big longer walk from the 7th/Metro Station for the Red/Purple Lines. In the morning, I always see FIDM students walking from the Metro public transit stations to school, and I recommend this as a great transit destination for those wanting to go downtown and do something different on the weekend. It is only in 2008 that FIDM opened their Museum on Sundays. The museum is open from Wednesday to Sunday and the exhibit runs from January 28, 2009 to March 20, 2009. While visiting the museum, a must see is the FIDM Museum shop which features a range of items for FIDM current and former students along with costume related books. The jewelry is fabulous. A great place to shop for Valentine's Day for that unique gift.

A visit to FIDM can also be a visit to the Grammy Museum and the new restaurants at LA Live where there are a range of restaurants from affordable to very expensive. With discounted airfares starting to show up, think about a visit to Downtown LA to see these two museums and stay at one of the many downtown hotels. Take the time to explore the rest of downtown LA, and you will be surprised at all of the things to do along with many destination restaurant around the downtown area. The FIDM Motion Picture Costume exhibit is worth a visit to LA. The FIDM Museum will also be open during the evening of the February 12th Downtown Art Walk
Watch for additional blog postings on this FIDM exhibit over the next 2 months.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Love, Lust, Heartbreak and... Murder?

HeartbreakOnly in Los Angeles can one find a wide range of unique ways to celebrate any holiday - including Valentine's Day. So this year, take advantage of the more eccentric options:

There are some traditional events and even a show for children as well:

Of course, it doesn't have to say Valentine's in the show to make it a special occasion. Find your own way to celebrate the day with events from experienceLA.com's cultural calendar.

-Tiina Vuorenmaa


Friday, January 23, 2009

ExperienceLA Bloggers In Wyoming?

If you've been following the ExperienceLA.com blog, it's hard to miss the stories of Los Angeles arts and culture bloggers Charity Tran and Sarah Koo. But their next big adventure is another territory riped with its own flavor of arts and cultural experiences - Wyoming!

Sarah made a trip to visit Cheyenne Frontier Days back in August 2008, and both Sarah and Charity will embark on a road trip adventure there next week!

Keep posted through the Wyoming Roundup blog and follow them on the Wyoming Roundup Twitter! They'll also be featuring their photos on the new Flickr Group.

First question the ExperienceLA staff would love to know: can these Los Angeles cultural mavens handle Wyoming weather?

-ExperienceLA Staff

Thursday, January 22, 2009

GRAMMY Sound Stage: Duke Jazz Talk with Charlie Haden

The GRAMMY Museum's Duke Jazz Talk with Charlie Haden event brings but one word to mind: wow. It was such an incredible experience for me as an artist, a patron, and an Angeleno. Charlie Haden is not only a phenomenal musician - as is accompanying special guest Alan Broadbent - but the interview conducted by Executive Director Robert Santelli was like a dance through time and multiple perspectives - historically, personally, musically.

One might say that there are many places that could have housed the conversation between Haden and Santelli or the musical performance with Haden and Broadbent, but I can't help but believe that the GRAMMY Sound Stage (the museum's intimate 200-seat theatre) brought the potential of both to a whole new level of experience. In this setting, it's more than just watching a great exchange of words and music unfold, it's feeling that you're a part of the dialogue and the musical experience as it happens. A live event within the GRAMMY Sound Stage emulates one of the greatest aspects of the museum itself: the interactivity between music and the patron.


As an arts-going Angeleno, I greatly appreciate how the Los Angeles arts scene has this seemingly endless combination of diverse artists and spaces that one can choose from. The addition of the GRAMMY Sound Stage to all this feels pretty amazing to me, and I can't wait for who else might grace its stage.

The Duke Jazz Talk series is in partnership with the Recording Academy New York Chapter. The Charlie Haden event is the second live event hosted at the GRAMMY Sound Stage since the museum opened last month.

-Charity Tran, ExperienceLA Web Coordinator


Harlem Globetrotters Interview #2: Wildkat Edgerson

In the second segment with the Harlem Globetrotters, who will making their way to the Los Angeles area in February, Daood interviews Harlem Globetrotter Wildkat Edgerson. Learn about this "gentle giant": the reason behind his 'Wildkat' nickname, how he got started with the Globetrotters, and why he's currently reading Dr. Seuss!

Listen to the podcast after the jump.


Click to Listen to Daood's interview with Wildkat Edgerson (Runtime: 10:24 minutes; 9.6MB)

Check out the Harlem Globetrotters in LA!

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Harlem Globetrotters Interview #1: Moo Moo Evans


Daood returns with a series of interviews featuring the Harlem Globetrotters, who will making their way to the Los Angeles area in February. The first of the series features Moo Moo Evans. Learn about Moo Moo Evans' experience with the Harlem Globetrotters, one of his favorite charities, and even what he eats for breakfast! Listen to the podcast after the jump.


Click to Listen to Daood's interview with Moo Moo Evans (Runtime: 9:58 minutes; 9.2MB)

Check out the Harlem Globetrotters in LA!

Wednesday, January 14, 2009