The West Hollywood Design District has lifted the veil on “Decades of Design,” the first-ever retrospective exhibition uncovering, examining and celebrating six decades of design history in West Hollywood. The gallery showcases work by design pioneers and present tastemakers through bold graphics, photographs and original product, and is on display through February.
"There is so much design history found on Melrose Avenue, Robertson Boulevard and Beverly Boulevard alone that deserves to be recognized," said show curator Gregory Firlotte, a 33-year veteran of the West Hollywood Design District scene. "How many people know that one of the few surviving buildings designed by the internationally-acclaimed furniture design team Charles and Ray Eames was the Herman Miller Showroom that can still be found on Beverly Boulevard 65 years later?"
Exhibition space
The “Decades of Design” exhibition celebrates not only the remarkable businesses and designers of the past, but also those who carry that legacy forward to a new and global audience.
Gregory Firlotte
"There is no other place I want to be," said interior designer Martyn Lawrence Bullard about the West Hollywood Design District. "The positive energy here—its artistic atmosphere and the colorful characters—make my creative juices flow, and my business flourish."
Eileen Samet and Matryn Lawrence Bullard at the exhibition opening
Bullard's sentiment echoes those of other interior designers, as well as local stylists, architects, craftspeople, and fashion designers.
An integral part of the exhibition is an online component that complements the physical displays, offering more information on the people and companies found within the West Hollywood Design District, both past and present. For example, visitors to the show can learn more about the large, colorful images displayed on five interconnecting walls in the library's main reading room.
Guests exploring the exhibition
"This is an exciting opportunity," said Ryan Farber, executive director of the West Hollywood Design District. "To show the community at large what many of us close to the design profession have known for many years: that West Hollywood has always been, and continues to be, a thriving and creative hotspot with a cultural impact that has global implications."
The exhibition is on display at the West Hollywood Library at 625 N. San Vicente Boulevard, West Hollywood, 90069. Library hours are Monday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. (closed on Sunday).
