I get a lot of shit for saying that the Pacific Design Center is my favorite building in L.A. My standard defense is that it's one of the few buildings in L.A. that bothers to embrace the utopian spirit of the city. It creates a triad of "big idea conteporary complexes" with Gehry's Disney Hall (which I finally got to see the inside of recently--that carpet is hideous) and Meir's Getty Center (which I loved when I first moved here, but now comes off as elitist and aloof).
The PDC is by far the best of the bunch: while it's ostensibly a cultural center (serving as a design showcase and an outpost for MOCA), it's also a commercial and retail space, home to a couple of Wolfgang Puck venues and also a popular spot to throw a Hollywood party. The complex, which will shortly be complete with the addition of the Red Building is Cesar Pelli's masterpiece. It brilliantly serves as pop-shorthand for the city, with its bold primary colors, abstract forms and palm courts, but refines these gestures so they're elegant, not garish. The scale makes them one of the few landmarks in the city. L.A's decentralized layout swallows up buildings. This is why, in L.A. the entire downtown skyline serves the same purpose the Empire State Building does in New York. The PDC recognizes this and takes up a lot of space in your mind when you look at them. Check out this
video showcasing the now under-construction Red Building to get a feel for the completed project.
At the same time, the buildings are friendly. There's a feeling that you're walking in a giant Lego set and while the space's original purpose has changed over time (originally the whole complex was meant to be designer's show rooms, though now only the Blue Building serves that function), the space engages the West Hollywood streets around it, with its undulating lawns and inviting courtyards. Angelinos
love complaining about the buildings, but then again they also love Botox and think high culture means
American Idol. There's nothing like the PDC in L.A. or in the world. As it nears completion, maybe it'll start to get the acclaim its due.
Labels: design, los angeles
I get a lot of shit for saying that the Pacific Design Center is my favorite building in L.A. My standard defense is that it's one of the few buildings in L.A. that bothers to embrace the utopian spirit of the city. It creates a triad of "big idea conteporary complexes" with Gehry's Disney Hall (which I finally got to see the inside of recently--that carpet is hideous) and Meir's Getty Center (which I loved when I first moved here, but now comes off as elitist and aloof).