PAGE 3: Gary and Gehry

0

This bit of buzz about the 73-story Wilshire Grand in advance of its opening Friday comes by way of fearless photog Gary Leonard, who bumped into Frank Gehry during a recent Bergamot Station opener for an exhibit by legendary L.A. abstract artist Ed Moses, who’s the father of downtown pub impresario Cedd Moses, by the way. Leonard is the project photographer on the Wilshire Grand, and wanted Gehry’s opinion of AC Martin’s design of the Hanjin International-developed, $1.2 billion tower at Wilshire & Fig. Gehry apparently mulled a bit before offering that he likes the look of the tower from the south. … That’s the same Hanjin that threw a wrench into operations at the Port of Long Beach when it declared BK last year. Turn to page 1 for our Shwanika Narayan’s Q&A with newly appointed port boss Mario Cordero, who takes over an outfit that came through the situation swimmingly. … Not quite a road game even if it seems that way for Century City-based Aecom, which will compete on a contract for a new terminal at Kansas City International Airport that could be in the $1 billion range. The architecture and engineering firm has long had a strong presence in the Midwestern metropolis, with an office of more than 100 that includes members from teams that worked on the Sprint Center Arena, among other projects there. Aecom pried opened the door on a bidding process with a request for consideration on the airport job after KC-based Burns & McDonnell submitted plans to design and privately finance a new terminal in exchange for exclusivity. Now Aecom and any other hopefuls have until this week to submit bids. …

Far from those big-time projects you’ll find this little beauty – a reminder that hipsters in Echo Park can do some clever marketing – in two languages. … Our Diane Haithman started out with an angle about dance shoes and wound up with a piece about a Boyle Heights mom-and-pop that’s become a hit with the Comic-Con crowd (left). … Haithman also learned that Music Center President Rachel Moore – a former American Ballet Theatre dancer – plans to attend the opening performance of Eifman Ballet of St. Petersburg’s “Tchaikovsky” at Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. Moore gives kudos to the company for taking on Tchaikovsky’s closeted homosexuality, hardly a popular theme in present-day Russia. … Sullivan says: The sounds and stylings of Art Blakey are a perfectly cool match with the Lobby Lounge at the recently opened Waldorf Astoria.

No posts to display