Thursday, July 29, 2010

Mind-blowing concept: LA Beyond Cars

Here's an idea that boggles the mind: LA beyond cars.

Yeah, that'll be the day, right after the Chicago Cubs win the World Series, the federal government balances the budget, and Rush Limbaugh votes a straight Democratic ticket.

But idealists do live and breathe in LA. And right now, a few of these bold, forward-looking folks are inviting the rest of us to think outside the freeway by visiting an exhibit titled "LA Beyond Cars," currently under way in downtown Los Angeles.

The exhibit is the work of railLA, a joint not-for-profit collaboration between the Los Angeles chapters of the American Institute of Architects (AIA/LA) and the American Planning Association (APA-LA) "with the specific purpose of increasing public awareness of the benefits inherent in integrating high-speed rail into our cities, most notably, at first, in Los Angeles."

The exhibit began July 30 and runs through Aug. 28, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the "Jewel Box" at the base of the City National Bank Plaza towers, 525 South Flower Street.

The exhibit is described as a culmination of railLA's international Call for Ideas, launched earlier this summer. Participants submitted conceptual designs, art, studies, inventions, city plans, videos, and other creative solutions related to the idea of high-speed rail, its integration into the design of cities, and visions of a future that is "more sustainable, pedestrian-friendly, transit-oriented and less reliant on automobiles," railLA said. More than 100 works were received, including invited submissions from renowned architects MVRDV, Eric Owen Moss, Topotek1, and Pritzker Prize laureates Thom Mayne, Sir Norman Foster, and Zaha Hadid.

The 15,000-square-foot exhibit space displays drawings, models, videos, animations, and a rail-inspired installation by sculptor Stephen Glassman, and will host interactive station design workshops by artist and planner, James Rojas.

Four prizes will be awarded by the railLA executive committee at the event's conclusion, in addition to a prize awarded by the general public through an online poll. Submissions may be viewed online at http://railLA.org/vision/ideas.

More information on railLA and its summer 2010 programs is available at www.railLA.org

Sure wish this bureau could be there. If anyone has seen it, please share your pictures, reactions, comments, or other observations. Or just answer the question, can there really be an LA beyond cars?

Three cheers for the folks at railLA for daring to dream big dreams. For the rest of us, we have to tell ourselves that If they can do it there, we can do it anywhere.

Speaking of cars, and transportation, and seemingly far-fetched notions like more sustainable cities, take a look at our poll in this debut edition of Durability + Design's daily newsletter, where we ask your opinion about the best approach to reducing energy consumption. We hope you'll voice your opinion there and elsewhere in this online forum.