Last night we welcomed community members, artists, architects and families into our space to enjoy the amazing work of photographer Julius Shulman through an exhibition in our lobby: Modern Long Beach Through the Lens of Julius Shulman. Curators Cara Mulio and Jennifer Volland took us through the work of Julius Shulman and introduced us to the lives and work of Frank Brothers, Ron and Ed Frank. Frank Brothers, a furniture company in Long Beach during World War II, understood that furniture was meant to be used, it was supposed to be fun and playful. Brothers, Ron and Ed, displayed their furniture in divergent ways, similar to how a modernized store like Ikea does today, drawing artists, enthusiasts and architects to experience “the show.” They hung chairs from the ceilings, placed large beanbag chairs throughout the space and introduced some of the most cutting-edge styles of its time, including acrylic furniture and plastic air-filled pillows. Curators Cara and Jennifer were interested in the way the Frank Brothers promoted their furniture and the distinct modern architecture of Long Beach.
This curiosity spurred them to research and write multiple books and curate an exhibition at Cal State Long Beach, Frank Bros: The Store that Modernized Modern, which is running until April 9th. Cara and Jennifer spent many years exploring modern Long Beach, entrenching themselves into the lives of Ed and Nancy Frank, finding pieces that were unique in a time when interior design was funky, ingenious and inimitable. Our satellite show explored the work of Frank Brothers and exhibited Julius Shulman photographs highlighting residential exteriors and interiors and commercial retail spaces from architecture practitioners such as Edward A. Killingworth, John Lautner, and Gibbs & Gibbs. The show took place against the backdrop of the construction boom currently taking place in downtown Long Beach, at our offices located at the former City Place and Nordstrom Rack facility. With the city’s renewed appreciation of its architectural legacy, the show spurred discussion about architecture and its influence on how we design for the future.
Documenting Modern Long Beach Through the Lens of Julius Shulman reinforced the city’s strong modern architectural heritage and its importance to our built landscape. Today the City of Paramount hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony for the Rededication of Downtown Paramount. Studio One Eleven revitalized the boulevard between Jackson and Madison to create a pedestrian haven. The 1/2 mile, $3.6 million streetscape renovation helps the City of Paramount re-envision the character of their downtown, improving walkability and reinvigorating the public realm. Reducing traffic lanes to accommodate widened sidewalks, the team utilized a “kit of parts” bringing a positive impact to the pedestrian experience. Streetscape improvements included a parklet, dining paseo, bulb-outs, street furniture and other landscape and urban design elements. To support the revitalized boulevard the design team also evaluated opportunities for adjacent property improvements. Paramount Boulevard showcases our firm’s dedication to improving urban environments and enhancing the pedestrian experience through sustainable practices.
This Saturday, January 21st, FivePoint Communities will open one of their newest Great Park Neighborhoods in Irvine, Parasol Park. Studio One Eleven designed the “Living Room” community building and green house structure within the 2.5 acre Parasol Park. Poured in place concrete, corten steel, oiled teak wood, and dark bronze accents create a warm indoor space complete with a fireplace, opening onto a large community plaza. The “Living Room” is currently being used as a sales and info center in the newly developed neighborhood, but will soon be available for use by residents for private events and park functions. “The design for the park was born out of a focus on things found within your own backyard – the team wanted Living Room to coexist within its setting, feel a part of the earth” said Matthew Wister, Project Manager at Studio One Eleven. “Nestled beneath an existing 75 foot tall stone pine tree, we worked to place the building as close to the tree as possible;
carving the large plaza out of the ground and blending the roofline into the landscape with corten steel and a living rooftop.” Landscape architect Bright View described Parasol Park as a park inspired by things found within your own backyard. A place for exploring nature and celebrating the sense of community, Parasol Park directly intersects with the trails and is uniquely situated to take advantage of the Great Park Neighborhoods’ unmatched green belts. Great Park Neighborhoods span approximately 2,100 acres and provides a mix of residential, educational, recreational and future commercial. It is a series of connected parks with Beacon Park, Pavilion Park and Parasol Park homes that offers residents of all ages and backgrounds a place to call home, fostering a deep sense of community among all generations – all built around the Orange County Great Park. For more information about the event and Parasol Park visit the event page here. Studio One Eleven is pleased to announce that our submission, POPulated: Parklets for All, was selected as a finalist for the Knight Cities Challenge hosted by the Knight Foundation.
A national foundation with strong local roots, the organization invests in journalism, arts and cities, to foster informed and engaged communities. Building on the success of Long Beach’s private parklets spearheaded by the City to create greater incentives for local business owners, POPulated reframes this concept by creating parklets as inclusionary public spaces. Three parklets will be designed, prototyped and implemented in emerging communities to provide multi-use spaces for engagement and play. Each community will be actively engaged in programming their parklet, helping shape the space to create a sense of ownership. Once implemented, our firm will evaluate the ability to reinvigorate the public realm, testing how the program can be used as a prototype to provide much needed public open space for other regions and cities. The submission joins 144 finalists, including five from Long Beach, out of 4,500 applications that answer the question: What’s your best idea to make cities more successful?
Applications were required to focus on one or more drivers of city success – talent, opportunity and engagement. The final selections will be announced in spring 2017. The challenge is in its third and final year of a $15 million commitment launched by the Knight Foundation in 2014. Last November, Studio One Eleven proposed a bulb-out at the northwest corner of Third Street and Long Beach Boulevard complimented by a pedestrian island of refugee at the southwest corner adjacent to the cycle track. These elements will enhance pedestrian connectivity to the retail developing on both sides of Third Street, help calm traffic speeds, improve vehicular flow, and provide outdoor dining opportunities for future tenants. The proposed design raised numerous questions and concerns from public agencies with particular concern from Long Beach Transit that their buses would be unable to make the southbound turn from Long Beach Boulevard onto Third Street. Due to construction adjacent to the intersection, a contractor coned off the curbside parking and one of the two lanes on Third Street.
Studio One Eleven architects documented via film and photography that buses were easily able to make the turn. After reviewing the documentation, both Public Works and Long Beach Transit agreed to mock up the proposed design and test the conditions with a bus with all stakeholders including Studio One Eleven present. Studio One Eleven coned both the bulb-out and area of refugee and Long Beach Transit tested it several times with their bus. Everyone agreed the proposed design appeared feasible. Last month, Public Works informed Studio One Eleven that Long Beach Transit had approved our design for both the bulb-out and area of refugee. Sometimes you just have to create a concept “pop up” and field test the possibilities! Studio One Eleven is proud to announce the promotion of Jeff Bymaster to Project Manager. Jeff has been a key team member of Studio One Eleven for the past year, working on an range of multi-family housing projects. He has worked on First and Alamitos, a 136 unit market rate development with ground floor retail.