Architecture Field Trip - Downtown LA
If you have an hour or two to spare in downtown LA, there is much to be enjoyed along Grand Avenue and nearby.
For our Sunday walk on Valentine’s Day, I asked J. if we could visit the Music Center Plaza which had been renovated/reimagined a couple years ago.
We parked at J.’s office and took a shortcut to Grand via several buildings and bridge walkways. Upon exiting the Bank of America Building on Hope St., we were greeted by Alexander Calder’s sculpture “Four Arches”. In the image below, the view is across the formal plaza towards the John Portman’s postmodern Bonaventure Hotel.
We crossed Hope St. and walked up a stairway next to the Broad Museum to access Grand. A walk past the Disney Concert Hall , then up the stairs to the Music Center plaza. “Peace on Earth”, the large 10-ton bronze sculpture by Jacques Lipchitz now sits on the west end framed by LED screens. Previously, the sculpture was centered in the plaza fountain.
Below, “Peace on Earth” is captured in it’s present location, with the Dept. of Water and Power in the background. An image taken in 2017 shows it in the center of the plaza with the Mark Taper Forum in the background.
While there “A Quiet Scene”, a global-visual collaboration was livestreaming on the LED screens.
One of my favorite fountains is at Grand Park, a wonderful public space across the street from the Music Center. There are great views at various points around the fountain towards: the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion at the Music Center, City Hall or the Kenneth Hahn Administration Building.
