Behind the scenes at CA Boom
The fifth annual CA Boom design show opens March 14, featuring modern architecture, interior design and decorating with a West Coast bent. Times staff writer David A. Keeps went behind the scenes Thursday as 130 exhibitors prepared their new furniture and decorative accessories for their public premiere in Barker Hangar at the Santa Monica Airport. Among the sights: Air Dimensional Designs inflatable lights that emulate exotic sea life. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)
Linda and Max Geiser, the design team known as Wallter install their new Wallter Mobiles in the modern parenting section of CA Boom. The mobiles are made from powder-coated stainless steel and come with decorative mounting plates. Its more attractive than hanging them from a cup hook stuck in the ceiling, Max Geiser says. The biggest innovation: The pieces can be moved up and down the monofilament wires, allowing designs to fill spaces small (above a crib) or tall (in a stairwell). The Palm, shown here between the Geisers, is based on the abstraction of a palm trunk and fronds. The line consists of five shapes in five colors, each $70 to $125. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)
Shes clay. Hes wood. Together studio ceramist JoAnn Patterson and woodworker Richard Patterson are Clay & Wood. At CA Boom, the Sun Valley couple are showing new designs, including ceramic fountains on custom wooden bases and this untitled wall mural, $1,800, made from high-fire stoneware. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)
Remember his name: Carlo. Thats right, just Carlo an Italian designer for the Los Angeles-based Nusa, which works with Balinese craftsmen to create intricate inlay pieces. The firm, making its CA Boom debut this year, specializes in sleek, sculptural furniture clad in coconut shell and mother-of-pearl. The trio of hourglass pieces, each a slightly different size, sells for $1,300. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)
Florian Roeper shows off his handcrafted Hollywood table made from California walnut and brass with low-slung X-legs and brass sabots. The piece is available through his website for $6,500. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)
Eero Aarnio, the acclaimed designer of the iconic 1963 Ball Chair, has unleashed a new litter for Magis. The plastic toy and seat called Puppy comes in four sizes and colors, including the new blue shown here, making its world debut in CA Booms international-brands area. These pups can be adopted into good homes for $72 to $466. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)
For a jolt of color, nothing beats red. This shelving unit on display at CA Boom mixes modern geometry with a Chinese accent. It sells for $1,200 at Ku Ambiance in West Hollywood. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)
Call it vanity flair: This cast resin mirror and matching sink with fluorescent illumination and a black powder-coated stainless steel basin is from Neo-Metro, based in the city of Industry. It retails for around $6,000 through showrooms such as Snyder Diamond. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)
Theres one in every crowd. The Auspicious Commode, a $12,000 Japanese ceramic urinal from Ku Ambiance in West Hollywood, takes the prize for the most audacious design. A matching ceramic toilet paper holder is priced at $350. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)
Felt has rarely felt this fresh -- but this does, thanks to the architectural construction and dazzling colors of Anne Kyyrö Quinnes felt pillow, top, and upholstered cube, bottom. The London-based textile designers work can be found at the Plushpod booth at CA Boom. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)
The recently formed Newport Beach firm 10 Grain has launched a line of bent plywood furniture that features printed laminates of Julius, the Paul Frank-designed chimpanzee. The Slice Step stool, shown here, is $90 at local retailers such as La La Ling in Los Feliz. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)
Metal strips, wood bark, water hyacinth , all-weather wicker? It seems like theres nothing that PIE (Project Import Export) cant turn into woven furniture. Here, a few examples of its eco-friendly handcrafted pieces with organically curvaceous silhouettes. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)
New York City artist Paul Villinski is exhibiting an installation of 108 beer-can butterflies. He hand-cuts each winged creature from empties found in New York and New Orleans, then applies pigments and counterweights so they can move in the breeze when suspended from wires. The piece shown here is $12,000, and individual butterflies are $200 each, through the Jonathan Ferrara Gallery of New Orleans. CA Boom is open to members of the design trades from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. March 14 and to the general public from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. March 15 and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. March 16. Admission is $20. An opening night reception is from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. Friday and is $50. The exhibition is at Barker Hangar at the Santa Monica Airport, 3021 Airport Ave. Information: (818) 735-8803, www.caboomshow.com. (Annie Wells / Los Angeles Times)