Around Town: Crime novelist Walter Mosley to appear at Huntington Beach library

The Friends of the Huntington Beach Public Library will host bestselling crime novelist Walter Mosley at an author event set for Sunday, Oct. 12, from 4 to 6 p.m., at Central Library, 7111 Talbert Ave., Huntington Beach.

Mosley’s latest Easy Rawlins book, “Gray Dawn,” was published last month.

Following the author’s talk, light refreshments will be served, and books signed by the author will be available for purchase. Tickets are $15 for members; $25 for non-members and can be purchased through Eventbrite at: eventbrite.com/e/an-afternoon-with-walter-mosley-author-talk-book-signing-tickets-1721732541379

Costa Mesa Church to host 14th annual Armenian Food Festival Oct. 11-12

Members of the public are invited to experience Armenian food, culture and hospitality, as Costa Mesa’s St. Mary Armenian Church celebrates the return of its annual food festival next weekend.

The two-day event includes authentic cuisine, beer and wine, church tours, raffle prizes, games for kids, boutique shopping and live Armenian dancing. The event runs Saturday, from 3 to 10 p.m. and Sunday, from noon to 6 p.m.

Admission is $5. St. Mary Armenian Church is located at 148. E 22nd St., in Costa Mesa. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit stmaryarmenianfestival.com.

Sherman Gardens horticulturalist to lead fern-mounting workshop Oct. 10

Next Friday, join Sherman Library & Gardens horticulturalist Joel Friesen as he guides participants in the step-by-step mounting of staghorn ferns in a workshop that takes place from 10 a.m. to noon at the Corona del Mar botanical garden.

All materials will be provided, so participants may leave with a living “air-plant” wall display designed to bring a touch of the tropics into their own homes and gardens for years to come.

The class costs $50 for Sherman Gardens members or $60 for non-members. To purchase tickets, visit thesherman.org/classes.

Chapman University’s Hilbert Museum honored with architectural award

Chapman University’s Hilbert Museum of California Art recently received a prestigious local architecture award for its 2024 expansion into a leading Southern California cultural landmark in the city of Orange.

The institution was honored in a Sept. 19 ceremony hosted by the Orange County chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) with a Merit Award for “design excellence leading to a zero-carbon, equitable, resilient and healthy built environment” for its 22,000-square-foot structure.

Designed by Los Angeles-based firm Johnston Marklee, the expansion features a giant floating panel that unites the two gallery buildings and frames “Pleasures Along the Beach,” a 1969 Millard Sheets glass-tile mosaic relocated from a former Home Savings Bank building to the museum’s façade.

Earlier this year, the Los Angeles Times named Hilbert one of the eight best new architecture projects in Southern California in 2024. Before that, it received the “Los Angeles Times Best of the Southland” Award in the “Best Museum” category in 2021.