By Ethlie Ann Vare
LOS ANGELES, CA (The Hollywood Times, October 23) After 20 successful years at the La-La Land Gallery in Hollywood, award-winning graphic designer, musician and music video director Kii Arens is expanding to include Downtown LA in his portfolio. The Thursday debut evening entitled XO,LA featured a slew of hometown heroes, including Los Angeles-based creators like Shepard Fairey, Corita Kent, Paul Frank, Luke Pelletier and more.
Dubbed FABla, the new gallery space is located in the Fine Arts Building on 7th Street, a Romanesque Revival showplace built in 1926 by architects Walker and Eisen. With its elaborate interior fountain and exterior gargoyles, the building was designated a Historic-Cultural Monument in 1974 and faithfully restored in 1983.
“They were looking for somebody to help curate the art in this amazing space,” says Arens. “I’m like, Fine Arts Building… F-A-B. Fab!” He immediately took a four-year lease on the downstairs gallery space (along with some offices upstairs), dubbed it FABla, and started planning shows.
“This building is 99 years old, and it has always been for art,” says Arens. “Twelve stories of artists lived here — the elevator would go up, and they would come down here and sell their art.” He waves an arm (in a hand-painted jacket to kill for) toward the glass-fronted display cases.
“It was the heyday. The ‘20s in Los Angeles. They built the Hollywood Bowl, the Ford Theater… all during that same time period. I would have loved to have been around.”
An eclectic crowd gathered to admire the art — we spotted Monty Python’s Eric Idle, known to doodle a sketch himself now and then, with wife Tania. Many were amazed to realize that Shepard Fairey himself was spinning discs the entire evening. The acclaimed LA street artist, best known now for creating Barack Obama’s iconic HOPE poster, goes back decades with pop-artist Arens: he also DJ’d the 2004 opening of La-La Land.
The next show is already in prep: A Rocky Horror Picture Show 50th anniversary tribute featuring photos by the original on-set photographer, Mick Rock (1948-2021), as well as a lot of art and a bunch of live music. It starts on December 10.
“That one is going to be incredible,” predicts actor/writer /producer Brad Koepenick, who became an admirer of Arens through Val Kilmer’s HelMel gallery. “And to be doing something really vital in downtown LA right now is crucial. It’s crucial to the survival of the city.”
XO, LA
FABla Gallery
Fine Arts Building
811 W. 7th St.
Downtown Los Angeles
Through December 7
