Sunset 2050: Imagining the Future of the Sunset Strip
SUPRASTUDIO post-professional program exhibits a master plan for the Sunset Strip circa 2050
For Immediate Use:
June 20, 2018
Today, the A+D Museum announced that UCLA Architecture and Urban Design (UCLA A.UD) will present the culminating research from Professor Craig Hodgett’s SUPRASTUDIO: “Gridlock: A Master Plan for the Sunset Strip Circa 2050.” The exhibition, titled “Sunset 2050,” posits a future for the iconic stretch of Sunset Boulevard that champions its innate charm while anticipating the autonomous vehicular technology that will render a new landscape for the City of Los Angeles. UCLA A.UD graduate students created a unique installation situated in 350 square feet of exhibition space that features research materials, diagrams, models, and renderings that allow visitors to take in the sights and sounds of a possible future Sunset Strip.
The exhibition showcases the student work created at UCLA A.UD’s IDEAS campus, located in Culver City, in an accessible and public urban setting. “From a pedagogical point of view, the graduate students will have had the opportunity to not only perform fundamental, boots-on-the-ground urban research, but to assess public reaction to their work within a full-sized exhibit environment of their own creation,” said Professor Hodgetts.
The year-long research studio focuses on congestion—the fight for space, for land, for bandwidth, for opportunity, for resources—that has become the hallmark of modern society. The UCLA A.UD students collaborated with graduate students from the ArtCenter College of Design Transportation Design Program and prominent transportation theorists to examine the potential of future transportation technology including autonomous cars and drone delivery methods. The students evaluated these technologies for their ability to relieve endemic traffic congestion and eliminate or render useless many of the traffic management devices, including curbs and signal lights, which have always been assumed to be an essential part of the urban landscape.
“Sunset 2050” opens on June 30 as part of the assembly at A+D. The assembly is a gathering celebrating the public opening of five new exhibits. In addition to “Sunset 2050,” exhibitions include “Cycle & Patterns,” a fashion exhibition in collaboration with Otis College; “3-Ways,” the museum’s inaugural outing with its GCP series; “Dopplegägner,” a view into the architectural mind of Patrick Tighe, who earned his masters in architecture from UCLA A.UD; “Architecture and Back to Front,” an outdoor installation by StereoBot; and “Oasys,” which takes on the issues of ‘shelter’ in the contemporary arena.
Support for “Sunset 2050” comes from UCLA Architecture and Urban Design and the UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture with special thanks to Gensler, Matt Construction, and BuroHappold Engineering.
Details:
“Sunset 2050”
Jun. 30–Aug. 19, 2018
Opening Reception: Jun. 30, 6:30 p.m.
A+D Museum
900 E. 4th Street
Los Angeles, CA 90013
$10 general admission
Free to students and members
About UCLA Architecture and Urban Design’s SUPRASTUDIO
SUPRASTUDIO is a post-professional program at UCLA Architecture and Urban Design that leads to a Masters of Architecture II degree. Students engage in real-world issues through intensive research to develop new methodologies of architectural design. The program offers extensive research opportunities in studios led by world-renowned figures in architecture. SUPRASTUDIO pairs student researchers with industry collaborators exploring topics as diverse as strategic thinking, sustainability, contemporary culture, lifestyle, Artificial Intelligence, autonomous mobility, sensing technology, robotics, extreme environments, the journey to outer space, virtual reality, entertainment production performances, and media-enhanced experiences.
About the UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture
The UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture plays a vital role in the cultural and artistic life of the campus and of the broader community. Guiding our mission is the belief that the arts are not only an essential part of the cognitive, critical, inquisitive life of a public research university, but that the practice and presence of the arts are a cornerstone of the creative, innovative thinking and collaborative approaches that the 21st century demands. One of 12 prestigious professional schools at UCLA, the School of the Arts and Architecture offers leading programs in four degree-granting departments: Architecture and Urban Design, Art, Design | Media Arts, and World Arts and Cultures/Dance. The school also houses eight research centers, the Visual and Performing Arts Education Program, two internationally acclaimed museums—the Fowler and the Hammer—and one ground-breaking performing arts program—the Center for the Art of Performance at UCLA. This unique, rich array of research centers, museums and performing arts programs broadens and enhances the experiences of our students and faculty.
About the A+D Museum
The A+D is a place for individuality, creativity, discovery, and continuous questioning. It is a location of serendipitous combustion resulting in endless exhibitions, events and cultural engagement bringing LA to the front line of emerging themes, topics and thoughts of the Architecture and Design community. Established in January 2001, A+D is the only museum in the country to exclusively and continuously host architecture and design exhibitions, symposia, multi-disciplinary projects, educational, and community programs.
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