Downtown Los Angeles Art Walk Proves Everybody Walks in LA

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Ever since I moved to the Old Bank District, I’ve been in love with Art Walk. It’s on the 2nd Tuesday of each month, and the streets of my neighborhood really come alive. All the best food trucks are out, there are street musicians, hordes of people representing all tribes of LA milling happily about. There are galleries, flea markets, stores, restaurants and just general good fun. I made my usual circuit, but this month I had a goal. On yesterday’s neighborhood stroll, I’d seen the SHFT.COM show being curated and was eager to see it completed.

The show did not disappoint, either. I found the solar iPhone charger I’d been dreaming of, as well as some gorgeous art made from reclaimed materials, like this lovely ballgown:

I like how SHFT is showing how cool it can be to live & create sustainably, which is really happening in so many interesting ways here in downtown LA. From the converted offices now serving as lofts to the walkability to the fact that many apartment buildings do not have parking, thus making us reconsider how much we value that parking space. My car is on long-term loan to a friend in a neighborhood with free parking, rather than pay anywhere from $60-$220 a month to park something I rarely use nearby.

Adam Werbach, head of one of the most influential sustainability consultancies, Saatchi S, stresses the importance of cultural sustainability. He talks about the importance of guarding & nurturing our cultures as much as we do the environment, and I think Downtown Art Walk does a better job of that than anything else I’ve seen. LA, while still overly segregated, is a huge melting pot with seemingly every race, religion, culture and gender represented. Downtown Art Walk is the only place I’ve seen where literally ALL of them come together to have a good time. The hipsters, the gang bangers, the arts patrons, the Broadway shoppers, the FIDM girls, and so many more.

And in the end, what it really comes down to is this: Yes, we will pay. We can pay less money for that cheap Chinese plastic version that was made in a sweatshop with egregious environmental violations, costing us all in the long run. Or we can pay more and buy things that are made with a smaller footprint, by workers being paid a living wage, and designed with sustainability as the core value. After all, what good is a solar iPhone charger if it won’t last as long as my iPhone?

Eighties flashback of Missing Persons performing “Walking in L.A.” live.