Recent Reports
CA Boom Design Show
By Peter Garlington The CA Boom Design Show is the leading West Coast independent design trade show and exhibition that brings the modern design community together to promote original, high-quality design, manufacturing and architecture. CA Boom grouped related products and services by discipline including international design manufacturers, national & regional manufacturers, studio furniture, home accessories, modern parenting, modern prefab, indoor/outdoor living, surfaces & finishes and building accessories.
With a show space at the Santa Monica airport, the show is only a short distance from the Santa Monica design district, and is centrally located as hub for the home tours. A 25% expansion, this year added a modern kitchen and bath section, for the first time outside of a kitchen industry tradeshow, Poliform, Kohler, CHR/Scavolini, New York Loft, Valcucine/Dom, CaesarStone, Liebherr, Advanced Concrete Enhancement, Tonusa, Neo-Metro and more, exhibit at CA Boom's newest exhibitor section. The panel talks, featuring prominent prefab architects Michelle Kaufmann, Jennifer Siegal and Rocio Romero, were moderated by Allison Arieff, the former editor-in-chief of Dwell magazine.
The highlights of the show each year are the home tours. This year each of the three days focused on a different community: Friday visited newly finished and architecturally significant homes in the Pacific Palisades. Kanner Architects, known for their retail contract with Puma in Europe, had a home on view. The highlights included the use of clear finished MDF boxes with colored laminate doors in the Kitchen and baths.
On Saturday the tours focused on West Los Angeles. The homes featured were a combination of completely new built units and additions to existing homes. Of interest was a home designed by Andres Ariza called the Red Barn prefab. The home is based on a steel framed commercial prefab, with an environmentally sensitive interior. Also an addition to an existing 1940’s bungalow, by Denari Architects, was a showstopper. The ultra modern design, and sophisticated use of materials was flawless. The lines and style of the project are reflected in some of Denari’s other projects that have been getting lots of notice in the press, namely the High Line 23 project in New York City. On Sunday it was off to the beach with tours of Venice and Santa Monica. Du Architects' project “Our house” was one of the nicest homes of the three days. Full wall walnut bookshelves, and end grain 4x4 pine flooring were just a few of the homes stand out details. The House of Sand by Lee + Mundwiler Architects was perhaps the most forward thinking with it’s material usage, and of particular note was the sand filled polypropylene greenhouse siding that gives the home it’s name. CA Boom is an exciting show, and gives us an opportunity to see what is going on on the west coast. While it has grown to become on of the most innovative and interesting shows in California, it is still small compared to the European shows, and only about a third of the exhibitors of ICFF in New York. In an attempt to grow the show and it’s popularity CA Boom will start a second show this Fall, CA Boom East will open at the Fall ’08 High Point Market Oct. 20-26 in a new showroom space at Mills Village. |
