Phoenix may be overrun with strip malls, but we didnt invent them. In fact, Los Angeles is considered the real home of the mini-mall, a place designed for urban automobility, for grabbing a quick snack and doing some speedy shopping. L.A. architect John Kaliski, author of Everyday Urbanism, will discuss the micro-urbanism of the mini-mall and its evolution into what Kaliski calls a minicity in Minicity: The Architectural and Urban Design of Convenience at Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art. The lecture compliments the museums Flip-a-Strip exhibit, which celebrates SMoCAs first annual architecture and design competition, in which participants submitted renovation plans for some of our uglier local strip malls.
Wed., Nov. 5, 7 p.m., 2008