LosAngeles

On Feb. 15 in Los Angeles Bonhams & Butterfields will present an auction exclusively dedicated to writing instruments from Montblanc, makers of fine pens with the famed "snow cap" motif. The sale, timed to coincide with the annual Los Angeles International Pen Show, will contain more than 130 lots of exceptional models from several of the major Montblanc categories including rarely seen examples. Highlighting the auction is one of the most sought after Montblanc pens ever produced, the Magical Black Widow Skeleton limited edition fountain pen (above), estimated at $18,000 - $24,000. Encased by a web of white gold, the instrument features a filigree spider studded with black diamonds on the clip.

Also on offer are the Diego Rivera limited edition fountain pen, crafted from white gold with a partial black lacquer finish in Aztec design, a cap overlaid with a white gold windowpane with elaborate Mexican etchings and a black sapphire set in the clip, estimated at $12,000 - $18,000; the Thomas Jefferson fountain pen, decorated with solid gold rings, petrified wood inlays, and a clip bearing a mandarin garnet, engraved with a portrait of the former president and estimated at $21,000 - $24,000; and a diamond studded Greta Garbo model crafted from solid yellow gold with mother-of-pearl inlay, estimated at $14,000 - $16,000.

Much of the time when we talk about celebrity homes in Los Angeles we are looking at homes in Beverly Hills or Hollywood but today's home brings us to my part of town, Silver Lake. Silver Lake is full of interesting modern homes perched in the hills around the reservoir and this one is inhabited by singer Kevin Griffin of the band Better Than Ezra. Griffin and his wife bought the home in 2006 for $1.595 million, moving to Los Angeles after hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. The three bedroom home is a 1950s post and beam house which went through a major renovation to turn it into a 2,900 square foot home. Large porches offer views from the hillside perch. The LA Times Hot Property column quotes Griffin as saying that he now that he and his wife have twins they need a bit more space but that they will miss the house and the area. This home is listed at $1.65 million.

The Peterson Automotive Museum in Los Angeles (the very same that recently loaned Conan O'Brien that infamous Bugatti Veyron) is facing a bill from the city for parking fees and taxes in excess of $121,000 and counting.

The bill has nothing to do with where the museum keeps their collection, but instead is based on museum customers using an adjoining parking garage. The city charges lots and garages 10% of the parking fees they get for every vehicle, but since the museum is a nonprofit (and thus exempt from regular city business taxes) they thought they didn't owe the tax. The bill is for parking fees collected between 2004 - 2007 and the museum says that over the last six years they've written more than one letter in regards to the debt and never gotten a response from the city, until this most recent (and even more inflated) bill. As it stands now city councilman Tom LaBonge is working with the city attorney, the finance office, and the Petersen Museum to work out a solution.

All of Los Angeles wants to know where billionaire Eli Broad and his Broad Art Foundation will land. Ever since Broad decided in 2008 that he wouldn't be installing his 2,000 work contemporary art collection at the Los Angeles Country Museum of Art, the question of where he would establish his own museum has been up in the air. First it seemed that he might head to Beverly Hills or Santa Monica but the latest info from the LA Times seems to indicate the potential for a downtown move.

Broad's museum could end up as part of the ambitious, Frank Gehry-designed Grand Avenue project. Broad has long been a supporter of the development which would revitalize the heart of downtown's arts district with hotels, condos and retail space. Until recently Broad was a member of the committee overseeing the project on behalf of the Grand Avenue Authority but he resigned a few months ago, clearing the way for his transition into being a possible part of the project. The Grand Avenue Authority has said they will be considering a proposal from the Broad Foundation. As the LA Times points out, the project has stalled out in the face of the economic decline when the developer was unable to get a multibillion-dollar construction loan. If Broad chooses to put his museum here it will be in good company, Disney Hall, the Museum of Contemporary Art and other cultural venues are located nearby. Broad, who is 76, is likely mindful of the story of another famous art collector, the late Donald Fisher who recently died without having secured plans for his museum. Broad isn't going anywhere but this museum is his legacy to the city of Los Angeles and I'm sure he is eager that it find a good home soon.

How's this for a pool with a view? The Los Angeles Times Hot Property column reports that this Beverly Hills stunner belongs to Reinout Oerlemans, a former Dutch soap star who founded the Eyeworks television production company. Oerlemans built the contemporary home on a site he bought in 2007 for $7.5 million. The six-bedroom home has walls of glass which can be pushed back to create indoor/outdoor living spaces. A large deck is located near the 80-foot lap pool for maximum enjoyment of the view. This home is listed at $14.9 million.

The burgeoning L.A. Live entertainment complex celebrates the finishing of the 54-story Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott tower tonight. The lights in the high-rise tower go on for the first time tonight. The LA Times reports that the lights on the top 27 levels will be lit up floor by floor in a wave as part of a City of Hope charity gala that will include Jon Bon Jovi, hockey star Luc Robitaille and Jimmy Kimmel.

The $2.5 billion L.A. Live project is part of a new entertainment hub in Los Angeles that includes the Staples Center, The Grammy Museum and the Nokia Theater. Restaurants and shops have also been springing up in the area. The tower's two hotels will open over the next couple of months with the Marriott planning a February 15 opening and the Ritz-Carlton following in March.

The Ritz-Carlton hotel will feature a 3,400 square-foot lounge that serves as the 23rd floor check-in area for guests.A lobby lounge and restaurant on the 24th floor offers panoramic views of the downtown and an outdoor rooftop swimming pool and terrace will offer guests of The Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles a relaxing retreat in the middle of downtown.

The top floors will be home to 224 private condominiums, The Ritz-Carlton Residences at L.A. Live. The one to three bedroom luxury apartments have access to hotel services and plans for The Residences include a library, multi-seat theater, and a fitness center. Around 60 percent of the units have found buyers many of whom have spent between $2 to $5 million for an apartment.

Today's home is a bit of 1980s decadence on The Strand in Manhattan Beach, California. The oceanfront home was completed in 1988 and designed by Ray Kappe. The listing states that Kappe was commissioned by a Hollywood studio owner to design this as his second home. Kappe is a living legend in Los Angeles architecture.

Like all the pricey homes along The Strand, this home has expansive views of the ocean, letting your swivel your head and span the coastline from Malibu to the Palos Verdes peninsula. The home itself is firmly rooted in the past but offers three bedrooms and a large open floor plan. The home has a rooftop deck and pool. The home combines curving shapes and Art Deco influences with a fair touch of industrialism. It's got a bit of an anonymous hotel quality but you can't beat the view (even if it does lack privacy). It's listed at $16 million.

The action in Tribeca on Saturday night gave me a bit more proof that the art market is looking for a bounce. I attended an art show held by local artist Ben Krell and Lindsey Nobel, who came in from Los Angeles, and the action was palpable. At last count, six pieces sold at the event, and there were many serious buyers with an eye to add emerging artists to their collections again.

Krell and Nobel have vastly different styles, but the pieces complemented each other in the loft where the event, billed as an "open studio," was held. Krell's work through several periods was on display, from the tight geometric styles he favored several years ago to the organic approach he uses today. Nobel offered pieces using several media – including photography and plastic. Works by both artists captivated the guests who crowded the venue as the evening unfolded.

Nobel's work features intricate designs connecting larger abstract shapes that are based on photographs she has taken of sculptures. The intentional result is an interconnectedness reminiscent of neural networks, linking stations of consciousness into a greater, unified presence.

Unlike his partner at the event, Krell prefer broader, sweeping themes on his canvases (which he shapes himself). His latest movement evokes feelings of creation – in the cosmic sense – with concentrations of energy yielding to calming effects.

The Tribeca art exhibition was a trip home for Krell, who painted in that particular loft back in the 1990s. He also held a show there in September 2008, shortly after the collapse of Lehman Brothers. The mood couldn't have been more different this time around. Attendees were considerably more upbeat ... and in greater number. The sheer level of participation was enough to suggest that the art market is getting ready to turn, and the fact that several collectors made purchases reinforces the notion.


[Photo courtesy of Ben Krell]

We first looked at this home over a year ago but Atlanta Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez and his wife, October are trying again to sell their Manhattan Beach, California home. Last year the home was listed at $3.999 million but now it's on the market for $3.6 million and Gonzalez has sweetened the deal by adding a new Porsche 911 Cabriolet within 10 days of the close of escrow if he receives a full-price offer.

Gonzalez bought the four-bedroom home in 2003 for $1.575 million. He tells the LA Times that he gutted the house when he bought it and fully renovated. The home's best selling feature is a huge roof deck with a barbecue area, shaded lounger and a hot tub. The home is a couple blocks from the ocean and so the deck has some truly fantastic views. Inside the home there are two living rooms, dining room, a bar and a master bedroom suite with a fireplace and patio. There is a four-car garage, the home of your new Porsche.

Wagner's Ring Cycle has strained many an opera company's budget. Last year the Washinton National Opera postponed its performances of "Der Ring des Nibelungen" due to the economic climate. This year, a $32-million production of Richard Wagner's "Ring" Cycle is being cited as a cause for the financial problems that have befallen the Los Angeles Opera. The opera company recently received a $14-million emergency loan from Los Angeles County designed to keep it going until the middle of next year. The LA Times reports that the opera company is $20 million in debt and needed the money in order to keep going. County supervisors voted to approve the loan partially over a concern that the failure of the L.A. Opera could hurt the county-owned Music Center. The Los Angeles Opera uses the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion for its performances.

According to the LA Times article a group of opera trustees have pledged $30 million to keep the company going and so the loan will gradually be repaid as the money comes in. The four-part Ring cycle will be staged in its entirety May 29 to June 26 as part of a regional arts festival. So far about a third of the 9,000 four-opera subscriptions for the cycle have been sold. The opera can take around 15 hours to perform and the epic style and heavy tone can some put off some opera neophytes but for dedicated fans the Ring cycle is a must-attend event. Other operas may sell more tickets but for many opera houses the Ring cycle is a defining performance even if it is a budget buster.

Reviving old auto marques long deceased has become de rigeur in the car business. But while cases like Mini and Spyker have brought dormant brands back with new interpretations on the classics of yore, Allard takes a different approach entirely.

Rather than remake the legendary J2X in a modern guise, the revived Allard Motor Works has opted to continue the tradition with the J2X MkII. Essentially the same vehicle that was produced in the early 1950s, the J2X MkII – unveiled last week at the 2009 Los Angeles Auto Show – looks every bit like its forbearer, but with the help of modern propulsion. Buyers can choose from a range of American (Chevrolet, Cadillac, Chrysler or Ford) V8 engines. But the exquisitely-crafted leather and aluminum interior is the same, as is the chassis with its unique portals and leather hood straps.

The $138,500 Allard J2X MkII is being built in limited quantities in upstate New York and in Montreal for the time being, until production is centralized at one location.

It was a long time ago, but once upon a time the Range Rover was the be-all-and-end-all when it came to luxury sport-utility vehicles. Since then, every premium automaker and its cousin has gotten into the luxo-SUV game, but the Range Rover isn't about to yield the high ground it's held for so long. Hence the Autobiography edition.

The top-of-the-line version of the avant-garde Range Rover Sport has been on sale for a few months now in overseas markets, but has made its North American debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show. The package includes special touches to the interior and exterior, from the 20" wheels and roof spoiler to the two-tone leather upholstery and special wood trim. They'll only be 250 examples on offer, commanding a princely $88,545  – about $14k over the standard Range Rover Sport – but then you can hardly put a price on exclusivity.

The new Infiniti M has been a long time coming. While its kid brother the G has been updated a couple of times, and the FX crossover has as well, the outgoing range-topping M has had to soldier on until now.

We first got a glimpse of its design – inspired by the show-stopping Essence concept – at the Monterey concours back in August, and it's finally made its debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show. The styling is a vast improvement over the boxy model it replaces, but as with many great Japanese luxury sedans, it's what's underneath all that curvaceous bodywork that counts most.

Available in M37 or M55 guise, the new luxury sedan can be had with a 330hp 3.7-liter V6 or a 420hp direct-injection 5.6-liter V8 (producing nearly 100 more horsepower than the 4.5-liter unit it replaces), both with Infiniti's proprietary valve-timing system. A hybrid system is in the works as well. The M packs either rear or all-wheel-drive with a seven-speed automatic and available four-wheel-steering, and benefits from such safety systems as Blind Spot Warning and Intervention, Lane Departure Warning and Intervention, Distance Control Assist, Active Tracing Control, Intelligent Brake Assist and Forward Collision Warning, all in an effort to keep this svelte new sedan and its occupants safe along the journey.

The Porsche 911 comes in more flavors than Haagen-Dazs, from GT3 to Turbo, Cabrio to Targa and every permutation in between. Notwithstanding the odd designer edition, however, its kid brother the Boxster has had relatively few iterations. But now the diminutive roadster is catching up with the new Boxster Spyder.

Announced back a couple of weeks ago, the Porsche Boxster Spyder has made its official debut at the LA Auto Show. It packs more power (320hp) in a lighter package (176lbs less than the stock Boxster) with a decidedly upscale if minimalist approach. Deliveries begin in February with a base price of $61,200.

Few thought it could really be done, but with the CTS range, Cadillac has proven itself capable of taking on Europe's finest. The original sedan has since been joined by a sport-wagon, and at the LA show this year, by a new coupe.

Taking its cues from the CTS Coupe Concept that made headlines at the show last year, the version you see here is in full production trim. The front end (from the sharp grille to the swept-back windshield) is identical to the sedan and wagon, but from there back it's all new. The coupe is wider in the rear than the others, and has a lower roofline for a more aggressive stance.

Power comes from the same 3.6-liter V6, but will be joined by the 556hp supercharged V8 from the CTS-V shortly after the coupe hits the market late next year.