Debbie Durkin, C.E.O. of Durkin Entertainment Group, hosted her annual lounge at the Blue Iguana on January 21 and 22. The event showcased an all-organic living eco-mountain forest wall installation that was used as a photo backdrop for celebrity arrivals. Utah-based Betsy Borden of Dancing Daisies Floral designed the activation.
Throughout the festival, sponsor Francis Ford Coppola Winery hosted parties and activations, including a custom oversize wine cork mural at the Sundance Co-Op. The winery commissioned artist Scott Gundersen to create the mural—titled "The Big Picture"—through the duration of the event. Attendees also were able to contribute to the installation.
Held at the Navy Pier’s Grand Ballroom in Chicago in July, the H Foundation’s 16th annual Goombay Bash featured its usual casual Caribbean theme, where guests dress in Hawaiian shirts and leis. The event included more than 200 silent auction packages and a live drawing, plus signature cocktails and a fireworks show. The bash raised $638,705 to benefit Basic Science Cancer Research at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University.
The Recording Academy’s official Grammy after-party, known as the Grammy Celebration, followed the awards next door to Staples at the Los Angeles Convention Center’s West Hall. Produced by the Recording Academy’s Brandon Chapman and Rex Supa, working with Angel City Designs, the event drew its traditionally massive crowd of 5,000.
Angel City Designs' look for the huge bash was a modernist take on Shakespeare’s classic “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” The party’s production used three distinct lighting and scenic looks: silhouettes of trees through the morning mist, followed by warming color hues to evoke a day getting brighter, and then a sunset through a forest, which included a diffused lighting glow meant to represent the Aurora Borealis. ShowPro handled the lighting and video projection.
A neon-green outline of the recognizable shape of an Absolut bottle served as an entrance into a platform bar area, designed and produced by MKG.
A floral and succulent wall announced sponsor Lincoln.
Presented by American Airlines and Citi at the Ace Hotel following the Grammys, Universal Music Group’s event included a chic candlelit bar bearing the sponsors' names.
Art for Life Chicago designed a table for Knoll. With a graffiti-inspired design and a yellow, black, red, and white color palette, the piece was inspired by the Richmond Mural Project in Virginia.
The Ruder Group's table, designed by Nelson, reminded guests of the event's cause. On either side of the table letters spelled out "Strength" and "Courage." A design in the shape of the red ribbon that symbolizes AIDS awareness ran down the center of the table.
Coach celebrate the launch of its new collaborative Coach x Colette collection with a party at the American Museum of Natural History in New York on October 25, followed by a pop-up at the brand's SoHo story through November 1. Decor provided a photo opp for guests to imitate roaring like a prehistoric beast.
I loved everything about the Nature Conservancy party—well, almost everything. The name was too long and confusing. But all the staging and styling for the Beaches & Bays gala on June 28 seemed to make perfect sense for the cause. For starters, the step-and-repeat done on clear, reusable plexiglass panels made perfect sense. It’s the first time I’d seen it done this way and I hope not the last.
Healthcare Information and Management System Society's annual conference took place February 19 to 23 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. I.B.M. used real moss in 18- by 18-inch hanging boxes and draped from trellises to create a unique frame for its large booth. A spokesperson said the design was intended evoke a feeling of life and health. The booth also had large photos of I.B.M. clients and partners displayed atop touch-screen monitors showing videos from those people talking about how they have benefited from I.B.M.’s health technologies. The booth was designed in partnership with agencies George P. Johnson and Ogilvy, with moss provided by Planted Design.
Around of the edge of the ballroom, touches of gold broke up the red-and-white theme. “As they enter the ball, guests will transition from a dazzling sea of red to a tricolor motif of eye-popping gold and red on an infinite blanket of white,” Kurland said in a statement before the event. “The unique design of the space has been meticulously created to celebrate Oscar gold.”
The third annual Toast to the Arts, an intimate dinner hosted by rapper and actor Common, was held on February 24 at Ysabel restaurant in West Hollywood. The evening honored filmmakers Ava DuVernay, Barry Jenkins, Raoul Peck, and Ezra Edelman.
As guests arrived at the restaurant, they were greeted by a custom floral wall designed by Massah David, a partner at MVD Inc. The wall was built by Step and Repeat L.A.
Heineken also opted for a more natural look at its bar, with its green bottles mixed into centerpiece-like arrangements with succulents and other greenery.
San Francisco's Asian Art Museum Gala took place March 2. The event, which celebrated the connection between art and technology, featured a 96-foot-long LED tube chandelier designed by Got Light. The multicolor installation was created with more than 200 tubes.
At the Canadian Opera Company’s fund-raising gala, Centre Stage, held in November at Toronto’s Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, lights and projections transformed the venue’s ceiling into a cloudy blue sky with 14 suspended orbs draped in white silk orchids that hung above the dining guests. The tabletop floral arrangements consisted of white hydrangeas and white orchids in gold vases.
At the Choral Arts Society of Washington’s annual fund-raising gala at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington in December, event designers created a snowy Swiss Alps theme complete with icicle-like chandeliers and wintry decor.
Design Exchange's annual fund-raiser, held in November at the Canadian design museum in Toronto, featured the theme "Dispatch" and explored the country’s intersections of design, art, and culture. Each floor showcased interactive installations and multi-sensory experiences, while Drake’s producer DJ Boi-1da performed a live set. Proceeds from the event support DX's public and education programs.
Prevent Cancer Foundation hosted its annual spring gala on March 10 at the National Building Museum in Washington. Designed by David Tutera Inc., the event decor displayed a modern interpretation of Italy to go with the gala's theme of "Italy: Icon of Innovation." Centerpieces included Italian ruscus, Italian lemon leaf, and Italian olive leaf, along with boxwoods and baby's breath.
The second annual Dessert Goals event took place March 25 at Dobbin St in Brooklyn. The event featured balloon entrance signage designed in-house by Dessert Goals founders Miraya Berke and Liang Shi.
Viva La Juicy Sucré and Bustle sponsored an Instagram-friendly Sucré Garden, which was designed by event designer Michelle Bablo. The pink display featured dessert-inspired decor including flower ice cream cones.
The event also featured a branded floral wall as a photo backdrop.
The brunch featured a 25-foot ceiling installation designed by Taylor and Hov's creative director and executed by Garette Turner of Brightly Ever After. The colorful focal point featured marble balloons and oversize cotton clouds.
The annual Joffrey Bala Spring Gala took place April 21 at Roosevelt University and the Palmer House Hilton in Chicago. In the latter venue's Red Lacquer room, David Beahm Experiences installed a bar backdrop of frames decorated with bouquets of various flowers. Frost provided lighting at the event.
In Los Angeles, Wolfgang Puck Catering & Events uses vertical buffets. The bookcase-style shelf takes up minimal floor space and lets guests grab their own dishes from various levels of shelves.
In Chicago, Event Creative rents out a charging table. With a built-in display shelf, the table also provides a work space and power outlets. The piece can be customized with corporate colors or brand logos, and it's available at three heights: lounge, seated, and highboy.
San Francisco's Blueprint Studios has a rental piece known as the "Picnic Chill Table." The table has a built-in aluminum tray which allows it to chill drinks; the tray can also hold floral arrangements.
Blueprint Studios' Charging Cube doubles as a branded accent table and a charging station.
Available through NECR, the Zen sofa has sides that can be pulled up to form tables. When the tables are not needed, they are folded down and the piece simply provides seating.
FWR Rental Haus' custom Boulevardier bar comes apart easily and can be rebuilt in an event space. The piece was designed to take up less space on trucks and fit easily into venues with small doorways.
Located one block from LAX's Terminal 1, the newly renovated Hyatt Regency Los Angeles International Airport opened a self-contained conference center in February. Located on the ground level of the hotel, the conference center has almost 10,000 square feet of space, which includes several boardrooms, breakout spaces, and larger rooms for as many as 150 people. There is also a 14,000-square-foot ballroom (pictured), high-speed Internet access, dedicated meeting specialists, and catering by executive chef Charles Fusco. The conference center offers direct access to the hotel’s two multifunctional event lawns: the 7,000-square-foot Regency Park holds 500 banquet-style or 650 for receptions, while the 5,000-square-foot Regency Grove space seats 200 or holds 500 for receptions. The Hyatt Regency has 580 guest rooms, along with the Unity LA Restaurant Open Market and Bar.
