The Deco Building: Timeless Elegance in Classic Art Deco Surroundings

(This is a modified version of a section of my and Cori Linder’s book, FROM THE CORNER OF HOLLYWOOD AND DIVINE: YOUR GUIDE TO 30 OLD HOLLYWOOD-INSPIRED SPOTS IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. Buy the book here!)

 

With its black and gold exterior, The Deco Building stands out on a stretch of Wilshire Boulevard that boasts many impressive structures, such as Desmond’s (a former department store), Southwestern School of Law (the former Bullocks Wilshire department store), the Los Altos Apartments, and the Wiltern Theatre. Sweeping through the doors of this historic structure is quite an experience, and I encourage you to pause at the front of the building and take in the fabulous Deco details (which I’ll get into below) that were used to convey a sense of strength, prosperity, and security when the it first opened as a bank and remain today. 

The story of Wilshire Boulevard began in the late 1800s, when Gaylord Wilshire cut a narrow lane 120 feet wide from Downtown Los Angeles to the Westside. In the 1920s, real estate developer A.W. Ross bought up acres of land on Wilshire between La Brea and Fairfax Avenue, with the idea of attracting shoppers away from Downtown Los Angeles by making Wilshire car-friendly He had such a great vision for the area that a friend said something like, "From the way you talk,you would think this is really a miracle mile." And hence, this certain stretch of Wilshire got its nickname. 

In 1929, nearing the end of the Art Deco ZigZag Moderne years, Security First National Bank (as the Deco Building was originally known) opened at 5209 Wilshire Boulevard with a black and gold terracotta finish and all kinds of lavish details on display. The bank was built for $45,000, and designed by architects Morgan, Walls, and Clements, a firm responsible for local Deco landmarks like the El Capitan Theatre, the Wiltern Theatre, and the now-demolished Richfield Tower in Downtown Los Angeles, which also had a black and gold façade. 

The building underwent a renovation in the early 2000s, and they did a great job preserving the details of a place that most people take one look at and exclaim, “What IS it?” The Deco Building has the kind of WOW factor that can make people fall in love with Art Deco with one look. I went into the building a few years ago and saw it as an office modeled on the boutique hotel concept: There was a concierge just inside the front door, and then small enclosed offices all around the ground floor. There were conference rooms, and even offices inside the former bank vaults! When I drove by recently, I saw a sign advertising the building for filming and hosting special events.

Other things to notice at The Deco Building are the symmetry of the pillars on each end outside, and the setbacks, a major ZigZag Moderne feature that began with skyscrapers in New York City; buildings were required to “fall back” on themselves (think of the layers of a wedding cake that get progressively smaller toward the top) so that sunshine would reach all the way down to the street level. It started off with a functional purpose, but quickly became decorative, too.

Inside, there are leaping gazelles, which tended to represent the leap away from the Art Nouveau style to the new modern style, cast aluminum grill work, and repeating patterns of flora and fauna. There are also images that give the effect of cascading water, which symbolized energy and new beginnings and life, along with chevrons and zigzags—the classic signature of Art Deco. All of these were unconscious cues to represent growth and safety, two things that are very important to any institution that is trying to convince you to give them your money!

Contact Info:

The Deco Building

5209 Wilshire Boulevard

Los Angeles, CA 90036

323-592-3600

3.5 Questions With Fashion Expert Annamarie von Firley of reVamp Vintage

(We were thrilled to have vintage fashion expert Annamarie join us on my film podcast, Classic Movie Recall, to talk about the clothing in 1935’s TOP HAT, and of course we discussed THAT ostrich feather gown that Ginger wears in the “Cheek to Cheek” scene. You can hear the ep here!)

I (Lara) first spotted Annamarie von Firley at an Art Deco Society of Los Angeles event and immediately thought she was one of the coolest people I had ever seen. With her sleek bob and groovy vintage dresses, she is hard to miss!

I later met her when I visited her fabulous store in Downtown Los Angeles, reVamp Vintage (which sells their own ready-to-wear vintage inspired line and also makes custom clothing), to see about having a copy of a Madeleine Vionnet dress from the 1930s made. Since she has been running a successful fashion business for over a decade, I thought she would be a great person to share everything from how she got started with vintage clothing to why knowing your fiber content (in clothing, not your breakfast cereal) is important!

1. How did the vintage clothing love affair begin and then turn into a business?

Annamarie: I started collecting in the late eighties, and I did not know what I was doing at the time. I would go to the Salvation Army and purchase 1950s evening gowns for $20 and wear them to high school. Eventually, I moved to San Francisco and met like-minded people who knew way more than I did about everything historic, and I went on a self-education historic binge for the next 20 years. Before then, I had no words for my interest in period garments, just a deep heartfelt response to the silhouettes.  Now, I can talk at length as to the reason why I like what I like—instead of operating on a purely visceral reaction to a silhouette.

As for how the business started, a friend of mine and I were at a swing dancing event on the USS Jeremiah O’Brien in Alameda. We were lamenting how poorly everyone was dressed, and she suggested that we start a company that did vintage inspired clothing. I said no. At the time, I was working for a startup company and saw that my boss never got paid. I needed a steady income. Shortly thereafter the company I worked for was sold and moved to the Midwest.  I was between jobs and able to pursue the vintage inspired clothing idea…and 15 years later here I am.  Incidentally, while my friend and I were business partners in the beginning, the partnership lasted only one year.  However, the friendship continues to this day.

2. What’s your #1 tip for someone who wants to become a vintage-purveying rock star?

Annamarie: I like to get a lot of “bang for the buck” for my time, so I prefer to go to Vintage Expos where there are a lot of vintage vendors all in one location.  As a mother of a four-year-old child and a business owner, I don’t have a lot of free time.  I shop three times a year in a two-to-three hour window.  I carry a tape measure and measure everything before I bother to take it to the dressing room, which saves time trying on things that are too big or small.  I do not purchase anything that is not in close to perfect condition, because while I have the ability to repair or alter a garment and access to the right machines, I do not have the time to do it.  So I have learned not to bother with anything I have to mess with. In the end, finding the best things takes time and patience.  It also might pay off to make nice with the octogenarians in your life in the hopes that they pass on their goodies to you before they end up at the Goodwill or in the dumpster.

 And keep in mind that there is a finite supply of vintage.  Every day there is less and less of it. Also, the fabrics that the garments are made of have a shelf life, too.  Therefore anything made before the 1930s is in a delicate condition even if it has never been worn.  This being said, if you like Mid-Century clothing you are in luck.  You still can find it, and its shelf life is 20 years longer than its forebears.  

  3 . What’s the one thing that anyone wanting a career in vintage clothing should NEVER, under any circumstances, EVER do?

Annamarie: Nothing will really squash a career in vintage clothing, but you really need to know your decades. I have been shocked to discover vintage stores and vendors with wildly misidentified decades on their clothing. One person marked a 50s wedding dress as Edwardian, which was a style from the early 1900s! This didn’t kill their business, but I no longer thought they knew what they were doing. 

 Also, know your fiber content. Don’t label rayon as a silk, or polyester as a rayon. Your fiber content can be one of the keys to dating a garment. For instance, there was no polyester in the 1930s. You can quickly lose respect from those who know about these things when you show that you can’t tell the 1970s from the 1930s, or cotton from polyester.

 3.5 How would you finish the following sentence? “Old Hollywood is ______.”

Annamarie: Old Hollywood is a glamorous apparition that some of us reach out to as a respite from the distinctly un-glamorous aspects of modern day life, dissolving like a celluloid dream as it represents a period of time that never has and never will exist. But we can still dream! 

Contact Info:
reVamp Vintage
818 South Broadway, Ste. 801
Los Angeles, CA 90014
(213) 488-3387
Appointments are recommended.
www.revampvintage.com