Peter Shire's Eclectic Sculpture at South Willard

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Better men's clothing destination South Willard is hosting an exhibit from one of the true (and truly under-celebrated) legends of the LA art world, Peter Shire. Shire has an equally legendary brother -- Billy, owner of Soap Plant/Wacko/La Luz de Jesus and all around champion of off-beat arts -- and they both still live and work in Echo Park. Frankly, we've always been puzzled why these guys, respectively, aren't more famous, but we also get the feeling that big fame would make each of them a little uncomfortable.

While Shire does a little bit of everything, he's best known for his sculptural pieces. His work lives at the intersection of craft, fine art, and industrial design, and the current exhibit looks like a Joan Miro painting come to life. The desks look like they'd be fully functional, if they weren't so small; the lamp actually looks and functions like a lamp?it's only the teapot that bears absolutely no resemblance to an actual working teapot. Do you think it works? Probably not. But art is a lot like fashion in that sometimes you just want something pretty to look at.

“A Lamp, 2 Tables and a Teapot” runs from June 25 to July 24. South Willard is open Monday to Saturday, noon to 6pm; Sunday noon to 5pm.
· South Willard [Official Site]