Temporary architecture

Storefront’s residency recalls a long history of experiments in temporary architecture and urbanism in Los Angeles. In 1969, London’s Archigram proposed this floating “Instant City” at the intersection of the 10 and the 405 freeways.  (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Nearly 25 years later, in 1992, the local firm Hodgetts + Fung designed a hugely popular Temporary Powell Library at UCLA — the “Towell” for short — while the original Powell was undergoing seismic work.  (Lori Shepler / Los Angeles Times)

Japanese architect Shigeru Ban, who has made a career of designing ephemeral structures, produced this temporary art gallery out of shipping containers. Shown here under construction, it was assembled on the Santa Monica Pier in 2006.  (Christine Cotter / Los Angeles Times)

The Coachella music festival is supported each year by a village of temporary structures in the desert. Along with Burning Man, it’s an example of pop-up urbanism  (Spencer Weiner / Los Angeles Times)

The architect and designer Michael Graves, perhaps best known among the general public for his teapots and other house ware designs sold at Target, designed this scaffolding of metal and fabric for the Washington Monument while it was being restored in 1999.  (Ron Edmonds / Associated Press)