I trace the way art and play, inclusive of painting, sculpture, and popular expression of all sorts, operates as a potent force in regional economic development. A key linkage between art, on the one hand, and economy on the other, is design. Using the Los Angeles area as case in point, I show how design, and the art on which it rests, propels various industries – toys, film, fast-food, furniture, cars – to build the regional economy.
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