Contemporary design’s foothold in downtown Los Angeles has always felt a bit tenuous — Austere came and went, and now, when you ask people for design-store recommendations in the area, they often refer you to ascetic, white-walled spaces that all seem to carry the same Japanese tea kettles, Phaidon books, and Portuguese toothpastes. But we’re getting hopeful, what with the slow rollout of stores at The Row and a new shop in the NoMad Los Angeles, run by the creative founders behind Please Do Not Enter: Called The Lab, the shop will feature a monthly series of design exhibitions, and its first one has a major pedigree: Da Vetro is a new, limited-edition glass collection created by eight young designers from everyone’s favorite international think tank, Fabrica. In the collection, borosilicate vases, carafes and containers — made by hand in Italy by glass blower Massimo Lunardon — each feature unlikely shapes inspired by everything from human gestures to world events. On view until April 8.

PHOTOS BY MARCO ZANIN / FABRICA