Deck the Halls, But Not With Holly
The Brooklyn Heights Design Within Reach is throwing a wallpaper-themed holiday party, showcasing new prints by up-and-coming Brooklynites. Wallpaper designers Jill Malek, Grow House Grow, Aimee Wilder, and Eskayel will be on hand to present their latest lines, alongside the store’s new holiday wares, hors d’oeuvre, and spiked apple cider (76 Montague St., nr. Hicks St.; 718-643-1015; Dec. 9, 6 to 9 p.m.; RSVP to jtrinko@dwr.com).
The Shoot-’Em-Up Goes Highbrow
Put down the Call of Duty: Black Ops. On Sunday, P.S. 1 is launching a gaming experience that’ll dwarf your living-room PlayStation. The installation, called Long March: Restart, is a large-scale interactive video game projected on the walls of the first-floor Painting Gallery by Beijing-based artist Feng Mengbo. Using a wireless controller, viewers travel through a Nintendo-style Chinese landscape as a virtual Red Army soldier, defeating villains similar to ones you may recognize from Street Fighter II and Super Mario Bros. (22-25 Jackson Ave., nr. 21st St., Long Island City; 718-784-2084; Mon., Thu.–Sun. noon to 6 p.m.; through April 4).
The Connecticut Look, Manhattanized
Connecticut’s lavish home-furnishings company Lillian August has just added a Manhattan location staffed by interior designers to help you build a loft-appropriate Buddhist shrine or furnish a second home. The vast, 16,000-foot showroom is a constantly evolving space of new furniture and fabrics, as well as antiques and collectibles (11 W. 19th St., nr. Fifth Ave.; 212-206-1883).
Grab a Seat, Design Geeks
Space is limited at these upcoming talks with design and architecture authorities Pauline Metcalf and Mosette Broderick. Monday, Metcalf explores the life and times of Syrie Maugham, that twentieth-century design trailblazer who led interiors out of Victorian Era darkness and dressed them in bright colors, used palm-frond, and created the first all-white room (NYSID, 161 E. 69th St., nr. Lexington Ave.; RSVP at 212-644-2292; Dec. 13, 6 p.m.; $15). Tuesday, Mosette Broderick shares her expertise on the formation of historic Beaux-Arts firm McKim, Mead & White and its impact on architecture in America (the Grolier Club, 47 E. 60th St., nr. Park Ave.; RSVP at 212-644-2292; Dec. 14, 6 p.m.; $35). Each talk is followed by a book signing and wine reception.