English author James Hilton first coined the term "Shangri-La" in his 1933 novel Lost Horizon; since then, the name has morphed into an evocative catchphrase for imagined utopias worldwide. Santa Monica-based gallery 18th Street kicks off its 2009 season with an exhibit that aims to locate the physical counterpart of that fictional earthly paradise. After Lost Horizon was adapted into a film by American auteur Frank Capra, the notion of the idealized retreat from civilization evoked the glittery facades of Hollywood. Curator Ichiro Irie wrangled a group of artists to contribute works that examine the architectural realizations of this ideology, ultimately pinpointing the location of Shangri-La in the heart of the southland.