LACMA

(photo courtesy of Curbed LA)

One of the highlights of last week’s trip to Los Angeles was far and away a visit to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. LACMA, which sits next door to the La Brea Tar Pits, consists of nine modern buildings, containing among other things, Modern Art, Japanese Art, American Art, special exhibitions and amazing views of the Hollywood Hills.

The "Urban Light" installation in the courtyard is especially cool, featuring 202 restored vintage street lamps from around Southern California that were collected and organized by artist Chris Burden. You can walk among the gorgeous installation, or swing on the lampposts à la Gene Kelly.

(photo courtesy of Denver Westword)

This summer and fall the Tim Burton exhibit is at LACMA, featuring examples of work done throughout his life including paintings, film, and costumes. The infamous scissor hands once worn by Johnny Depp are on view, along with preliminary character sketches for Nightmare Before Christmas, Beetlejuice and Batman. The exhibit runs through October, and was a pleasantly interesting surprise.

(photo courtesy of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art)

Along with a very impressive permanent collection of works from the Abstract Expressionists along with Contemporary artists, including a magnificent Richard Serra steel sculpture, the highlight of the afternoon was Christian Marclay's 24-hour film The Clock. Marclay compiled a montage containing 1000's of film clips ranging from early cinema up to new releases. Each clip features a timepiece at an exact moment during a 24 hour time period. Wether it is James Bond glancing at his watch at precisely *4:07, or Katharine Hepburn breezing past a clock that reads 7:45 while setting the dining table for a dinner party, the film captivates your attention as you never know what will pop up next. It is synchronized with real time, so feels a bit spooky. There will be one 24-hour screening of the film on July 28th beginning at 5pm. Go see this film! It also received the Golden Lion Award at this year's Venice Biennale.

*(I stand corrected. A loyal reader pointed out that I was incorrect in saying 7:24 previously, Bond's watch clearly reads 4:07!)

More on L.A. to come!

(photo courtesy of LACMA)