|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||
Museums
Pevious Reviews:Santa Barbara Musuem of Art
|
Many art museums are located in interesting and unusual locations. You can see the medieval stonework of the foundation of the Louve in the museum basement. The Getty Villa in Malibu and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston are in the founder’s former residences. One of the strangest locations for a museum, however, is the site of a previous train repair yard which today houses the Santa Monica Art Museum and the galleries of Bergamot Station. The large parking lot surrounded by corrugated steel buildings houses one of the most forward-looking collection of galleries and exhibitions in California. We were clued in to visit by our son, a professor at Connecticut College, to see “Birth Of The Cool, Paintings 1964-2007”, a retrospective exhibit of his colleague from Connecticut College, Barkley L Hendricks. A gifted African-American painter of portraits of students, friends and people that simply caught his eye on the street His larger than life full body portraits are reminiscent of John Singer Sargent. The portraits capture the attire and attitude of young people from the end of Twentieth Century documenting the sea change in American and European life after the the civil-rights movement. The portraits demonstrate a fresh confidence and a willingness to take risks in self-expression among a newly empowered population. Bergamot Station includes many galleries showcasing art ranging from traditional realism to abstract to the experimental. An example of experimental art is the gallery of iPhone photographs printed on canvas. This is a collector’s paradise as many works are by famous and even celebrity California artists such as Shag, and are for sale. The Bergamot Station Café is a lovely place for lunch, visitors can mingle with artists, collectors and gallery staff from all over Southern California. The Bergamot complex also offers services to the artists such as sales of fine papers, as well as printing and framing services. For the visitor there is an art jewelry store and, oddly, a hair salon. In total 30, independent galleries are at Bergamot Station with the range of work one would expect from such an expanse of art sellers. Bergamot Station is also a host to two children’s art outreach programs. Rosie's Girls a nation-wide summer program of girl empowerment through art. “Rosies” Southern California program is based at Bergamot Station where the girls’ art and craftwork is on display in the hallways.
Rosie's Girls Carpentry Work The Bergamot Station complex of galleries, museums and shops in Santa Monica is one of the treasures of the Los Angeles Area. Tucked in an out of the way corner of industrial Santa Monica, far from the Third Street Promenade and Venice Beach Boardwalk, Bergamot Station is a unique destination for art-loving visitors and locals.
Bergamot Station and Santa Monica Museum of Art Website: http://www.bergamotstation.com/ |
||||
|
