Monthly Archives: July 2014

Skirball Cultural Center

By | |
Comments Off on Skirball Cultural Center

Skirball Cultural Center
Sepulveda Pass
June 14, 2014

We took Margaret to the Skirball Center to see the special exhibition of art by Ezra Jack Keats. Keats is best known for his 1962 book The Snowy Day, which won the Caldecott medal. The exhibition was extensive, with art from Keats’ early career as well as pieces from a number of the children’s books he did. Keats grew up in New York City, the son of struggling Jewish immigrants. His art reflects the city he knew and loved. His children’s books were considered groundbreaking when published because they featured children of color, first a Puerto Rican boy in My Dog is Lost, and then an African-American boy in The Snowy Day. The books struck a chord then, and remain popular now, mainly because they have universal appeal and show children simply having fun.

skirball-photo-2032

We have been to the Skirball Center before; we like to visit there when there is a special exhibition of particular interest to us. Our first visit predated Margaret’s move back to Southern California. We went to see a special exhibition on the Golden Age of comic books, recommended by Jerry Robinson, the creator of the Joker.

The Skirball Center is the Jewish cultural center in Los Angeles. It has an excellent permanent collection, spanning over 4,000 years of the Jewish experience from antiquity to modern America. We have seen that exhibit before but did not visit it this time.

The Skirball participates in the Bank of America Museums on Us program. On the first full weekend of each month, Bank of America debit or credit card holders can get in for free.

The museum has several kid friendly areas. We visited Noah’s Ark this time, which we had not been through before. Entry is included with museum admission but is time-limited, presumably for crowd control purposes. In the vestibule there are display cases with ancient artifacts and a general explanation of the archaeological exploration process. Meredith was intrigued by the display outlining the development of the Hebrew alphabet from earlier Egyptian and Canaanite pictographic writing. The interior of the exhibit is mainly fun, with stylized animals made from recycled material and an extensive Ark play area.

There is a separate archaeological “dig” area up on the roof. Five or six separate sandbox areas contain buried (modern) clay artifacts and simulated stone ruins which children can excavate. We had fun watching several budding young archaeologists dig things up, and we queried them about what they were finding. We then took a quick stroll around the surrounding garden area, had a close encounter with a hummingbird, and looked out over the lily pond.

We ate at Zeidler’s Cafe, the restaurant within the museum. Margaret enjoyed a bowl of mushroom soup, Meredith had a half sandwich / half soup combination, and Bob had the salmon club sandwich with fresh fruit on the side. The food and service were excellent, as has been our experience in the past. Portions are generous without being enormous.

Parking is free for visitors at the Skirball, and their garage has ample space.

Valley Relics Museum

By | |
Comments Off on Valley Relics Museum

Valley Relics Museum
Chatsworth
May 31, 2014

We went back to the Valley Relics Museum in Chatsworth. This trip was our second visit; we first learned about the musuem through a Los Angeles Times article and visited last winter, shortly after it opened. Meredith’s sister Kathleen accompanied us this time. She follows the museum on Facebook but had not previously visited it. The museum is housed in warehouse space, with three small rooms and one large open space.

Meredith and Kathleen both attended high school in the San Fernando Valley, and we are comfortable there, but we do not tend to associate the Valley with museums or high culture. The Valley Relics Museum has a delightfully offbeat assortment of signs, photos, and assorted memorabilia associated with the Valley from the early 20th century on. Tommy Gelinas, the owner and curator, is very knowledgeable about the history of the Valley and various now-gone shops, restaurants, and other sites. When we arrived, he was in the lobby explaining several items to other visitors and answering questions.

The collection has expanded since our first visit just six months before, and the website has been revamped and expanded as well. The museum is full of the sort of things we used to see everywhere and take for granted, like signs for Green Stamps and an old Wurlitzer jukebox. One of the smaller rooms has lots of old black-and-white photos of Western movie stars associated with the Valley, and that room was of particular interest to Margaret, who is a fan of old Western movies. Bob and Meredith liked one of the new additions, a classic VW beetle that was hand painted by a local artist, with various historical themes on different parts of the car.

VRelics

The museum is on Marilla Street just beyond the end of Canoga Avenue. We had a little trouble finding it the first time because it is in industrial space and not marked prominently. There is no handicap cut out immediately in front of the museum. Tommy assisted us with getting Margaret and the wheelchair inside.

There is no café at the Museum. Prior to this visit, we stopped at the Bob’s Big Boy in Northridge.