Los Angeles Travel Professionals Guide 2007 - (Page 6) Photos left to right: Flower Day, Diego Rivera; Irises (detail), Vincent van Gogh; The Blue Boy, Thomas Gainsborough. ©LACMA, ©The J. Paul Getty Museum, ©The Huntington Library, Art Galleries, and Botanical Gardens LA’sManyMasterpieces For clients with a taste for cultural tourism, it doesn’t get much better than Los Angeles. Thanks to the acquiring minds of Los Angeles-based tycoons such as Eli Broad, J. Paul Getty, Armand Hammer, Henry Huntington and Norton Simon, many of the greatest masterpieces in art history are located right here in LA. The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) houses 150,000 artworks spanning five continents from the prehistoric to the present day. Of particular significance are its collections of European masterpieces, art from the Americas and Islamic ceramics and textiles. LACMA also boasts one of the most comprehensive Korean art collections outside of Korea and a stunning Japanese art pavilion filled with screens, scrolls, porcelains and a remarkable collection of netsuke. Among LACMA’s many famous paintings are Rivera’s Flower Day and Magritte’s Treachery of Images. The Hammer Museum in Westwood is best known for its cutting-edge exhibitions of provocative works by leading and emerging living artists. Equally impressive, however, is its small but world-class permanent collection, containing works by Rembrandt, Titian, Rubens, Gauguin, Pissaro, Monet, Manet, Cassatt, van Gogh, Corot, Moreau, Daumier and Wyeth, among others. No tour of the world’s greatest paintings in LA’s permanent collections would be complete without a visit to the Getty Center in Brentwood. In addition to stunning architecture and gardens, the Getty Center is distinguished by a far-reaching collection of exceptional paintings by European and American masters from the 14th to the 20th century. Although the collection contains many famous works by the Old Masters, the most popular painting at the Getty is van Gogh’s Irises. The Huntington Library, Art Galleries and Botanical Gardens in San Marino is a required destination for anyone who admires the artist’s ability to bring canvas, pigment and oil to life. Here, meticulously rendered folds of silk, porcelain skin and symbols of exalted station forever preserve the luxury and power of Britain’s Golden Age. Perhaps the most famous paintings of this genre are the masterpieces The Blue Boy by Thomas Gainsborough and Pinkie by Sir Thomas Lawrence. Fast-forward to the second half of the 20th century and a treasury of modern art awaits at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), one of the country’s finest collections of American and European art created since 1940. In its flagship building in Downtown Los Angeles, MOCA currently holds approximately 5,000 objects in all visual media, ranging from masterpieces of abstract expressionism and pop art to recent works by young and emerging artists. Many important works are also on view in the ever-changing major exhibitions curated and presented by LA’s leading museums. To learn what’s on view in LA, visit the LA INC. Web site at www.seemyLA.com or check out www.MuseumsLA.org. Need more info about LA? Visit us online at seemyLA.com 6
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