LACMA - Los Angeles County Museum and ART - Dec. 26, 2025

What a wonderful museum and art gallery!!!   With the torrential rain storm continuing and surfing in the rivers on the freeway with flooding in the north we were so pleased we’d scheduled ourselves an indoor activity.  

Easy to access parking was great, the whole grounds was celebration of art, with exotic mounted animals sculptures and whimsical lights.  I had investigated LACMA months before joining for the Impressionists and Post Impressionist Exhibit. 

I’m a major fan of impressionist works since I bought my first Renoir print and the Picasso Man of La Mancho print to adorn my undergraduate  bachelor across from the University of Winnipeg.  Next I’d love the impressionist exhibits at the National Gallery in London  then it was just  something I looked forward to seeing travelling.  Like Brandenburg concertos for the eyes or the Beatles or Steely Dan.  There were superb exhibits of impressionists in New York’s MET,  Moscow and St. Petersburg.  Of course Paris was the best with the Louvre and Musee d’Orsay. 

Now I’m here in LA and have so enjoyed the impressionist exhibits  at the LACMA.  

There’s never a lot of impressionists together except at Musee d’Orsay or the Winter Palace.  At LACMA there were quite a few Claude Monet.  There was a Degas or two.  I loved the Renoir Sisters and vase of Roses. . There were a few Pissaro and Toulouse Lautrec.  Impressionists are always uplifting. I enjoy now that I’ve seen a few over time guessing who the painter is.  I loved seeing the American impressionists which I’d not known. I enjoyed seeing the Van Gogh. I  like the atmosphere of galleries and museums. LACMA is spiritual in that way. A mix of library and church. 

 

After the Impressionist exhibit we moseyed through the Realms of Dharma exhibit. I loved the accompanying history discussing the basic tenets of Mahayana Buddhism, multidimensions and Boddhisatavas, Compasion and Wisdom. The exhibit separated the original works from India and then showed how they’d spread through Nepal Tibet, Japan China and Korea.  

Next there was an exhibit of wood cuts from different times and different parts of the world. The only one that I really know is the Scream but these were all interesting as an early form of reproduction.

I’m not usually a fan of modern art but I really was taken by the Sierra exhibit, the Band, This was an installation of over 200 tons of steel made over 2 1/2 have years. A woman said she kept returning to it because it was her ‘church’.  I certainly felt ‘sacred’ standing inside the safety of folds of steel.  

I love art gallery and museum stores. It’s a very best place for buying art books and elegant gifts.   The Vancouver Art Gallery gift shop is a perennial favourite.   Now. LACMA was no exception.  I was able to buy Laura  designer sweats Christmas gift while she found the perfect gift for artist sister.  What fun.  An incredible day .  I love LACMA.