The 5 Best Small Museums in Los Angeles
Los Angeles has its share of bigger-than-life experiences, but it also offers some of the best small musuems in the country. These little gems won’t take a full day to tour, but they will take up your full imagination.
Fowler Museum of Cultural History on the UCLA campus
This wonderful museum focuses on art and artifacts from Africa, Asia, the Americas and the Pacific Rim. Objects on display run the gamut from textiles to silver, archaeological finds, ceramics, graphics and papier-mache. You never know just what you may encounter here. Past exhibits have included Haitian flags, Japanese fisherman’s coats and Buddhist photography. Prior shows have looked at the art of rice, the history of the bicycle and Che Guevara as a pop icon. The best thing about the Fowler is that it is not dogmatic in its approach to its ethnographic exhibits. It shares its considerable collection with open arms and an open mind. The Fowler is a beautiful venue with a serene central courtyard and an excellent gift shop. The Sunset Blvd. entrance to the UCLA campus is the closest approach. Information kiosks will direct you to parking. Admission is free. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.
Bonus: If you made it onto the UCLA campus, you should also see the Fredrick Wright Sculpture Garden located a short walk from the Fowler Museum. The sculpture garden is situated in the North Campus area and any passing Bruin can point you in the right direction. It features an array of works by prominent 20th century artists, such as Moore and Botero. The garden is outdoors and admission is free.
The Wende Museum, 5741 Buckingham Parkway, Suite E, Culver City
A newer arrival on the Los Angeles scene, this special museum casts its eye on the Cold War era and exhibits amazing artifacts, artwork, propaganda, icons and pop culture items from Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union dating from those tumultuous years of 1945 to 1991. Here you will see lush oil paintings with subtle or subliminal propagandistic messages, anti-U.S. posters with blatant messages, exquisite sports trophies and statues that sing the glory of the proletariat. Who knew that Stasi, the east German secret police, sponsored such beautiful works of art? The mission of the Wende Museum is to obtain, preserve and share relics from this secretive yet blustery era. Open the first and third Friday of each month. Admission is free.
Museum of Jurassic Technology, 9341 Venice Blvd., Culver City
Don’t go to the Museum of Jurassic Technology unless you have a refined sense of irony, a love of the absurd, a willingness to suspend disbelief, a faith in Murphy’s Law, a graduate degree in something useless and an overwhelming appreciation of highbrow humor. At this institution, knowledge is bunk but the process is sublime. Exhibitions include “The Stink Ant of the Cameroon,” “Deprong Mori of the Tripiscum Plateau” and “Garden of Eden on Wheels: Selected Collections from Los Angeles Area Mobile Home and Trailer Parks.” Recently, the museum won a grant from the prestigous MacArthur Genius Award panel and it couldn’t have gone to a more worthy recipient. There has never been a more effective satire on the whole musuem experience. The cardinal rule is: wait until you are safely out of the museum building before you begin laughing. Closed Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and the first Thursday in May because that’s just the way they are. Modest suggested admission fee.
California Heritage Museum, 2612 Main Street, Santa Monica
Entering this cozy 19th century house is like visiting someone’s well furnished vintage home. Each room is carefully equipped with era-specific decorative and fine arts, including Monterey style California furniture, California pottery, Bauer kitchenware, Vernon ware and Sascha Brastoff originals. In addition to its permanent collection, the Heritage Museum sponsors special exhibits that are intense explosions of visual stimulation. Memorable shows have featured Hawaiiana, Depression glass, the art of surf boards and the Arts & Crafts Movement. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays. Modest suggested admission fee.
Adamson House, 23200 Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu
Adamson House is absolute Mecca for vintage decorative Spanish style California tile. The entire house is a colorful showcase for Malibu Potteries tile which was locally produced between 1926 and 1932. A highlight is a Persian style “rug” constructed entirely of Malibu Potteries tile. Now a state museum, the house was originally built in 1930 in the Spanish Colonial Revival style of architecture which is such a distinctive trademark of California that it has embraced everything from Hearst Castle to Taco Bell. Adamson House is ground zero for scrutiny of the artistry and romance of indigenous tile work. Closed Sundays and Mondays (and Tuesdays, except for bus tours). Modest suggested admission fee.
Bonus: Adjacent to Adamson House you will find the Malibu Lagoon Museum which offers a peek at the history of Malibu, from the doomed days of the Chumash Indians to the boogie nights of the infamous Malibu movie colony. Admission is free.
