I promised to report back after visiting LACMA to see the current exhibition entitled: “Luis Meléndez: Master of the Spanish Still Life.” —It’s wonderful! Especially of interest to me were the works from the private collections that have never been seen by the public.
The realism he achieved is amazing to me and I love that he most often chose to paint everyday objects such as ceramic pitchers and plates with loaves of crusty bread in simple compositions against a plain, dark background. The most austere of his paintings really speak to me the most.
The exhibition only lasts through January 3, 2010 so make plans to get there soon! If you have already been to this exhibition or have seen these works elsewhere, I’d really enjoy hearing from you.
I’ve been twice already but the second trip I just stopped by for a brief visit when we arrived early one night to LACMA’s film series “Then, Now and Forever” – a tribute to Audrey Hepburn. One of her best films, “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” was the movie we were fortunate enough to attend that evening. Although I’ve seen it a number of times, it’s always fun to see an old movie on a big screen surrounded by other fans reacting to their favorite parts. (The biggest laugh of the night was at ourselves…following our collective “Ahhh” at the heart-wrenching moment when the cat was dropped off in the rain.)
A bonus that evening was that the producer of the film, Richard Shepherd (now 82) was in attendance and stood up to share several tid-bits of interesting trivia about the film including the fact that some of his associates said Audrey singing “Moon River” should be cut from the film. —Luckily, Mr. Shepherd thought otherwise or this very charming rendition of the song may never have been heard.
If you haven’t done so already, I suggest signing up for your local musems’ newsletters. We are lucky to have several wonderful museums here in Los Angeles and all have year-round special events and programs such as this film series, theatre group performances and various concert series you may not learn of otherwise. It’s a great way to support your local museum while enjoying something a little “off the beaten path.” —And that’s always a good thing in my opinion!
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Another great resource for cultural events in the Los Angeles area is Italian Culture Institute of Los Angeles' newsletter: http://www.iiclosangeles.esteri.it/IIC_Losangeles
Obviously "Italian-themed" with a wide range of activities from museum exhibitions, opera singers, cooking classes, film festivals, etc.. Fantastico!
Grazie, Alex!