LACMA: Beyond Tim Burton

There's been a surge of visitors to the Los Angeles County Museum Of Art [LACMA] lately. Since May, the renowned art museum has hosted a major retrospective of filmmaker and artist Tim Burton. This proves that there are way more Burton fans than I ever thought. Sure, Burton's unique and quirky-goth is interesting, but it also brings to question-- What about the museum's permanent collections and exhibitions?

I wandered down to LACMA yesterday via rail and bus-- which takes some planning here in L.A. [For L.A. residents: Metro Rapid 780 drops you off directly across from the museum. It couldn't be more convenient.] I spent the next couple hours enjoying Free LACMA day [ free general admission to the museum's collection on the 2nd Tuesday of every month] And I never set foot in the Tim Burton exhibit. Sure, I may have enjoyed it, but...

LACMA has an extensive collection of art that kept my eyes and mind entertained throughout the afternoon. I started off carrying a map of the collections, but in my opinion, it's better to just walk around and discover what the museum has to offer. Some of my favorite collections were those of European art, Egyptian art, relics, and artifacts, and Japanese art. The museum has a whole room full of Picasso-- including drawings, bronze statues, and a sculpture or two. None of which escaped what I call, the "phallic Picasso touch." One of his bronze sculptures, which at first glance looks like a multi-tentacled alien, is titled The Cock. [Nice, Picasso. I'm sure you thought long and hard about that title. ]

The Egyptian Art and relics from Iran boggled my mind. Several pieces date back to 1500 BC and are in pristine condition. A mummy casket, decorated with strings of Egyptian art is on display. [ So much for that mummy resting in peace... ] The cat figurines the Egyptians sculpted were beautifully crafted and highly detailed. One Egyptian figure was flashing the devil's horns with his hand as if to say, " Think you're so advanced? It started with us ."

Japanese Art is housed in a separate building, full of light. It's a picturesque setting for woodblock prints and statues of Asian descent, but not so good for taking photographs-- too much glare. Some of my favorites there included classic artwork from Tsukioka Yoshitoshi, one of the masters of Ukiyo-e, a type of woodblock printing. I also had fun posing with a samurai warrior in full costume and capturing light with a Buddhist statue.

All in all, LACMA is perfect for a day trip. Whoever thinks museums are boring, should give it another try. And if you're going for the Tim Burton exhibit, leave yourself enough time to contemplate the other collections that this outstanding museum has to offer.

LACMA is located at 5905 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles CA 90036