I crave art. I get cranky if we don't hit a museum or gallery at least once a month. I love a good installation and my faves are the ones that aren't all stuffy. Don't get me wrong, I totally agree with rules at museums, I've seen people touch paintings or wannabe photographers use flash on 14th century paintings and gasped at their manners. The most recent art exhibition we visited was Gary Baseman: The Door Is Always Open at the Skirball Cultural Center. It was far from stuffy, we were invited to sit in his childhood home, lay on his bed and roam around in his backyard. By far one of the best exhibits I've ever seen.
Gary Baseman is an artist, illustrator, animator and toy designer. Famous for his television series Teacher's Pet and iconic artwork for the popular board game Cranium, we heard about Gary Baseman by collecting designer toys. The last show we visited was La Noche de la Fusion at Corey Helford Gallery in 2009 and I was amazed at the detail of the exhibit. I was an instant Gary Baseman fan. Duke was only 3 at the time so couldn't appreciate that visit but on this visit, he could not get enough. What hits home is how proud Gary is of his heritage - something we teach our children. Gary was born in Los Angeles in 1960 to Polish-born Holocaust survivors. His love for his parents is evident, I enjoy the exploration & influence of his Jewish heritage with American culture. I can only hope our influence with our children runs as deep.
There are 9 rooms in Gary Baseman's home, each one stood on it's own - detailed and thoughtful, visiting made me remember my own childhood. Our 7 year old son Duke happened to have his iPod and went crazy taking pictures. He was amused with pictures of Toby's travels, Gary's old toys, his bedroom and his backyard. Our 1 year old Omar kept smiling at Ahwroo (which should've been totally scary for a toddler). The show runs till August 18th, go see it.
