Los Angeles County Museum of Art

The largest art museum in the western United States, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) offers permanent and rotating collections that span from ancient Egyptian objects to modern art like Claes Oldenburg’s giant pool balls. It’s practically a requirement for visitors to take a photo in front of or amid artist Chris Burden’s Urban Light installation that marks the entrance to this institution, so expect to see slews of well-dressed art lovers snapping pics at the golden hour. Children 17 and under receive free admission here, and L.A. County residents can visit for free after 3 p.m. on weekdays.

On Friday nights the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) hosts live jazz from April to November each year. Jazz at LACMA has run for more than 20 years, and many L.A. residents consider it a must-do in the area. More than 42,000 people attend the free event each year, where artists like Wayne Shorter, Billy Childs, the Cannonball-Coltrane Project, and Ernie Watts have showcased their talents. After the show, I recommend heading over to Rays for Mediterranean-inspired dishes. Located on LACMA’s campus, Ray’s menu is constantly shifting to take advantage of seasonal fare and new ideas. Their crispy pig ears are one of my favorite dishes. Photo by Ian Irving/Flickr.

So i ran to the museum before it closed with worry that I may not get to see it all but I did. We’ll kind of. Lol. I saw the work in the Resnick Pavilion and Broad of Contemporary Art building and it was worth it. My bad dash through both buildings were inspiring and worth the rushed taxi.

Los Angeles is not widely acknowledged for its museums, but in fact, LA has some fantastic museums, including LACMA. Don’t miss Levitating Mass by artist Michael Heizer - it’s worth a visit, plus, it’s free to see.

“Hey! I’ve seen these before!” I said pointing to the enormous collection of lamp posts situated outside the museum. My friend nodded, “Of course, they’ve been featured in tons of movies.” That’s when I realized I was standing in front of the famous lamp posts at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Only in Los Angeles are lamp posts so exciting. Yet, they are only a fraction of the amazing art you can see inside the museum. From Native American Art to Asian Heritage Art, LACMA boasts an incredible collection of famous pieces from our collective human past. With optical illusion sculptures, giant kitchenware, and tar lakes with floating dinosaurs, LACMA is the perfect place for children and adults. I would definitely recommend visiting this museum during your stay in the LA area.

The LACMA is a massive structure with an impressive collection to boot. Even if you are not that into art just spend the day wandering and looking at the magnificent buildings. Of course this is Los Angeles and the museum has it’s own coffee shop, restaurant and craft cocktail program if you are not that into the famous Magritte hanging on the wall.

The LACMA is the biggest art museum in Western America and houses thousands of art works. Street lamps outside the building make a great photo opportunity.

Everyone checks our the lamp posts at LACMA. We walked toward “the Rock” and heard a story about Camille. “The Rock” is actually a sculpture called Levitated Mass, which is apparently a commentary on fame. Standing between us and it was a security guard who offered to walk us around it. He told us about the Rock and about Camille, a young Jamaican single mother he had tried to help. The more he talked about Camille, his anger and pain rising as he warned us against helping people who weren’t ready to be helped, the more we questioned whether this man should be entrusted with security. After dark. In the darker part of the LACMA grounds. We wished him well, said a prayer for Camille, bid the levitated mass adieu, and learned a valuable lesson about staying close to the light.