Page 65 - 2017 Travel Guide to California

LOS ANGELES ART DISTRICT, right; the
expansion of the San Francisco Museum of
Modern Art, which reopened in 2016, bottom.
sparkling oceanfront La Jolla property. In
Balboa Park, the Museum of Photographic
Arts is California’s only museum dedicated
exclusively to photography, film and video.
San Francisco’s Legion of Honor, set in
Lincoln Park, holds an extraordinary per-
manent collection as well as changing
exhibitions from around the world. In
nearby Golden Gate Park, the de Young
showcases the arts of Africa, Oceania and
the New World.
The San Francisco Museum of Modern
Art (SFMOMA), which reopened its doors in
2016 after a massive expansion project, now
spans 10 dazzling floors of galleries and
45,000 square feet of free public art space.
The Oakland Museum of California
(OMCA) is dedicated to native arts, his-
tory and ecology. Family-friendly OMCA
also sponsors many events, hands-on
exhibits and activities to engage young
artists and budding naturalists. While
you’re in the East Bay, check out the
Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film
Archive (BAMPFA), which reopened last
year in a roomy, light-filled new building
on Center Street.
Science
The marvelous California Science Center in
Los Angeles’ Exposition Park presents
ongoing exhibits on invention, space travel
and life sciences. The most amazing thing
of all? It’s free!
San Francisco’s California Academy of
Sciences, in Golden Gate Park, features the
impressive Steinhart Aquarium, a walk-
through rainforest with free-ranging birds
and butterflies, the world’s largest all-dig-
ital planetarium and a “Living Roof” with
1.7 million native California plants. The
long admission lines can be daunting, but
they move fast and it’s worth the effort.
At Piers 15 and 17 on the Embarcadero,
the legendary Exploratorium houses more
than 650 interactive exhibits—including an
amazing “Tinkerers’ Clock” and the crawl-
through Tactile Dome (reservations required).
Designed for children under eight, the
Bay Area Discovery Museum in Sausalito is
a pint-sized Wonderland dedicated to pro-
moting creative thinking.
The Monterey Bay Aquarium deserves to
be included among the Wonders of the
World for its astonishing displays of sea
otters and jellies, its mesmerizing three-
story kelp forest and a staggering
million-gallon “Outer Bay” tank.
Culture
California is a rare and enduring alloy of
more than 50 ethnic groups. Its museums
reflect the racial diversity and cultural his-
tory of this melting pot in microcosm.
What follows is but a sample; there are
many, many more to choose from.
Sacramento’s California Museum fea-
tures a Hall of Fame, celebrating local
legends from John Muir to Sally Ride. In San
Francisco, the Contemporary Jewish
Museum and nearby Museum of the
African Diaspora (MoAD) provide fasci-
nating insights into two of California’s
most creative ethnic traditions. Visiting the
Asian Art Museum in Civic Center is the
next best thing to a trip along the ancient
Silk Road. The city’s small but beloved Mex-
ican Museum has plans to move from Fort
Mason to Yerba Buena Gardens—and enjoy
a long-overdue expansion.
In Long Beach, the Museum of Latin
American Art (MoLAA) features modern
and contemporary work by artists from the
New World.
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