In a Blue Frame of Mind

The Blue Room by Richard Jackson

Although the Orange County Museum of Art's exhibition of works by Richard Jackson, Ain't Painting A Pain, has closed up, I figured that I would share a couple photos with you all. It was a fun time, both entertaining and inspiring. Yes, the huge statue of Bad Dog was definitely my favorite piece, but I was charmed by the entire collection, from the stacked paintings to the crashed model plane.

Each piece had a whimsical inventiveness at its core, an inviting quality that played to the viewer's sense of humor. Thus engaged in mirthful appreciation, the viewer could be drawn in to consider the artistry and craft, the use of structure and serendipity together, in the creation of the work.

I found it to be a fresh approach, accessible both to the casual art enthusiast and the dedicated art critic.

Detail of Maze for Eugenia Butler by Richard Jackson

I'm very grateful to the OCMA for putting on such a wonderful exhibit.

Three Views of the Bad Dog

Bad Dog by Richard Jackson, on view at the Orange County Museum of Art, at twilight

Bad Dog by Richard Jackson, on a hazy day

Bad Dog by Richard Jackson, in the middle of a sunny day

Enjoy!!!

Forms of the Future Cast in Concrete

Pacific Life Building (1972) in Newport Beach, designed by William Pereira


Last week, we looked at some paintings of the Theme Building at LAX. This brought to my mind other buildings that the architect, William Pereira, has created across the Southland.

Over the course of the last month, I've come across a few of Pereira's works. None are as awesome as the Theme Building, but they are classics of mid-century modernism, embodying a futuristic aesthetic, stretching up into the sky like science fiction ziggurats. The Pacific Life Building, which is across the street from the Orange County Museum of Art, is one of my favorites, as its inverted pyramidal form seems to defy gravity.

Of course, buildings rarely remain unaltered in Los Angeles. This is the situation with two of the structures in today's post.

Ahmanson Building at the LA County Museum of Art (1965) 


When the LACMA campus was originally designed by William Pereira, the buildings were intended to loom over a series of reflecting pools, like rising islands of art. Although decades of renovation and expansion have built over the pools, the upward, vertical sense of emergence is still perceptible in the lines of the Ahmanson Building.