Final chance for holiday fun
This week, we’re checking out the California African-American Museum, sampling wine at Union Station, touring artworks of DTLA Metro rail stations, seeing aerial photographs at Glendale’s Forest Lawn and getting one last shot at some holiday pop ups.
Two at CAAM
The California African American Museum, 600 State Dr. (Exposition Park) has two interesting exhibitions going on.
The first is “Dust My Broom: Southern Vernacular from the Permanent Collection,” featuring assemblages, quilts, sculptures, paintings and drawings executed from found or re-purposed objects by largely selftaught artists who spent their careers excluded by the mainstream art world. The works touch on themes of spirituality, social justice, folklore and daily life among common folk.
The second exhibition is “LA Blacksmith” featuring metal sculptures. According to the museum’s website, the exhibition examines how the Watts Rebellion and other political and aesthetic
ideas shaped mid-century metalwork.
“Contemporary artists explore metal as appropriation, power and play in twenty-first century Los Angeles,” caamuseum.org says. “For these artists, metalwork layers the tension between tradition and resistance, preciousness and posture, as well as the sacred and the profane.”
Both exhibitions end Feb. 16.
The Museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday; from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sunday; and is closed on Monday. Admission is free.
Uncorked: LA Wine Festival
The Uncorked: LA Wine Festival will be held at 6 p.m., Jan. 4., at Union Station, 800 N. Alameda St.
The event will feature over 200 wines and champagnes from wineries across the globe, live entertainment, gourmet food trucks and a custom photo booth.
VIP admission, $80 plus a service fee, is at 5 p.m. and includes an extra hour of tasting, plus some special, high-end selections from a handful of wineries.
General admission is at 6 p.m. Both tickets include all tastings, with food sold separately.
Cocktail or dress attire is requested but not required. This event is 21 and over, only.
Tickets are available through eventbrite.com
Metro Art
Speaking of Union Station, each month, this iconic LA building serves as the starting point for a free tour of the artwork inside DTLA Metro rail stations. The tours are held on the first Sunday of each month, meaning the next one is coming up on Jan. 5.
The tours begin at 10 a.m. at the information booth inside the Alameda Street entrance to the station. The docents distribute TAP cards that are pre-loaded with an all-day pass allowing tour participants to ride the Metro rail and bus system for free. The tour takes about two hours.
Docents will provide insight into the artwork, artists and art-making processes.
You can make reservations through Eventbrite, but walk-ups are welcome.
Elevated Eye
Glendale’s Forest Lawn Museum, 1712 S. Glendale Blvd. is hosting the exhibition “The Elevated Eye: Aerial Photography Past and Present.”
The exhibition features nearly 150 photos that examine the history of aerial photography, from its origins in the 19th Century to the technologies of the modern age, including satellite photos and drone photography. The photos are drawn not only from the museum’s collection, but also from the Getty Research Institute, Huntington Library, art collections and botanical gardens; and the special collections of Los Angeles Public Library.
The exhibit also has a model of the International Space Station from the Columbia Memorial Space Center, a “CubeSat” satellite from Interorbital Systems and camera-equipped drones.
The exhibition is on display through March 8.
The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday. Admission is free.
Going soon
A number of holiday attractions are wrapping up their runs over the next few days, including:
• LA Zoo Lights, closing Jan. 5. Zoo Lights features light-up animals, interactive displays, a magical disco ball forest and the world’s largest illuminated pop-up book. Tickets are $21.95 for adults and $16.95 for children 2 to 12. Tickets can be purchased at lazoolights.org, the zoo is located at 5333 Zoo Dr.
• Moonlight Forest at the Los Angeles Arboretum, 301 N. Baldwin Ave., closes Jan. 12. This display features large interactive lantern artworks, including dragons and a giant shark. There’s a childrens’ area with neon swings. Tickets range from $20 to $28, depending on time and date selected. Tickets through Eventbrite.
•Ice skating at Pershing Square, 532 S. Olive St., closes Jan. 20. The 7,000-square-foot rink is the largest in the city. Hours are 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., Monday through Thursday; 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m., Friday; 10 a.m. to 11 p.m., Saturday; and 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., Sunday. Admission is $9 and skate rental is $5. You can get tickets through eventbrite.