An Embarrassment of Riches

We had LACMA as our #1 on our to do list but I was in desperate need of a hair salon. Managed to fit in a shampoos and blow dry en route at alocal spot, where the owner of our hotel has her hair done. The museum opens at 11 and we had our tickets and were ready to explore by 11:30.

The David Geffen Galleries had just opened. As you can see on the map, the space is huge. We were here to explore the works housed therein.

According to Forbes magazine, Mr Geffen is the wealthiest person in the global entertainment industry, with an estimated worth of $9 billion as of 2024. He has given much back from the community. He is the largest single benefactor to the UC system and in 2015 pledged $100 million to Lincoln Center in New York City. He gave $46 million to the UCLA medical school, which is named after him and donated $150 million in cash to help fund the construction of the museum’s new galleries. The building was designed by Peter Zumthor to house LACMA’s permanent collection. Visitors are encouraged to wander, so we did.

Aftertwo hours of wandering, we were able to get an overview of the collection, then stopped for a smoothie and a chocolate chip cookie at the lovely fountain.

The next stop was to the Resnick Pavilion, where we saw a small show with more of their collection of Impressionist paintings and information about their donors.

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I included a few of my personal favorites above. There’s a Degas donated by the owner of Orbach’s department store, who used to do business at the exact spot where LACMA now stands, on Fairfax.

Our next event was a trip to Santa Monica in search of an art deco hotel that Marilyn had read about. As we walked back to our hotel, we passed by some benches with fun artwork.

We were on a quest to find the Georgian Hotel in Santa Monica. Was it worth the trip? Oh yes. All we had to do was drive down Wilshire until we met the ocean. The hotel is on Ocean Drive. Appropriate.

This picture is from the internet. We had to find it! Isn’t it cool?

Marilyn made a quick detour to visit Rodeo Drive, then went back on Wilshire.

It must be nice to be rich, to buy fancy clothes and cars, and be so rich that you can donate your Picasso or Renoir to a museum, or even hand over a few million to build a new section to a museum…what an embarrassment of riches! Enough musing. On to the beach!

Eureka! We found it!

We check out the ladies’ room, of course and after wandering the public rooms, we decided to stay for an early dinner so we could watch the sun set.

We sat in between the two sets of diners, near the fireplace. It was the perfect place for sunset viewing out the windows and people watching.

Santa Monica had such a holiday feeling about it. Everyone seemed happy to be there and the restaurants were crowded. The heat wave wasn’t nearly as intense here and it was a perfect evening to stroll down Ocean Avenue, for both residents and tourists. The food was delicious. The pasta dishes were small enough that they weren’t too heavy and Marilyn chose two appetizers. We had room for their special house dessert: a huge piece of chocolate cake, festooned with sprinkles and caramel and chocolate sauce to add. It was enough for four people! I was so entranced by the sunsets that I forgot taking pictures of the food but will check to see if others may have done so. You just have to visit the hotel and order it.

As we were leaving, a lovely staff member took us down to the basement, formerly a speakeasy, wher the meals averaged over $100 each, without drinks. It was a very elegant setting, but I preferred seeing the sunset, which was free of charge!

We had Friday night in Santa Monica. Saturday was our last day in Los Angeles and we spent the time seeing friends and — you guessed it —eating! More to come!