A Return to the Norton Simon

Our first visit to the Norton Simon Museum was too short.  We returned to wander the garden and see the collection on the lower level.

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The lily filled pond is surrounded by bronze sculpture, mainly by Henry Moore.  This one is titled "King and Queen".

The lower floor has temporary exhibits.  There we learned about Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism through examples of sculptures in bronze and stone.

There were several Shiva

and Vishnu.

We labeled this Temple Wall with scenes of Krishna’s life incorrectly in a previous blog.

The second exhibit we saw was a lesson in the history of the color Blue.  Not being artistic, we did not know that blue is the hardest color to create.  Prior to 1706, the only blue painters used was ultramarine, aka true blue.  Then a painter made a mistake mixing his colors and created Prussian blue.  Seeking to develop an animal oil to cure sickness, he combined blood with potash.  He anticipated red but found a deep blue.  Working with a chemist, the two were able to market the color, providing a new color for painting.  With each iteration, more shades were added, next cobalt, then French ultramarine.  These colors increased the richness and texture of the paintings.  Along the way, the development of squeezable paint tubes made it possible for artists to carry their materials to their subject.   Here are a couple of examples of how the different blues were used.

Now, on our visits to museums, we will have a greater appreciation for the many shades of color used to create paintings.

Before we left, we returned to a few of the paintings that most intrigued us, primarily The Ragpicker by Edouard Manet.  This man selling rags to buy food looks like he could step off the wall and shuffle through the gallery.

The Flower Girl with Lilies by Diego Rivera

and Tulips in a Vase by Paul Cezanne.

We spent today (yesterday for you) doing errands in preparation for Cheryl, Dave and Bennett.  Our reward in the evening was a good dinner at Panda Inn followed by the excellent movie, Grandma.

The Gamble House

David and Mary Gamble of Proctor and Gamble annually left Cincinnati to spend their winters in mild Southern California.  When they retired, they decided to make their permanent home in Pasadena and chose Charles and Henry Greene as their architects to build their new home.  Known for their Craftsman design, the artists worked closely with the owners to build one of the best examples of that unique style. 

We entered through a work of art, the stained glass front door.

 The house and furnishing are of a variety of woods which accent the designs.  The Greenes Arts and Crafts style made jointery an artistic detail rather than something to hide.  Greene & Greene construction features finger joints and a lot of tongue and groove joints. This "scarf joint" is typical.

The Gambles added new features such as closets, each with its own door style and with floor-level drawers for shoes. 

The Gambles traveled the world and collected both the mundane and the exotic.  They spent considerable time in Asian and there is a strong Asian influence in much of the design.  Mrs. Gamble was also a collector of Tiffany glass, vases and flower bowls which are on display.   She was the one who decided the detailed accent colors in a room making sure they blended with the art she placed there.  Their collection is displayed about the house.

Outside each bedroom is a summer porch for sleeping on mild LA nights.  This pond is below the porch of Mrs. Greene’s spinster sister who lived with them and was the last surviving member of the family to live in the home.

The interior is dark because the then new electric lights were of low wattage.  The only “bright” room is the attic which is now used as a meeting room.   The University of Southern California and the City of Pasadena now own the house and are committed to keeping it the way the Gambles and Greenes created it.

Photography is limited to the outside but some of the wonderful details we saw were also part of the exterior. 

This Lego model of the house is a recent acquisition.

After touring the house, we drove around the lovely neighborhood finding more Greene homes.

Sam Maloof, Woodworker

One of America’s most esteemed of furniture makers was Sam Maloof.  His home and shop
are a historical landmark and are available for tours.  Jerry, also a woodworker, has wanted to visit his home for a long time.  He took the three-hour (actually four hours)  master-craftsman tour led by Larry who worked with Maloof for almost thirty years.  Anna Lee took the general tour.  Each tour gave insights into the creativity of this master furniture maker.  He was an inveterate collector who amassed wood and metal discards by the dozens.  He then used them in the home he built.   His imagination extended to such ideas as having differently designed wood door handles on each side of the doors throughout his home.

When the state decided to build Interstate 210, his home was in the way.  They wanted to demolish the house but, as it was listed on the National Register, the state had to move it instead. The craftsman he hired cut the house into seven sections and moved it about two miles to its present location.  The location now includes his old home, a newer home he built for his second wife, his shop, five sheds for storing wood, an educational center, a gallery, and a visitors center. This is an exterior view of the home.

The newer home is still occupied and not included on tours.  Photos were not permitted in the house and Jerry actually had to check his camera before entering and Anna Lee had to check her purse.  We could take pictures in the shop however and here are a few.  Anna Lee was quick to point out to Jerry how clean the shop was, no sawdust on the floor. 

It is interesting to note that Maloof did not do shop drawings.  Everything was designed in his head and he kept refining his products over the years.  He was entirely self taught and never took a woodworking class.  His attitude was that, if something had a slight flaw, that was fine, it showed that the piece was hand made.  He did not finish the backs of his furniture because no one saw these pieces.   Maloof’s  famous rocking chairs sell for $25,000.00.     A beautiful baby cradle sold for $50,000.00 and one unnamed buyer had twins and bought two of them.  Here are a few views of the shop.

 A chair being made

 A seat in the raw.

 Here is a rocker waiting to be finished.

Jerry was drooling when they entered the wood storage rooms.  There were five of them and the tour included entry into two.  One single piece of wood was four feet wide by about ten high.  Jerry asked want is was worth and the response was “a lot”. 

While Jerry was on the longer tour, Anna Lee wandered the garden enjoying the sculpture.  It was too late for flowers but there is much to enjoy.

One example is the visual pun, Door Ajar.

This lady shared her garden.

The Totem Trees fill a garden plot with their whimsy.

Norton Simon Museum

We start our fall trip by coming to the greater Los Angeles area which gave us an opportunity to visit sites that have been on our list for a long time.  Anna Lee has wanted to go to the Norton Simon Museum for decades (really).  We spent our first afternoon there. 

Simon was a very wealthy industrialist who discovered art in his forties.  Not a man to deny himself, he first immersed in learning about art then in acquiring whatever pieces he desired.  His collection spans six centuries and includes almost all the great painters of each era.  He also collected sculpture.  The following are samples of our favorite pieces.

Assembly of Sea Forms by Barbara Hepworth.  The back row is the sea mother and sea king, the middle row the shell, seaform and young and rolled seaform, the front row is embryo and seabird.

Edgar Degas: The Tub

Edouard Manet: The Ragpicker.  As the sign explained, this life-size painting represents the 19th century equivalent of today’s homeless man.

An Indian Chess Set (chess was invented in India).

Indian Alterpiece with multiple Jinas (someone who has achieved spiritual enlightment).

We were ready for dinner and Jerry found Gyu-Kaku, a fabulous Japanese/Korean BBQ.  Plates of vegetables and meats were set before us.  We munched on appetizers while grilling our dinner.  Just in case we were still hungry, the waitress brought us a bowl of bulgogi (Korean meat and rice) that was as good as any we had in Korea. 

 Continuing to use our grill, we toasted marshmallows for our s’more dessert.