Sunday in Pasadena

This past Sunday, I went with a bunch of friends, including my best friend and her husband, to the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena. I’ve lived in L.A. for twelve years (minus the eight months I was in New York), yet I’d never been to the museum. It makes me happy that I’m still coming across new things to do while I’m rediscovering L.A.

The ground floor houses all of the European art, spanning the 14th century to the 20th century. Featured near the entrance was a large collection of Edgar Degas pieces. I knew of his paintings, but was unaware that he was also a sculptor. Interestingly, one ballerina sculpture wore a fabric tutu as well as a bodice constructed of a different material. You don’t usually ever see a sculpture with actual clothing on. The sculptures with all their bits hanging out must be so jealous!

There was also a selection of post-Impressionist paintings alongside the Degas collection. Just looking at it, The Mulberry Tree by Vincent van Gogh seems deceptively simple. Yes, it looks like a tree, albeit one translated through the lens of post-Impressionism, but it also looks, well, alive, as if a tree with bold, colorful swirls of leaves actually existed in the real world. The three-dimensional quality of the brushwork made the tree look touchable. But don’t worry, I didn’t actually touch it. I hear they frown on that sort of thing in museums.

Visiting an art museum with my best friend is never a dull experience. She likes art but has no patience for even a whiff of pretension, usually evident to her in overly abstract contemporary work. While I don’t pretend to understand the more abstract concepts of making art, I like to play devil’s advocate with her (and she with me). After bantering back and forth over several different paintings, my friend reached out and gave me a hug, saying, “I’m glad you’re back.” She was one of my biggest supporters when I decided to move to New York, and tirelessly listened to all my indecisive ramblings about the state of my life. I had really missed spending time with her. I hugged her back. “Me too,” I said.