Stage fright
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As soon as we set up the blog and I made the first couple of entries, I was seized with writer's block amplified by stage fright. It's not like I have broadcast the fact that we are now 'on blog' or anything, it is just that I was suddenly self-conscious and paranoid about 'telling all' as it happened. Of course, an addendum to that last thought is the fact that nothing HAS happened in this past week. Until LATDA is up and running as a going concern, I maintain a day job with another museum. We opened an exhibition on Friday, so I was focusing on my contribution to the smooth and successful member's reception. Part of my duties entailed locating and receiving some last minute merchandise for the museum store -- PVC sperm and humpback whales. The shipment arrived a bare five hours before the reception, but made it into the store along with a children's version of 'Moby Dick'.
In addition to opening exhibitions, we have launched our annual mail order catalog - a week earlier than last year. This has given us a leg-up on sales and made life busier than usual at this time of October.
So LATDA issues and pursuits had to wait until the weekend. Gary and I took our daughter to visit the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising. It was two-fold mission: first to present an interesting alternative to a liberal arts college (she's a high school senior this year) that corresponds with her current interests; and secondly, to view their current exhibition "Mourning Glory" a fascinating display of Victorian mourning clothes. We were treated to a special tour by Judy Yaras, the manager of the FIDM Museum Store and an instructor at FIDM. I was much impressed by the student work on display and tucked away the thought that FIDM might be a good resource for LATDA when it comes time for exhibition design and marketing. The student work showed a lot of innovation and creative energy.
After FIDM we walked over to the Museum of Neon Art. Somehow I wasn't aware that they were a short walk from FIDM within the same block. One would think that this would be a serendipitous location for them -- so close to a school full of design-aware young people. We checked out their current exhibit of Los Angeles street lights. So beautiful! Gary was able to leave some information about the designer of some of the old lamp posts on view. Elin Waite's mother worked for the city of Los Angeles and designed the poles. I talked with the woman minding MONA about how they were able to find their current location. She turned me on to the CRA as a possible source of assistance. I am adding them to my list of people to contact. I know that they recently moved to Chinatown and are in temporary disarray (heard this through the NoHo people), but will make an effort to contact them shortly.
In addition to opening exhibitions, we have launched our annual mail order catalog - a week earlier than last year. This has given us a leg-up on sales and made life busier than usual at this time of October.
So LATDA issues and pursuits had to wait until the weekend. Gary and I took our daughter to visit the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising. It was two-fold mission: first to present an interesting alternative to a liberal arts college (she's a high school senior this year) that corresponds with her current interests; and secondly, to view their current exhibition "Mourning Glory" a fascinating display of Victorian mourning clothes. We were treated to a special tour by Judy Yaras, the manager of the FIDM Museum Store and an instructor at FIDM. I was much impressed by the student work on display and tucked away the thought that FIDM might be a good resource for LATDA when it comes time for exhibition design and marketing. The student work showed a lot of innovation and creative energy.
After FIDM we walked over to the Museum of Neon Art. Somehow I wasn't aware that they were a short walk from FIDM within the same block. One would think that this would be a serendipitous location for them -- so close to a school full of design-aware young people. We checked out their current exhibit of Los Angeles street lights. So beautiful! Gary was able to leave some information about the designer of some of the old lamp posts on view. Elin Waite's mother worked for the city of Los Angeles and designed the poles. I talked with the woman minding MONA about how they were able to find their current location. She turned me on to the CRA as a possible source of assistance. I am adding them to my list of people to contact. I know that they recently moved to Chinatown and are in temporary disarray (heard this through the NoHo people), but will make an effort to contact them shortly.