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Capers

24K views 127 replies 27 participants last post by  oldnovice 
#1 ·
Clifton's Cafeteria

This is a series Introduction.

It's come to my attention of late that, sometimes, a Buddy will share photos from adventures/travel/vacation, etc.

I can do that.

So, why are you just sitting there?

Go back to sleep. Can't you see I'm busy doing something here?

I titled this, the first of what will, over time I'm sure, become a series, "Capers". This first one, however is not strictly a Caper. It was "Lunch". A caper is an event where I'll take off and go somewhere to just walk around looking at stuff and taking pictures. I've taken many Capers over the years, and taken many people along. Including, but not limited to, my Really Big Thithter, the boy she married some forty-five years ago, and eleven of their twelve grandkids (all at once - glad I didn't have to pay for lunch that day). A Caper always ivolves taking my camera. I didn't have my camera, today. Because this was Lunch.
Dad and I went to LAX this morning to fetch up my Really Big Thithter, who had flown in from Montana to be here for Dad's ninetieth birthday next week. I had decided that we'd have lunch in Downtown L.A. (I've loved L.A. infinitely longer than Randy Newman has.) It's on the way home, more or less. Okay, it's about fifteen miles out of the way. But, that's okay. Clifton's had reopened after a roughly five-year renovation. I hadn't been there since before the redo. My sister had been there one of the last few times I had. Dad hadn't been there since Earth cooled. The renovation involved returning the place to its 1940s grandeur. (And she was grand in the thirties and forties.)
We sat at a table with our trays of nosh on the second floor, and I began looking around. Well, sir, they had added some furnishings that weren't there before, and, I borrowed my Really Big Thither's picture taking machine. (Now, I want one like hers.) I immediately heard the voice in my head.

Write a Blog. Share this with your Buddies.

Way ahead of ya.

I shot sixty-seven (God bless the digital age) photos. All but a handful are keepers. And, you'll see, if you come along, all of them. I'll break it up into three of four installments. I'll also limit my word usage.
I'll end this installment with the brief description from the website of the L.A. Conservancy, and a couple quotes from Wikipedia.

"An icon of downtown Los Angeles, Clifton's Brookdale is the last remaining of ten Clifton's Cafeterias, once the region's largest cafeteria chain.

"After seventy-five years in the Clinton family, Clifton's changed hands in 2010 to entrepreneur Andrew Meieran. He spent four years and millions of dollars to restore and reimagine the beloved eatery for a new generation.

"Meieran and his team removed the 1960s additions and uncovered original features that were hidden for decades, including murals and a tiny grotto near the front entrance. Meieran even discovered an original-and still glowing-piece of neon in the basement. (It's still glowing, just moved to a new location so everyone can see it.)

"With the historic cafeteria well preserved, Meieran let his imagination run loose in the rest of the building. Ultimately, it will house two restaurants and five bars, including a tiki-themed bar (a nod to Clifton's Pacific Seas)" [The original Clifton's] "featuring items from the now-closed Bahooka restaurant in Rosemead. The most stunning innovation is a three-story atrium and its centerpiece, a massive replica of a redwood tree. [Not photographed today]

"Clifton's is now open to the public daily."

https://www.laconservancy.org/locations/cliftons-brookdale-cafeteria

"In 1931, Clinton leased a 'distressed' cafeteria location at 618 South Olive Street in Los Angeles and founded what his customers referred to as 'The Cafeteria of the Golden Rule'. Patrons were obliged to pay only what they felt was fair, according to a neon sign that flashed 'PAY WHAT YOU WISH.'" [A policy extended, in later years, to feeding people free-of-charge who had no means to pay. They got hordes of homeless people out back every day. And they fed them. Clinton was a man of principle. Sadly, a trait not shared by the current owner,]
Wikipedia. Bracketed statements, mine.

"In 1939, the founders of Clifton's remodeled the restaurant to change it from a conventional dining establishment to a more exotic setting and renamed it 'Clifton's Pacific Seas'.

"One of the many interior themes of the Pacific Seas included 'The Garden' as a setting done in the period AD 33. The Garden was first conceived by Clifford E. Clinton in 1943 as an interpretation of the famous artist Heinrich Hofmann's Christ in Gethsemane. Clinton commissioned sculptor Marshall Lakey to fashion a life-sized figure of Christ, kneeling in prayer. The mural behind Christ, depicting the city of Jerusalem and the Garden of Gethsemane was painted by artist Einar C. Petersen.

"In 1960, although the three-story structure with its cascading waterfall facade had become a landmark over the preceding 29 years, the original Clifton's Pacific Seas was closed, the building was razed, and the location turned into a parking lot, which it has remained since then." [This was the original Clifton's, on Olive Street, two blocks west. The Clifton's in these photos was opened in 1935, on Broadway, near 7th Street - historically, the heart of the city.]

"Having himself spent time as a youth in the Santa Cruz Mountains not far from the Brookdale Lodge, he chose to redecorate the facility in 1939 to pattern it after the lodge. Working with rock sculptor Francois Scotti, Clifford created a 20-foot waterfall "cascading into a quiet stream" which then "meandered" through the dining room, past faux redwood trees used to conceal the room's steel columns. Renowned Los Angeles muralist, Einar C. Petersen, created a life size forest on canvas to cover one wall, and a small chapel was set among the crags to fulfill Clifford's desire to feed the soul as well as the body of depression-weary Angelinos. After refurbishment, he renamed the location 'Clifton's Brookdale'.

"The restaurant is described as one of the last vestiges of Old Broadway in downtown Los Angeles, with an interior that looks like a 'slightly down-at-the-heels Disney version of a twilight forest'. In June 2006, co-owner Robert Clinton took final steps to purchase the Broadway building they had been leasing for 71 years. With over 600 seats on three floors, and known today as 'Clifton's Cafeteria', it is noted as the oldest cafeteria in Los Angeles and the largest public cafeteria in the world. The third floor includes a party room, a banquet room, and many pictures of Clifford and Nelda Clinton. There is a secret room on an upper floor. There is also another set of restrooms down the stairs in the bottom basement. The restaurant's busiest period was in the 1940s, with as many as 10,000 customers forming lines down Broadway, but as of 2009 Clifton's still regularly serves 1,800 to 2,000 daily."
Wikipedia. [The third floor, last time I saw it, had all the charm of an elementary school assembly room.]

Me again. The third floor was where it was discovered that the 1939 Einar Peterson murals still existed under the drywall. Yet another renovation delay - in came the preservationists. There's a photo of part of this mural in the photos that follow. There are several dioramas, including taxidermied animals, some of which don't really fit the context (an African Lion?)
But, mainly, of course, it's the furniture that I'm eager to show you. There are chairs sculpted in wood; chairs made of authentic Bison horns; tables with antler bases, and much more. The place has become a sort of museum where you're allowed to touch things, and sit on the chairs, and eat at the, almost, Louis XVi tables.
Without any fuether ado, move on to part 2 for the tour.

Get on with it.

You're too easily distracted. Go back to sleep.
 
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#2 ·
Clifton's Photos

I'll begin with the furniture.

Sculpture Wood Art Statue Hat


Wood Art Tints and shades Heat Event


Wood Comfort Chair Flooring Floor


Lighting Purple Wood Flooring Tints and shades


Interior design Wood Table Gas Flooring


Wood Musical instrument Flooring Drum Membranophone


Light Human body Orange Lighting Musical instrument


Drinkware Wood Amber Serveware Artifact


Stump Stools

Wood Pedestal Bar stool Floor Flooring


Furniture Wood Drinkware Floor Serveware


Hood Tints and shades Bumper Heat Wood


Two tables (the other was occupied by diners) that remind me a little bit of Lois XVi

Table Tableware Furniture Chair Wood


A Mantle Clock in a sort of a built-in alcove.

Hearth Wood Amber Interior design Building


Carving on said alcove. All this stuff is, clearly, handmade.

Brown Wood Fixture Handle Door


The view out the second story window at 7th and Broadway. (This joint was jumping, in the day. Search, if you're interested in such things, You Tube, for footage of Downtown Los Angeles around the turn of the twentieth century - or any major city in the world, if you've a mind. The streets - particularly, this intersection - were shared by horses, wagons, trolleys, automobiles, trains, and a veritable ant farm of people afoot. It's quite remarkable, how our cities have changed. And, how people have changed.

Window Vehicle Building Tire Infrastructure


And, so you don't have to look it up. At about 1:02, there's a brief shot of an intersection in L.A. in the twenties. The Bank of Italy was the city's first chartered bank. At 1:40 - If you missed your turn, just go around the stinkin' block. 2:09 - Times Square, NY in the twenties, mebees, early teens. 3:07 - Angel's Flight, original location, Bunker Hill, L.A. (It was moved a couple blocks south in the '60s, where it still operates for a quarter-a-ride.



And one more. A little longer.



Next stop: The Third Floor.
 

Attachments

#3 ·
Clifton's Photos

I'll begin with the furniture.

Sculpture Wood Art Statue Hat


Wood Art Tints and shades Heat Event


Wood Comfort Chair Flooring Floor


Lighting Purple Wood Flooring Tints and shades


Interior design Wood Table Gas Flooring


Wood Musical instrument Flooring Drum Membranophone


Light Human body Orange Lighting Musical instrument


Drinkware Wood Amber Serveware Artifact


Stump Stools

Wood Pedestal Bar stool Floor Flooring


Furniture Wood Drinkware Floor Serveware


Hood Tints and shades Bumper Heat Wood


Two tables (the other was occupied by diners) that remind me a little bit of Lois XVi

Table Tableware Furniture Chair Wood


A Mantle Clock in a sort of a built-in alcove.

Hearth Wood Amber Interior design Building


Carving on said alcove. All this stuff is, clearly, handmade.

Brown Wood Fixture Handle Door


The view out the second story window at 7th and Broadway. (This joint was jumping, in the day. Search, if you're interested in such things, You Tube, for footage of Downtown Los Angeles around the turn of the twentieth century - or any major city in the world, if you've a mind. The streets - particularly, this intersection - were shared by horses, wagons, trolleys, automobiles, trains, and a veritable ant farm of people afoot. It's quite remarkable, how our cities have changed. And, how people have changed.

Window Vehicle Building Tire Infrastructure


And, so you don't have to look it up. At about 1:02, there's a brief shot of an intersection in L.A. in the twenties. The Bank of Italy was the city's first chartered bank. At 1:40 - If you missed your turn, just go around the stinkin' block. 2:09 - Times Square, NY in the twenties, mebees, early teens. 3:07 - Angel's Flight, original location, Bunker Hill, L.A. (It was moved a couple blocks south in the '60s, where it still operates for a quarter-a-ride.



And one more. A little longer.



Next stop: The Third Floor.
There is no catering for taste I guess some impressive pieces, some just butt ugly !
 

Attachments

#4 ·
Clifton's Third Floor

The furnishings, continued.

More "Louis XVi" (?).

Furniture Purple Wood Chair Comfort


Furniture Comfort Building Table Couch


Brown Furniture Building Chair Wood


Building Wood Tree Arecales Tints and shades


I don't know what this thing is. But the wood is drop-dead gorgeous. Walnut Burl, I'm thinking.

Furniture Wood Floor Hardwood Tints and shades


The view out the Third Floor window at 7th and Broadway.

Building Car Vehicle Window Tire


A handmade silver chandelier.

Light Lighting Amber Street light Lamp


That's all for the furnishings. Next stop: The dioramas and the ambiance.

If you've stuck with me thus far, I applaud your fortitude.
 

Attachments

#5 ·
Clifton's Third Floor

The furnishings, continued.

More "Louis XVi" (?).

Furniture Purple Wood Chair Comfort


Furniture Comfort Building Table Couch


Brown Furniture Building Chair Wood


Building Wood Tree Arecales Tints and shades


I don't know what this thing is. But the wood is drop-dead gorgeous. Walnut Burl, I'm thinking.

Furniture Wood Floor Hardwood Tints and shades


The view out the Third Floor window at 7th and Broadway.

Building Car Vehicle Window Tire


A handmade silver chandelier.

Light Lighting Amber Street light Lamp


That's all for the furnishings. Next stop: The dioramas and the ambiance.

If you've stuck with me thus far, I applaud your fortitude.
A fold-out ladies makeup table? Or perhaps a desk?
 

Attachments

#8 ·
The Dioramas and the Ambiance

Some of the taxidermy was here before. Some was added in the recent renovation. None of the actual dioramas were here before.

A Raccoon.

Table Light Wood Amber Lighting


A big White Tail (?) Buck.

Leaf Elk Barren ground Caribou Deer Wood


A HUGE Bison, mebees, 6', at the withers.

Automotive lighting Bull Red Art Working animal


A Black Bear. Not to be mistaken for a Brown Bear. These animals still live in reasonable plentitude in our local mountains. They're as docile as kittens. I've been told by rangers that they walk right up to them, and ask to be petted. Or, mebees, fed?

Wood Carnivore Terrestrial animal Brown bear Event


A Peacock, standing on a really out-of-place Chinese column. In case you're unaware, Peafowl are indigenous to Southern California, though rarely, anymore, seen in the wild.

Wood Interior design Art Tints and shades Artifact


An oddly fat Coyote, chasing a goatalope. (I've never seen a fat Coyote. And, I've seen a lot of Coyotes. In the Mojave Desert, where they subsist on bugs and lizards, and don't have the energy to chase anything. Even the Jackrabbits are safe there.

Furniture Window Vertebrate Plant Table


An African (?) Lion.

Felidae Carnivore Lion Big cats Whiskers


Felidae Art Fawn Big cats Carnivore


A chainsaw-sculpted bear.

Wood Art Artifact Tints and shades Door


Light Purple Lighting Musical keyboard Entertainment


Plant Ecoregion World Natural landscape Natural environment


Next - and last - the walk back to where I parked.
 

Attachments

#9 ·
The Dioramas and the Ambiance

Some of the taxidermy was here before. Some was added in the recent renovation. None of the actual dioramas were here before.

A Raccoon.

Table Light Wood Amber Lighting


A big White Tail (?) Buck.

Leaf Elk Barren ground Caribou Deer Wood


A HUGE Bison, mebees, 6', at the withers.

Automotive lighting Bull Red Art Working animal


A Black Bear. Not to be mistaken for a Brown Bear. These animals still live in reasonable plentitude in our local mountains. They're as docile as kittens. I've been told by rangers that they walk right up to them, and ask to be petted. Or, mebees, fed?

Wood Carnivore Terrestrial animal Brown bear Event


A Peacock, standing on a really out-of-place Chinese column. In case you're unaware, Peafowl are indigenous to Southern California, though rarely, anymore, seen in the wild.

Wood Interior design Art Tints and shades Artifact


An oddly fat Coyote, chasing a goatalope. (I've never seen a fat Coyote. And, I've seen a lot of Coyotes. In the Mojave Desert, where they subsist on bugs and lizards, and don't have the energy to chase anything. Even the Jackrabbits are safe there.

Furniture Window Vertebrate Plant Table


An African (?) Lion.

Felidae Carnivore Lion Big cats Whiskers


Felidae Art Fawn Big cats Carnivore


A chainsaw-sculpted bear.

Wood Art Artifact Tints and shades Door


Light Purple Lighting Musical keyboard Entertainment


Plant Ecoregion World Natural landscape Natural environment


Next - and last - the walk back to where I parked.
Well I ll be stuffed they look good !
 

Attachments

#11 ·
The Walk to the Parking Lot

Every tale must have an end. I like to stretch mine, somewhat. I love L.A. And, this is the heart of the City.

Having given the camera back to my Really Big Thithter, she turned it on me, unawares. I'd gotten gregarious with the young woman at the bakery counter.

Barware Event Fun Entertainment Chair


The sidewalk at the entrance, which RBS photographed (I hadn't thought of it.) This is original. From @1935.

Photograph Black Textile Road surface Flooring


Now, for just a taste of L.A. at street level. This is the facade of Clifton's. Before the renovation, this was covered in tin around 1960 (can you believe it?).

Property Building Sky Architecture Facade


It now looks more like it did circa 1939.

Two doors along, is the Palace Theater, one of Los Angeles' dozen or so remaining movie palaces (look them up - it's a fascinating history of the film industry) that have been preserved from the '10s (the Rialto), to the mid-30s (the Orpheum). These buildings speak volumes of the grandiosity of the early twentieth century. And, a people, just wanting to live a little in very hard times.

Building Car Window Sky Wheel


Building Interior design Hall Wood Window


Light Lighting Architecture Interior design Building


And, directly across the street from the entrance to the (underground) parking lot, is the Los Angeles Theater (I've never been inside this one, though I have been in many of them, on tour with the L.A. Conservancy), one of the first Movie Palaces, built in, I believe90, next week, 1921. Note that many of the old theaters have gone through various iterations as churches (this one, the United Artists Theater - Jebus Saves, on the Simpsons, - The Million Dollar of 1919, etc.) A very few (The Orpheum, notably), The Alex, in Glendale, The Wiltern, in West L.A., the Fox, in Riverside, are fully restored, and functional, and used as performance venues, on a limited basis.

This shot, of the Los Angeles Theater, 1932, shows the tallest building on the West Coast, the Bank One (ersatz, Library Tower, 1989(?) (74 stories). in the background.

Sky Facade Window City Mixed-use


The ingress/egress to the parking lot. Dad was all, "Why are we going in here?" (90, next week).

Building Infrastructure Vehicle City Facade


This is the lobby through which one gains access to the parking lot ($9.95 All Day).

Interior design Wood City Ceiling Symmetry


An elevator door. This building was put up in the '30s. They don't put nearly the amount of artistic effort into buildings, these days. They haven't in a very long time. This elevator does not go to the underground parking lot ($9.95 All Day). We used the stairs. 90. Next week. I took this picture just before the security guard walked up and said, "Photography isn't allowed in this building." "Why?", queried I. "There's a sign on the door that says so," says the mindless boob. Being the architecture lover and belligerent photographer that I am, I asked, "What's that sign gonna do to me? Am I gonna get spanked?" "The sign says, 'No Photography'". He probably couldn't even read a sign to save his life. Beloved Buddies, you don't want to know how homicidal I can feel when someone tells me I can't take pictures of beautiful architecture. There's an ache that starts way down deep, following which, I can taste the bile that wants desperately to be expelled on the offending party's face. But, you don't want to know that.

Cabinetry Door Wood Fixture Rectangle


And, the final photo. The cel fin. You may wonder, What holds all these gorgeous old structures up? Those architects didn't miss a trick. This is what I saw when I looked out the window of my buggy, just before putting it in "D". This, again, was built in the thirties, tailored to 1930s auto design traditions (very narrow entrances - not set up for a Silverado). I've been to the loading docks, seven stories below street level, in the Library Tower of 1989. Big, Big difference. But the Libray Tower doesn't look like this, underground.

Tints and shades Composite material Font Art Building


Are you done, now?

I'm done. Go back to sleep.
 

Attachments

#12 ·
The Walk to the Parking Lot

Every tale must have an end. I like to stretch mine, somewhat. I love L.A. And, this is the heart of the City.

Having given the camera back to my Really Big Thithter, she turned it on me, unawares. I'd gotten gregarious with the young woman at the bakery counter.

Barware Event Fun Entertainment Chair


The sidewalk at the entrance, which RBS photographed (I hadn't thought of it.) This is original. From @1935.

Photograph Black Textile Road surface Flooring


Now, for just a taste of L.A. at street level. This is the facade of Clifton's. Before the renovation, this was covered in tin around 1960 (can you believe it?).

Property Building Sky Architecture Facade


It now looks more like it did circa 1939.

Two doors along, is the Palace Theater, one of Los Angeles' dozen or so remaining movie palaces (look them up - it's a fascinating history of the film industry) that have been preserved from the '10s (the Rialto), to the mid-30s (the Orpheum). These buildings speak volumes of the grandiosity of the early twentieth century. And, a people, just wanting to live a little in very hard times.

Building Car Window Sky Wheel


Building Interior design Hall Wood Window


Light Lighting Architecture Interior design Building


And, directly across the street from the entrance to the (underground) parking lot, is the Los Angeles Theater (I've never been inside this one, though I have been in many of them, on tour with the L.A. Conservancy), one of the first Movie Palaces, built in, I believe90, next week, 1921. Note that many of the old theaters have gone through various iterations as churches (this one, the United Artists Theater - Jebus Saves, on the Simpsons, - The Million Dollar of 1919, etc.) A very few (The Orpheum, notably), The Alex, in Glendale, The Wiltern, in West L.A., the Fox, in Riverside, are fully restored, and functional, and used as performance venues, on a limited basis.

This shot, of the Los Angeles Theater, 1932, shows the tallest building on the West Coast, the Bank One (ersatz, Library Tower, 1989(?) (74 stories). in the background.

Sky Facade Window City Mixed-use


The ingress/egress to the parking lot. Dad was all, "Why are we going in here?" (90, next week).

Building Infrastructure Vehicle City Facade


This is the lobby through which one gains access to the parking lot ($9.95 All Day).

Interior design Wood City Ceiling Symmetry


An elevator door. This building was put up in the '30s. They don't put nearly the amount of artistic effort into buildings, these days. They haven't in a very long time. This elevator does not go to the underground parking lot ($9.95 All Day). We used the stairs. 90. Next week. I took this picture just before the security guard walked up and said, "Photography isn't allowed in this building." "Why?", queried I. "There's a sign on the door that says so," says the mindless boob. Being the architecture lover and belligerent photographer that I am, I asked, "What's that sign gonna do to me? Am I gonna get spanked?" "The sign says, 'No Photography'". He probably couldn't even read a sign to save his life. Beloved Buddies, you don't want to know how homicidal I can feel when someone tells me I can't take pictures of beautiful architecture. There's an ache that starts way down deep, following which, I can taste the bile that wants desperately to be expelled on the offending party's face. But, you don't want to know that.

Cabinetry Door Wood Fixture Rectangle


And, the final photo. The cel fin. You may wonder, What holds all these gorgeous old structures up? Those architects didn't miss a trick. This is what I saw when I looked out the window of my buggy, just before putting it in "D". This, again, was built in the thirties, tailored to 1930s auto design traditions (very narrow entrances - not set up for a Silverado). I've been to the loading docks, seven stories below street level, in the Library Tower of 1989. Big, Big difference. But the Libray Tower doesn't look like this, underground.

Tints and shades Composite material Font Art Building


Are you done, now?

I'm done. Go back to sleep.
What is "90"?
 

Attachments

#23 ·
OR- A Piece of Furniture I Came Across Today

So, I'm driving up Hill St., just south of where Hill St. runs into Downtown L.A. (hereinafter, DTLA), when I see this chair, sitting in a parking lot. I'd never noticed this, before. I was out on my daily journies throughout the Southland (L.A. Basin), schlepping people about, in my capacity as an Uber Goober. Every day, regardless of the fact that I've driven and walked all over the area, looking at stuff and taking pictures, for decades - growing to love the city and her surroundings, more and more - I come across something I never knew about. This was the first thing I never knew about, that I saw today. It seems that the building outside of which this chair stands houses a collection of local furniture manufacturers' showrooms (I knew nothing of this, either - I'll go there again, when it's open, on weekdays). The chair stands, I would guess, at least twenty feet high, including the blocks on which it rests. The joinery leaves something to be desired, but the shape and proportions are magnificent, as far as I can tell, not being a furniture maker.

Daytime Sky Property Building Urban design


This montage includes one of the human-size benches at the entrance to the building. I was taken by its form, and, of course, intend to add it to my mental (?) vocabulary.

Sky Furniture Plant Outdoor bench Wood


Just after leaving here, I picked up a local, who told me that they're talking about removing the chair, soon, for whatever reason (what glories may come?). I replied that it was a good thing, then, that I happened upon it when I did.
Later, I made a couple of new friends, who took their parents on a ride in my car.

Photograph Dog Carnivore Organism Terrestrial plant


Danny's thirteen-years-old, if you care to believe that. Such a puppy, he is. I showed the photo of Bodie to Danny's mommy, and told her his name. Coincidentally, Danny's mommy, who is five-months pregnant (doesn't look it, in the least), Bodie's name. Her response? "I just found out yesterday that my baby is a boy. I'm naming him 'Bodie.'" (Not because of Bodie the dog, but, she said, that's the name she'd decided on, once she knew the baby is a boy.)

I have more than 1600 photos, so far, taken in these daily meanderings. I expect there'll be more entries to come, in the "Capers" series.
 

Attachments

#24 ·
OR- A Piece of Furniture I Came Across Today

So, I'm driving up Hill St., just south of where Hill St. runs into Downtown L.A. (hereinafter, DTLA), when I see this chair, sitting in a parking lot. I'd never noticed this, before. I was out on my daily journies throughout the Southland (L.A. Basin), schlepping people about, in my capacity as an Uber Goober. Every day, regardless of the fact that I've driven and walked all over the area, looking at stuff and taking pictures, for decades - growing to love the city and her surroundings, more and more - I come across something I never knew about. This was the first thing I never knew about, that I saw today. It seems that the building outside of which this chair stands houses a collection of local furniture manufacturers' showrooms (I knew nothing of this, either - I'll go there again, when it's open, on weekdays). The chair stands, I would guess, at least twenty feet high, including the blocks on which it rests. The joinery leaves something to be desired, but the shape and proportions are magnificent, as far as I can tell, not being a furniture maker.

Daytime Sky Property Building Urban design


This montage includes one of the human-size benches at the entrance to the building. I was taken by its form, and, of course, intend to add it to my mental (?) vocabulary.

Sky Furniture Plant Outdoor bench Wood


Just after leaving here, I picked up a local, who told me that they're talking about removing the chair, soon, for whatever reason (what glories may come?). I replied that it was a good thing, then, that I happened upon it when I did.
Later, I made a couple of new friends, who took their parents on a ride in my car.

Photograph Dog Carnivore Organism Terrestrial plant


Danny's thirteen-years-old, if you care to believe that. Such a puppy, he is. I showed the photo of Bodie to Danny's mommy, and told her his name. Coincidentally, Danny's mommy, who is five-months pregnant (doesn't look it, in the least), Bodie's name. Her response? "I just found out yesterday that my baby is a boy. I'm naming him 'Bodie.'" (Not because of Bodie the dog, but, she said, that's the name she'd decided on, once she knew the baby is a boy.)

I have more than 1600 photos, so far, taken in these daily meanderings. I expect there'll be more entries to come, in the "Capers" series.
Sounds like you had a nice day Mark, that sure is some sort of a chair.
 

Attachments

#36 ·
Things I Never Noticed

I've been exploring the Southland for as long as I can remember. Walking around, driving around. Always observant. I've worn out cameras, in my lifetime. Yet, on a fairly regular basis, I come across things that make me scratch my head in wonder.

How, on God's Green Earth, have I not noticed this?

Here's one of those things. I came across it, yesterday, about four miles from home, in Uptown Whittier, while cooling my heels. I'm leaning against my car, looking around. I look to my left, at a small park I've driven past thousands of times. I'm all,

WHAT?

Here's what I saw. I have no bloody clue how long it's been there. I've gone past this thing, not thirty feet away from it, literally, thousands of times.

Plant Cloud Sky Tree Sculpture


Plant Sky Tree Art Artifact


Plant Sky Statue Sculpture Temple


Plant Temple Tree Sculpture Wood


It's huge. It's bronze. It's beautiful. And, until yesterday, it was invisible.

Yet again, my sensibilities are slapped upside the head by the knowledge that I don't know everything there is to know about everything there is.
 

Attachments

#37 ·
Things I Never Noticed

I've been exploring the Southland for as long as I can remember. Walking around, driving around. Always observant. I've worn out cameras, in my lifetime. Yet, on a fairly regular basis, I come across things that make me scratch my head in wonder.

How, on God's Green Earth, have I not noticed this?

Here's one of those things. I came across it, yesterday, about four miles from home, in Uptown Whittier, while cooling my heels. I'm leaning against my car, looking around. I look to my left, at a small park I've driven past thousands of times. I'm all,

WHAT?

Here's what I saw. I have no bloody clue how long it's been there. I've gone past this thing, not thirty feet away from it, literally, thousands of times.

Plant Cloud Sky Tree Sculpture


Plant Sky Tree Art Artifact


Plant Sky Statue Sculpture Temple


Plant Temple Tree Sculpture Wood


It's huge. It's bronze. It's beautiful. And, until yesterday, it was invisible.

Yet again, my sensibilities are slapped upside the head by the knowledge that I don't know everything there is to know about everything there is.
And it there any sign descibing what it means?
 

Attachments

#48 ·
The Getty Center

So, RBS has been lurking around here for a couple weeks. I've been so busy trying to earn a living that we haven't had any "quality time" with to speak of. Then, this morning, I wake up thinking, I will take today off and take RBS on a caper, this being her last day before leaving. I gets out of bed, track the woman down and say, "You. Me. Caper. Today." She says, "Okay. I'm ready to go. Where are we going?" I said, "The Getty Center. I've been wanting to go there for years, and haven't, mainly because it's a thing that needs to be shared, at least the first time." She says, "That sounds like fun. Let's go." Whereupon she adds that BS had said something to her yesterday about her maybe coming over today. This means we can't leave yet. I call BS and ask, "How soon can you be here?" She says, "About an hour, or a little more." So, we waited for her to show up.
Upon BS's arrival, and after feeding BS a PBJ, we depart. It's about 1:30, the museum closes at 5:30, and we have an hour-plus drive ahead of us. We finally got into a parking spot at, like, 10 to 3, and made the ride up the hill on the tram, after waiting in the line for twenty minutes or so. Now, it's 3:15ish and this place is huge.
That's okay, because the thing I really was interested in seeing there, today, was the temporary exhibition Eyewitness Views - paintings that were staged and executed, by various artists in the eighteenth century, depicting, in great detail, significant events. Anything else, really, could wait for another visit. So we went straight to that building and spent an hour and a half or so. Amazing stuff, I gotta say. These eighteenth century painters are all that and a bag of chips.
By about 4:40, we'd had our fill of that, and were glad we made it on this, the last day of the exhibition.
We proceeded to another building, which building is billed as having as its contents, "Decorative Arts; Changing Exhibitions," with a small thumbnail of what appeared to be a 18th century Demilune. Well, I gotta see some of that. We're talking Marquetry of the first order, here. And what Marquetry. There was one piece that I could find by the great Andre Boulle. Astounding. A two-hundred-seventy/eighty-year-old box that, I swear, looked like something the great Paul (Shipwright) Miller might have made. And, oh, the rest of the stuff in those many galleries, absolutely made my head spin. I'm racing through this place, in the very little time I have left, trying to absorb as much as I can without my head exploding. Oh, the eye candy. Oh, the overload. I had left my camera at home. I had my iPhone6S on my person, but, sadly, there are restrictions on photographing most of the artifacts in the Getty. Partly, why I had left my camera at home. I suspected it would be thus.
At about ten to five, I walk into yet another gallery and see before me something I've never seen before. Is this Marquetry? I strain my eyeballs real close and see that this "Marquetry" is not "Marquetry" at all. It's Marquetry-like stonework. My eyes are bugging out. I ask the docent, who's standing a few feet behind me, "This is made of stone?" He says, "Yes. Amazing, innit? You should see the new piece we just acquired, in Gallery East 101." "Where is that, in as few steps as possible, please." He tells me. I go.
With seven minutes left, before closing time, I walk through a door where another docent is turning someone else away, on the grounds that they're about to lock up. I walked in behind the docent, I did, and went straight to this thing that's unlike anything I've ever imagined. (iPhone photos - not the best.)

Temple Facade Building Symmetry Art


Building Facade City Art Symmetry


Brown Wood Fixture Art Wood stain


Temple Wood Architecture Religious item Art


Sculpture Statue Art Picture frame Metal


Font Rectangle Paper product Paper Parallel


The plaque reads:

The Borghese-Windsor Cabinet
Italian (Rome) about 1620
Fir, Walnut, and Chestnut veneered with various tropical hardwoods, set with Lapis Lazuli, Jasper, Agate, Amethyst, and other hard stones (pietra dure), gilt bronze, silver, and silver-gilt.
Stand
French, before 1821
Beech, Mahogany, and Oak ebonized and veneered with ebony, ebony columns, lacquered brass and mirrored glass.
This cabinet was made for Pope Paul V Borghese (ruled 1605-21), whose coat of arms is featured above the central niche. Designed to resemble the facade of a Baroque church, it is exceptional in its large size and sumptuous decoration. Expensive and difficult to cut and polish, the numerous hard stones (pietra dure, in Italian) covering the front in elaborate geometric and chromatic patterns demonstrate the rarity of this piece. The statuettes, with draperies in gilt bronze and with heads, hands and legs in silver, add to its luxuriousness.
Such showpiece cabinets - brilliantly colored in there use of precious materials, but also intriguing with their multiple drawers, were the most prominent display furniture in seventeenth-century Europe. They also stored such treasures as medals, gems, and small bronzes or ivories, as well as private documents.
Already in an English private collection by 1821, when it was offered for sale with its stand in London, the cabinet was then acquired by King George IV (ruled 1820-30). It remained in the British Royal Collection until 1959, when it as sold with the collection of Queen Mary.
This detail of the top figure is as clear as I could make it, having had to crop it from the first photo because it's about twelve feet up.
These were the only photos I dared take, aside from a few shots around the grounds. I and RBS and BS were the only ones in the building, besides the docent I snuck in behind. She said it was okay.
I will be going back there. Likely, many times, in the future. I'll take my camera. Evidently, they're only moderately strident about the photography policy. I know that, now.
 

Attachments

#49 ·
The Getty Center

So, RBS has been lurking around here for a couple weeks. I've been so busy trying to earn a living that we haven't had any "quality time" with to speak of. Then, this morning, I wake up thinking, I will take today off and take RBS on a caper, this being her last day before leaving. I gets out of bed, track the woman down and say, "You. Me. Caper. Today." She says, "Okay. I'm ready to go. Where are we going?" I said, "The Getty Center. I've been wanting to go there for years, and haven't, mainly because it's a thing that needs to be shared, at least the first time." She says, "That sounds like fun. Let's go." Whereupon she adds that BS had said something to her yesterday about her maybe coming over today. This means we can't leave yet. I call BS and ask, "How soon can you be here?" She says, "About an hour, or a little more." So, we waited for her to show up.
Upon BS's arrival, and after feeding BS a PBJ, we depart. It's about 1:30, the museum closes at 5:30, and we have an hour-plus drive ahead of us. We finally got into a parking spot at, like, 10 to 3, and made the ride up the hill on the tram, after waiting in the line for twenty minutes or so. Now, it's 3:15ish and this place is huge.
That's okay, because the thing I really was interested in seeing there, today, was the temporary exhibition Eyewitness Views - paintings that were staged and executed, by various artists in the eighteenth century, depicting, in great detail, significant events. Anything else, really, could wait for another visit. So we went straight to that building and spent an hour and a half or so. Amazing stuff, I gotta say. These eighteenth century painters are all that and a bag of chips.
By about 4:40, we'd had our fill of that, and were glad we made it on this, the last day of the exhibition.
We proceeded to another building, which building is billed as having as its contents, "Decorative Arts; Changing Exhibitions," with a small thumbnail of what appeared to be a 18th century Demilune. Well, I gotta see some of that. We're talking Marquetry of the first order, here. And what Marquetry. There was one piece that I could find by the great Andre Boulle. Astounding. A two-hundred-seventy/eighty-year-old box that, I swear, looked like something the great Paul (Shipwright) Miller might have made. And, oh, the rest of the stuff in those many galleries, absolutely made my head spin. I'm racing through this place, in the very little time I have left, trying to absorb as much as I can without my head exploding. Oh, the eye candy. Oh, the overload. I had left my camera at home. I had my iPhone6S on my person, but, sadly, there are restrictions on photographing most of the artifacts in the Getty. Partly, why I had left my camera at home. I suspected it would be thus.
At about ten to five, I walk into yet another gallery and see before me something I've never seen before. Is this Marquetry? I strain my eyeballs real close and see that this "Marquetry" is not "Marquetry" at all. It's Marquetry-like stonework. My eyes are bugging out. I ask the docent, who's standing a few feet behind me, "This is made of stone?" He says, "Yes. Amazing, innit? You should see the new piece we just acquired, in Gallery East 101." "Where is that, in as few steps as possible, please." He tells me. I go.
With seven minutes left, before closing time, I walk through a door where another docent is turning someone else away, on the grounds that they're about to lock up. I walked in behind the docent, I did, and went straight to this thing that's unlike anything I've ever imagined. (iPhone photos - not the best.)

Temple Facade Building Symmetry Art


Building Facade City Art Symmetry


Brown Wood Fixture Art Wood stain


Temple Wood Architecture Religious item Art


Sculpture Statue Art Picture frame Metal


Font Rectangle Paper product Paper Parallel


The plaque reads:

The Borghese-Windsor Cabinet
Italian (Rome) about 1620
Fir, Walnut, and Chestnut veneered with various tropical hardwoods, set with Lapis Lazuli, Jasper, Agate, Amethyst, and other hard stones (pietra dure), gilt bronze, silver, and silver-gilt.
Stand
French, before 1821
Beech, Mahogany, and Oak ebonized and veneered with ebony, ebony columns, lacquered brass and mirrored glass.
This cabinet was made for Pope Paul V Borghese (ruled 1605-21), whose coat of arms is featured above the central niche. Designed to resemble the facade of a Baroque church, it is exceptional in its large size and sumptuous decoration. Expensive and difficult to cut and polish, the numerous hard stones (pietra dure, in Italian) covering the front in elaborate geometric and chromatic patterns demonstrate the rarity of this piece. The statuettes, with draperies in gilt bronze and with heads, hands and legs in silver, add to its luxuriousness.
Such showpiece cabinets - brilliantly colored in there use of precious materials, but also intriguing with their multiple drawers, were the most prominent display furniture in seventeenth-century Europe. They also stored such treasures as medals, gems, and small bronzes or ivories, as well as private documents.
Already in an English private collection by 1821, when it was offered for sale with its stand in London, the cabinet was then acquired by King George IV (ruled 1820-30). It remained in the British Royal Collection until 1959, when it as sold with the collection of Queen Mary.
This detail of the top figure is as clear as I could make it, having had to crop it from the first photo because it's about twelve feet up.
These were the only photos I dared take, aside from a few shots around the grounds. I and RBS and BS were the only ones in the building, besides the docent I snuck in behind. She said it was okay.
I will be going back there. Likely, many times, in the future. I'll take my camera. Evidently, they're only moderately strident about the photography policy. I know that, now.
Mark! Gorgeous piece! I particularly like the 'vase' in the 4th image 'cause it looks like wood.
;-)
Thank you for sharing the Caper you shared with your sisters. Always a treat to hear of your adventures, my friend.
 

Attachments

#73 ·
Getty Center

In early November, RBS and the kid she married a hundred years ago were here for about eight days. I took a day off and schlepped them and my Aged Parent, Dad, to the Getty Center. This time, we had all the time in the world to soak up the eye candy, What a load of eye candy. Seriously, by the end of the day, I simply couldn't handle any more of it, and had a pounding headache. I've begun wondering if, mebbees, my propensity to ogle at the works of true Masters (of whatever genre) might have something to do with the apparent loss of my own creative drive, or, "mojo," as I call it.
Be that as it may, I took lots of photos, with my actual camera, not my phone camera, to share with anyone who cares to come along. Words are in short supply. I took pictures, but I took no notes. So descriptions and dates and the names of the various artists, with few exceptions, would have to be researched through the Getty Center's website, or, perhaps fleshed out by someone who knows more than I (someone named, perhaps, Paul, or Patrick, or Patrice). or any number of our contemporaries who, in my mind, are every bit the equals to these ancient craftsmen.
On with the show, in no particular order.

First, a word about the current temporary exhibit, which involves a boatload of artifacts from mainly the Mayan culture of Central America. I was, in point of fact, rather nonplussed by it all. The reason is that, on the whole, the things I viewed in this exhibit screamed barbarism and cannibalism, and obsequious worship towards beings who would sooner slaughter you and eat your organs than even think of you as a human deserving of even the slightest bit of dignity. Art, as I see it, and, I think most reasonable people would agree, should have some uplifting quality to it. It should bear some degree of beauty and elegance. Have some ability within it to make the viewr feel, somehow improved in his outlook, rather than repulsed. I could be way off, and I'm willing to grow out of it, as the need arises. I did, after all, get over my hatred of Norm's Restaurants, after about twenty-five years, and, now, eat there about three times a month.

I will say one thing about the one photo I will share from that exhibit that made me LOL. (LOLing is something to which I am not easily moved.)

Eye Human body Jaw Sculpture Statue


This guy, clearly, should add prunes to his diet. Or, mebbees, cut down on his consumption of human organs.

Now, let's move on to some of the stuff that, after a few hours, gave me a bad case of eye candy overload. A mental toothache, if you will. Again, apart form a couple of pieces that I recognize as being the works of Boulle and Roentgen, I'm mainly clueless as to provenance. Suffice it to share the wonder.

Drinkware Trophy Artifact Serveware Art


Light Lighting Drinkware Serveware Artifact


Hot chocolate, anyone?

World Dishware Serveware Drinkware Artifact


Dishware Light World Serveware Porcelain


A porcelain, I don't know, cookie jar(?), from 18th Century France, inspired in its turn by Chinese Masters. of that medium.

Sculpture Statue Art Wood Metal


A stunningly exquisite allegorical carving surrounded by tapestries made by someone (unknown), who clearly knew nothing of arthritis.

The joint is a treasure trove of breathtaking Marquetry and furniture, both practical and purely decorative.

Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Temple Sculpture Wood Art Statue


Brown Wood Textile Rectangle Art


Amber Artifact Font Pedestal Temple


Gold Amber Symmetry Tints and shades Metal


Hidden behind those golden straps are secret drawers.

I need to cut this into two installments. It seems to be getting overloaded.
 

Attachments

#74 ·
Getty Center

In early November, RBS and the kid she married a hundred years ago were here for about eight days. I took a day off and schlepped them and my Aged Parent, Dad, to the Getty Center. This time, we had all the time in the world to soak up the eye candy, What a load of eye candy. Seriously, by the end of the day, I simply couldn't handle any more of it, and had a pounding headache. I've begun wondering if, mebbees, my propensity to ogle at the works of true Masters (of whatever genre) might have something to do with the apparent loss of my own creative drive, or, "mojo," as I call it.
Be that as it may, I took lots of photos, with my actual camera, not my phone camera, to share with anyone who cares to come along. Words are in short supply. I took pictures, but I took no notes. So descriptions and dates and the names of the various artists, with few exceptions, would have to be researched through the Getty Center's website, or, perhaps fleshed out by someone who knows more than I (someone named, perhaps, Paul, or Patrick, or Patrice). or any number of our contemporaries who, in my mind, are every bit the equals to these ancient craftsmen.
On with the show, in no particular order.

First, a word about the current temporary exhibit, which involves a boatload of artifacts from mainly the Mayan culture of Central America. I was, in point of fact, rather nonplussed by it all. The reason is that, on the whole, the things I viewed in this exhibit screamed barbarism and cannibalism, and obsequious worship towards beings who would sooner slaughter you and eat your organs than even think of you as a human deserving of even the slightest bit of dignity. Art, as I see it, and, I think most reasonable people would agree, should have some uplifting quality to it. It should bear some degree of beauty and elegance. Have some ability within it to make the viewr feel, somehow improved in his outlook, rather than repulsed. I could be way off, and I'm willing to grow out of it, as the need arises. I did, after all, get over my hatred of Norm's Restaurants, after about twenty-five years, and, now, eat there about three times a month.

I will say one thing about the one photo I will share from that exhibit that made me LOL. (LOLing is something to which I am not easily moved.)

Eye Human body Jaw Sculpture Statue


This guy, clearly, should add prunes to his diet. Or, mebbees, cut down on his consumption of human organs.

Now, let's move on to some of the stuff that, after a few hours, gave me a bad case of eye candy overload. A mental toothache, if you will. Again, apart form a couple of pieces that I recognize as being the works of Boulle and Roentgen, I'm mainly clueless as to provenance. Suffice it to share the wonder.

Drinkware Trophy Artifact Serveware Art


Light Lighting Drinkware Serveware Artifact


Hot chocolate, anyone?

World Dishware Serveware Drinkware Artifact


Dishware Light World Serveware Porcelain


A porcelain, I don't know, cookie jar(?), from 18th Century France, inspired in its turn by Chinese Masters. of that medium.

Sculpture Statue Art Wood Metal


A stunningly exquisite allegorical carving surrounded by tapestries made by someone (unknown), who clearly knew nothing of arthritis.

The joint is a treasure trove of breathtaking Marquetry and furniture, both practical and purely decorative.

Brown Wood Rectangle Floor Flooring


Temple Sculpture Wood Art Statue


Brown Wood Textile Rectangle Art


Amber Artifact Font Pedestal Temple


Gold Amber Symmetry Tints and shades Metal


Hidden behind those golden straps are secret drawers.

I need to cut this into two installments. It seems to be getting overloaded.
For some reason, when I see these types of artifacts/art pieces my first thought is not about their "beauty" but- "I wonder how long it took to make that?"
 

Attachments

#82 ·
#11 Continued

Wood Interior design Chair Flooring Bag


Brown Wood Hardwood Wood stain Building material


Art Wood Chair Metal Antique


Sculpture Wood Artifact Clock Art


This Thing had an unbelievable amount of things going on in it, beyond its otherworldly aesthetic. It was too much for me.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Art Table


Boulle? Paul?

Property Table Picture frame Wood Flooring


Brown Textile Wood Art Painting


Wood Chair Rectangle Art Gas


Musical instrument Wood Flooring Hardwood Wood stain


Roentgen? Patrice?

Sky Cloud Property Fixture Azure


The gorgeous city I love, about sixteen miles distant.

Forehead Cheek Head Chin Jaw


Forehead Nose Cheek Chin Eye


This guy I'm very familiar with. Did you know that, when he was twelve and thirteen years old he composed a dozen string symphonies that were, and still are, far beyond his years? His name is Felix Mendelssohn. Who carved the bust, I do not know.

Picture frame Tree Plant Art Painting


Cheek Picture frame Eye Painting Art


Paintings whose realism fairly sends my wonderment to the moon and back.

Sculpture Wood Art Artifact Font


Temple Sculpture Wood Artifact Art


Statue Sculpture Art Artifact Wood


This life-size carving that I spied on the way out of this gallery perplexed me. He's a shepherd cradling a lamb, to be sure. But, what is that thing at his feet?

Sculpture Statue Wood Art Artifact


A dead wolf, I think. Did I say something about art properly being uplifting? A shepherd protecting his lamb and slaying its enemy. Packed, I say, PACKED with edification.

There were Ivory carvings.

Sculpture Artifact Statue Art Pedestal


And Marquetry, or, I suppose, more properly, Intarsia, built of stone, tortoise shells and whatnot.

Window Facade Art Sculpture Temple


And a picture, in a frame, made of stone. I blew a circuit over this.

Rectangle Art Painting Facade Symmetry


And a pair of very tall candle stands that looked for all the world like they came straight out of someone's LJs Gallery.

Sculpture Wood World Picture frame Art


Jaw Wood Creative arts Art Sculpture


Sculpture Wood Statue Art Artifact


Yeah. If I could have a wish, or a dream come true, I'd be an artist of this order. I have little by way of a delusion that it'll ever happen.

Thank you. And, I apologize.

I'll ask Herr Felix to play us out. Geeze, I hope this works for you.

 

Attachments

#83 ·
#11 Continued

Wood Interior design Chair Flooring Bag


Brown Wood Hardwood Wood stain Building material


Art Wood Chair Metal Antique


Sculpture Wood Artifact Clock Art


This Thing had an unbelievable amount of things going on in it, beyond its otherworldly aesthetic. It was too much for me.

Wood Rectangle Wood stain Art Table


Boulle? Paul?

Property Table Picture frame Wood Flooring


Brown Textile Wood Art Painting


Wood Chair Rectangle Art Gas


Musical instrument Wood Flooring Hardwood Wood stain


Roentgen? Patrice?

Sky Cloud Property Fixture Azure


The gorgeous city I love, about sixteen miles distant.

Forehead Cheek Head Chin Jaw


Forehead Nose Cheek Chin Eye


This guy I'm very familiar with. Did you know that, when he was twelve and thirteen years old he composed a dozen string symphonies that were, and still are, far beyond his years? His name is Felix Mendelssohn. Who carved the bust, I do not know.

Picture frame Tree Plant Art Painting


Cheek Picture frame Eye Painting Art


Paintings whose realism fairly sends my wonderment to the moon and back.

Sculpture Wood Art Artifact Font


Temple Sculpture Wood Artifact Art


Statue Sculpture Art Artifact Wood


This life-size carving that I spied on the way out of this gallery perplexed me. He's a shepherd cradling a lamb, to be sure. But, what is that thing at his feet?

Sculpture Statue Wood Art Artifact


A dead wolf, I think. Did I say something about art properly being uplifting? A shepherd protecting his lamb and slaying its enemy. Packed, I say, PACKED with edification.

There were Ivory carvings.

Sculpture Artifact Statue Art Pedestal


And Marquetry, or, I suppose, more properly, Intarsia, built of stone, tortoise shells and whatnot.

Window Facade Art Sculpture Temple


And a picture, in a frame, made of stone. I blew a circuit over this.

Rectangle Art Painting Facade Symmetry


And a pair of very tall candle stands that looked for all the world like they came straight out of someone's LJs Gallery.

Sculpture Wood World Picture frame Art


Jaw Wood Creative arts Art Sculpture


Sculpture Wood Statue Art Artifact


Yeah. If I could have a wish, or a dream come true, I'd be an artist of this order. I have little by way of a delusion that it'll ever happen.

Thank you. And, I apologize.

I'll ask Herr Felix to play us out. Geeze, I hope this works for you.

Hello Mark,

Is this the same place thats home to Roentgens berlin secretary cabinet?
 

Attachments

#100 ·
As I Wander

Here's a Thing of Public Art I hadn't noticed til today. It's in Venice, I think. Made me think of Marqutry, mason style. Beautiful, innit?

Sky Automotive tail & brake light Hood Automotive lighting Light
Tis a beauty, Mark. Me wonders how much of that plaster was in place before the artist started working. Was it added or subtracted to reveal the face?
Thanks for sharing the things that might otherwise never be seen by non-locals.
 

Attachments

#110 ·
A Short Trip to the Huntington

RBS is in town. BS came to spend the day with us. So, we three - my echo, my shadow, and me - took the thilly thithters for a short visit to teh Huntington Library in San Marino (California, not Italy). I took few photos - we got there about an hour and a half before closing time.

First, in the parking lot we found this. This reminded me to get my camera out of the car.

Wheel Tire Car Land vehicle Vehicle


Car Tire Land vehicle Automotive parking light Vehicle


Then, there was the fountain in front of the library.

Water Fountain Plant Statue Sculpture


Then, there was some of the stuff I really go looking for in such places. A couple of mechanical desks by Oebin (Or, maybe, replicas - unclear to me).

Brown Wood Table Chair Flooring


Brown Furniture Wood Rectangle Table


Furniture Table Wood Outdoor furniture Floor


Brown Wood Textile Amber Tints and shades


There's a chapel in the museum that, until today, I didn't know about, with this beautiful stianed-glass window.

Fixture Window Stained glass Tints and shades Font


A marvelous hammered wall hanging (again, only an hour and a half - I did not have time to be reading plaques).

Coin Money handling Money Artifact Currency


Now, they have little signs everywhere in this joint that say "DO NOT TOUCH". Otherwise, I might have opened this up to prove to you, and to myownbadself, that this cabinet is actually a piano. We just have to take the pedals' word for it. I even asked the docent (Whom I think of as the "Museum Gestapo," who follow me about to make sure I'm obedient to the signs) if she could open it. She said, "No." (This one really did remind me of Nurse Diesel.)

Furniture Shelf Wood Cabinetry Shelving


A view out the upstairs window over the Statue Arcade.

Building Fixture Shade Tints and shades Grass


Back downstairs, looking down the Grand Entry, with BS in the middle of the Hall, and RBS looking like she may well be TOUCHING something.

Building Symmetry Flooring Ceiling Hall


The facade of Mr. Huntington's house. With the aforementioned thilly thithers getting in the way of what, otherwise, would have been a perfectly lovely shot.

Sky Window Building Tree Plant


Then, on the way to the exit, having been chased out at 5:01 PM., the Library Fountain again, from a different angle and different lighting.

Water Sky Cloud Plant Water resources


Thank you. And, I apologize.
 

Attachments

#111 ·
A Short Trip to the Huntington

RBS is in town. BS came to spend the day with us. So, we three - my echo, my shadow, and me - took the thilly thithters for a short visit to teh Huntington Library in San Marino (California, not Italy). I took few photos - we got there about an hour and a half before closing time.

First, in the parking lot we found this. This reminded me to get my camera out of the car.

Wheel Tire Car Land vehicle Vehicle


Car Tire Land vehicle Automotive parking light Vehicle


Then, there was the fountain in front of the library.

Water Fountain Plant Statue Sculpture


Then, there was some of the stuff I really go looking for in such places. A couple of mechanical desks by Oebin (Or, maybe, replicas - unclear to me).

Brown Wood Table Chair Flooring


Brown Furniture Wood Rectangle Table


Furniture Table Wood Outdoor furniture Floor


Brown Wood Textile Amber Tints and shades


There's a chapel in the museum that, until today, I didn't know about, with this beautiful stianed-glass window.

Fixture Window Stained glass Tints and shades Font


A marvelous hammered wall hanging (again, only an hour and a half - I did not have time to be reading plaques).

Coin Money handling Money Artifact Currency


Now, they have little signs everywhere in this joint that say "DO NOT TOUCH". Otherwise, I might have opened this up to prove to you, and to myownbadself, that this cabinet is actually a piano. We just have to take the pedals' word for it. I even asked the docent (Whom I think of as the "Museum Gestapo," who follow me about to make sure I'm obedient to the signs) if she could open it. She said, "No." (This one really did remind me of Nurse Diesel.)

Furniture Shelf Wood Cabinetry Shelving


A view out the upstairs window over the Statue Arcade.

Building Fixture Shade Tints and shades Grass


Back downstairs, looking down the Grand Entry, with BS in the middle of the Hall, and RBS looking like she may well be TOUCHING something.

Building Symmetry Flooring Ceiling Hall


The facade of Mr. Huntington's house. With the aforementioned thilly thithers getting in the way of what, otherwise, would have been a perfectly lovely shot.

Sky Window Building Tree Plant


Then, on the way to the exit, having been chased out at 5:01 PM., the Library Fountain again, from a different angle and different lighting.

Water Sky Cloud Plant Water resources


Thank you. And, I apologize.
Wow that holsdw a lot of great pieces..looks like it could be an all day affair. Well as the song says " I took a trip and never left the farm" . thanks for sharing…...........cheers, Jim
 

Attachments

#118 ·
The Nethercutt Collection

I found myownbadself in the vicinity of Sylmar, CA, this afternoon, so I made a little caper of about forty-five minutes (closing time) at one of my favorite museums.

This is the cutest little car. It's a 1932 American Austin Bantam Roadster, built under license from the English Austin Company.

Wheel Tire Car Vehicle Motor vehicle


On with some of the cars I have sweaty dreams about.

A 1923 Deusenberg.

Tire Wheel Car Vehicle Land vehicle


A 1907 Pierce.

Wheel Tire Vehicle Automotive tire Car


Font Rectangle Signage Poster Commemorative plaque


A 1905 and, a 1907 Buick.

Wheel Tire Car Vehicle Automotive tire


Wheel Tire Vehicle Motor vehicle Automotive tire


Motor vehicle Wheel Vehicle Tire Font


A 1932 Auburn, just made for a stylish guy like me (or Clark Gable).

Tire Wheel Vehicle Car Motor vehicle


Motor vehicle Font Vehicle Signage Public utility


The 1930 Rolls-Royce Phantom I.

Wheel Tire Automotive parking light Vehicle Car


Font News Signage History Newsprint


Here's the story of the Phantom Series.

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Why have I, when II will do?

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This is the only museum on the planet that possesses a complete set of the Phantoms.

It's a Limo you want? How about a 1911 Oldsmobile? How about the only one left?

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Yeah. If only for those 43" wheels, the biggest on any car, ever.

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And, she has quite the getalong, too.

Wheel Tire Vehicle Automotive tire Motor vehicle


A 1930 Packard. Built; delivered; ordered destroyed; NOT destroyed; Discovered in 1968, and brought here.

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Deusenbergs have been, without question, my favorite automotive eye candy since I was little. Particularly this one. The J Model. This one's from 1934.

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Though, it's hard to shake a stick at a 1932 Lincoln KB.

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Then again, it wouldn't take much to convince me to accept a 1930 Cadillac Cabriolet, that has SIXTEEN cylinders to help it along.

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Daimler made a pretty cool car, too.

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Then, there' this ride that was, apparently, owned by Fatty Arbuckle. A sedate color was simply not his style.

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You gotta love those Packards, though. So much bling.

Wheel Tire Car Vehicle Automotive tire


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And, finally, the one I was so sure they'd let me have that I asked if I could have it. They said, "No." It's a 1932 Cadillac Phaeton, nicknamed "Bumblebee."

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Thanks for coming along. I hope you enjoyed the tour. This has been just a smattering of the Collection. It is the largest privately-held collection of vintage and antique motorcars on Earth. There's a whole other building full of them that you need to sign up for a tour to see. If you're in Southern California, make time for this. Admission is free, and it's closed only on Christmas. Parking, also, is free. It is, truly, all that and a great big jar of pickled pig's feet. (Or, a bag of chips, if you prefer that imagery.) Here's the website:

https://www.nethercuttcollection.org/
 

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#119 ·
The Nethercutt Collection

I found myownbadself in the vicinity of Sylmar, CA, this afternoon, so I made a little caper of about forty-five minutes (closing time) at one of my favorite museums.

This is the cutest little car. It's a 1932 American Austin Bantam Roadster, built under license from the English Austin Company.

Wheel Tire Car Vehicle Motor vehicle


On with some of the cars I have sweaty dreams about.

A 1923 Deusenberg.

Tire Wheel Car Vehicle Land vehicle


A 1907 Pierce.

Wheel Tire Vehicle Automotive tire Car


Font Rectangle Signage Poster Commemorative plaque


A 1905 and, a 1907 Buick.

Wheel Tire Car Vehicle Automotive tire


Wheel Tire Vehicle Motor vehicle Automotive tire


Motor vehicle Wheel Vehicle Tire Font


A 1932 Auburn, just made for a stylish guy like me (or Clark Gable).

Tire Wheel Vehicle Car Motor vehicle


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The 1930 Rolls-Royce Phantom I.

Wheel Tire Automotive parking light Vehicle Car


Font News Signage History Newsprint


Here's the story of the Phantom Series.

Plant Natural landscape Vegetation Font Biome


Why have I, when II will do?

Tire Wheel Car Vehicle Motor vehicle


Font News Signage History Newsprint


This is the only museum on the planet that possesses a complete set of the Phantoms.

It's a Limo you want? How about a 1911 Oldsmobile? How about the only one left?

Tire Wheel Vehicle Car Automotive tire


Yeah. If only for those 43" wheels, the biggest on any car, ever.

Font Plant Terrestrial plant History Poster


And, she has quite the getalong, too.

Wheel Tire Vehicle Automotive tire Motor vehicle


A 1930 Packard. Built; delivered; ordered destroyed; NOT destroyed; Discovered in 1968, and brought here.

Car Wheel Tire Vehicle Land vehicle


Font Circle Document Recipe Signage


Deusenbergs have been, without question, my favorite automotive eye candy since I was little. Particularly this one. The J Model. This one's from 1934.

Tire Wheel Vehicle Car Motor vehicle


Organism Font Arthropod Moths and butterflies Pollinator


Though, it's hard to shake a stick at a 1932 Lincoln KB.

Wheel Tire Car Vehicle Motor vehicle


Tire Motor vehicle Wheel Vehicle Automotive tire


Then again, it wouldn't take much to convince me to accept a 1930 Cadillac Cabriolet, that has SIXTEEN cylinders to help it along.

Wheel Tire Vehicle Car Motor vehicle


Font Parallel Signage Document Paper


Daimler made a pretty cool car, too.

Tire Car Vehicle Land vehicle Wheel


Tire Wheel Automotive parking light Car Vehicle


Font Technology Suit Signage Advertising


Then, there' this ride that was, apparently, owned by Fatty Arbuckle. A sedate color was simply not his style.

Tire Wheel Car Vehicle Motor vehicle


Smile Font Poster Advertising Suit


You gotta love those Packards, though. So much bling.

Wheel Tire Car Vehicle Automotive tire


Automotive parking light Wheel Tire Motor vehicle Vehicle


Wheel Tire Automotive parking light Car Land vehicle


Wheel Motor vehicle Tire Vehicle Automotive tire


And, finally, the one I was so sure they'd let me have that I asked if I could have it. They said, "No." It's a 1932 Cadillac Phaeton, nicknamed "Bumblebee."

Tire Wheel Car Land vehicle Vehicle


Thanks for coming along. I hope you enjoyed the tour. This has been just a smattering of the Collection. It is the largest privately-held collection of vintage and antique motorcars on Earth. There's a whole other building full of them that you need to sign up for a tour to see. If you're in Southern California, make time for this. Admission is free, and it's closed only on Christmas. Parking, also, is free. It is, truly, all that and a great big jar of pickled pig's feet. (Or, a bag of chips, if you prefer that imagery.) Here's the website:

https://www.nethercuttcollection.org/
WOW. Great collection. It is sure good that these nice old cars are being preserved. We talk about that at car shows and think that in 30 years, the millennials won't put any value in our old cars!!

cheers, Jim
 

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