Jung's Red Book exhibition ends on June 6 and I keep telling myself to drive to Los Angeles to see it before it is too late. But, I kept procrastinating. I've never been to the Hammer Museum and I am getting more reticent to drive around the city alone than I used to, especially to places unknown to me. (I do not like this part of growing older!) This morning and early afternoon I spent at the 80th birthday brunch of a dear friend and at 1:30 p.m., when it ended, I decided, on the spur of the moment, to drive to Westwood to the Hammer Museum where the exhibition is. My choice of a day was perfect--very little traffic on the 405 and the museum was not crowded.
Though the exhibition itself was somewhat anti-climatic given that I've been reading the actual Red Book, and because the room was small with no place to sit and contemplate, I felt somewhat frustrated. And yet, when I got home, I wrote in my journal a long time and I haven't been doing much of that lately either. This Friday night is the last lecture--Jack Kornfield and Katharine Sanford. To my delight, all the lectures are available at the website above. Photos were not allowed, even with flash suppressed but the Red Book itself, which was a gift from one of my son's for Christmas, provides far more information than the exhibit provided.
I was absolutely enchanted with the Hammer Museum which is part of UCLA. It's easy to get to, parking is available at a decent rate, and it's right off the 405. All the other exhibitions I saw today were excellent--well worth the drive. In the courtyard, outside the Billy Wilder Theater, five musicians were playing what I call tone poems and the acoustics were excellent. Seeing the actual Hammer Collection including many masterpieces by artists who are household names was a high point. I stood in front of this Van Gogh of the asylum in Arles mesmerized me. I will return to this venue repeatedly now that I've "found" it.
If you would like to read in depth about this exhibition, the first link will tell you many details. The Hammer website is a very good one.
I started thinking about my reticence to drive to the museum alone today and it kind of puzzled me. I have been to New York five times with students and went all over the city alone using public transportation. I've driven alone throughout New England, including Boston, and have seen a lot of Washington state by myself in a rental car. I am going to Washington again this summer, but now I am beginning to feel anxious about that.
For years I've been meaning to visit the Jung Institute in Los Angeles and today's visit to the Hammer has me adding that to my summer list of places to go and things to see.
In only three weeks I'll be off for the summer and I'm trying to get organized so the days don't just slip by.
