Things to do with kids in LA: Hollywood Bowl 2012 Line-Up

How cute is Gustavo Dudamel? At a press event for the Hollywood Bowl’s 2012 season, he trotted out on stage to explain what most excited him about the summer’s programming. (See him? Gazing upwards trying to decide where to begin with the summer’s exciting line-up?). With a twinkle in his eye, he talked about all his Latin friends who will join him onstage this summer (Placido Domingo, Panamanian Rubén Blades, Columbian Juanes and Dominican Juan Luis Guerra,) as well as his long-term plans for the LA Phil.

Worth the Drive: Richard Diebenkorn: The Ocean Park Series at the Orange County Museum of Art

Driving over an hour to see some art may seem like a crazy idea, especially on Easter Sunday.  The way I had it figured, everyone feels a little bit reverent about something – my husband about going to Dodger Stadium, for instance – and the early work of Richard Diebenkorn had been likened to stain glassed windows. If the de Menils could build a Rothko Chapel, could I hope to find some peace surrounded by such soothing and beautiful paintings? …

SNEAK PEEK: Herb Ritts: L.A. Style at The Getty Center

Say Herb Ritts and statuesque black and white images of the world’s most beautiful people come to mind. The artist’s sleek images of famous folks in glamorous poses feel as though they’ve been part of our fame-obsessed culture forever. But Hollywood didn’t always have such a sway on our hearts and minds, and the new show, Herb Ritts: L.A. Style, which opened April 3 at the Getty, does a nice job explaining how one photographer’s vision and expertise changed fashion photography …

Deciphering Another, Thread by Thread: Aligheiro Boetti by Afghan Women

As a very young girl, I was taught to embroider by my grandmother, and so passed along these skills to my daughter when she was in elementary school and spent hours doing craft projects. It’s meaningful to me when skills, whether carpentry or sport or cooking, are communicated from generation to generation. Of course, these moments provide far more than just physical instruction. Grandfathers teach their sons and grandsons to fly cast; families pass long recipes, card tricks and other …

SNEAK PEEK: The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts Beverly Hills

Wondering what’s going on behind the boarded up walls at Canon and Santa Monica Boulevards in Beverly Hills? We got a hard hat tour this week, and find ourselves wishing it were September 2013 and we were getting dressed for one of the gala premieres of our city’s latest performing arts stage! The Wallace Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts will present theater, dance, music, and professional children’s theater to Beverly Hills. What you can’t see is the parking garage …

The Los Angeles Philharmonic

We know of no better way to introduce children to music and musicians than the Toyota Symphonies for Youth, a series of four concerts that are geared to intrigue a new audience. Starting with an hour of related art and music projects on the roof of Disney Hall, and featuring a one-hour performance in the magnificent concert space, adults will be as thrilled as kids at this opportunity to get to know the orchestra and the music.

The Annenberg Space for Photography

Digital Darkroom, an exciting new show at The Annenberg Space for Photography, opens this weekend and should be required viewing for anyone with a camera — you’ll quickly be inspired to take your creativity to a new level, right at the comfort of your computer. Sponsored by Adobe Photoshop, and displayed in the most advanced digital facility possible, the whole family will enjoy seeing the variety of the manipulated images – from dogs dressed as people to incredible athletic portraits to dream-like flights of the imagination.

Skirball Cultural Center

Inspired by the bestselling book by Nicholas D.Kristof and his wife, Sheryl WuDunn, Women Hold Up Half the Sky tackles a major human rights issue of our time, the oppression of women and girls around the world. Come visit the show at the Skirball Cultural Center, and explore how you can help. Click here for details from the Skirball’s website. And click here to read our full review of this important show.

Families should always grab a a chance to drop in on the inimitable Noah’s Ark exhibition and learn about the storm, the animals on the ark and hope. A

The Getty Center

For Younger Children: We love the new Art Scoops program, a series of concise stories behind many of the most important works at the museum that kids can check out online before their visit.

For everyone: The Getty Research Institute has been instrumental in the organization of Pacific Standard Time, a remarkable city wide exploration of postwar art in Los Angeles. The scale of Pacific Standard Time is vast, but avid art lovers will figure out that the exhibits at our largest institutions allow for a chronological survey – all of which is trackable on the PST website.

Note:The Central Garden will be closed for major hard scape renovation from February 14 – May 27.

Gothic Grandeur: Manuscript Illumination from 1200-1350 is on view now through mid-May and, we’ve discovered that because the curator of this department is so creative, looking at these gorgeous miniature illustrations is always a treat. This show is fun because the museum is ‘turning the pages’ of the show half-way through (between February 26-28). If you think you’ve see this show, perhaps you haven’t!

LACMA

Come to LACMA this spring- there is plenty to keep families busy, and the art is particularly family friendly right now.
First of is what is sure to be the beginning of a beautiful friendship between a piece of art and LA’s kids… and, that goes for adults as well. Chris Burden’s METROPOLIS II is a four-story model of a futuristic city, where driver-less cars whiz around calibrated freeways. With die-cast cars, architecture that is colorful if not downright friendly (in stark contrast to sleek, industrial structures so common to futuristic depictions), and a vision of a well-balanced urban design, this sculpture will put you and yours in a grand frame of mind. Click here for more of our review. Be sure to check that the cars will be operating when you stop by the museum. They are only turned on during specific hours on the weekend.