oakland museum of california

Stephen and I have lived in the bay area over two years and we are still checking places off of our list to visit.  Recently, we went to the Oakland Museum of California.  We went in the middle of the day on a week day and it felt like we had the whole place to ourselves.

 The museum entrance. The museum was renovated in 2010.  I didnt get a great shot of the exterior.  I loved how the museum incorporated indoor, outdoor, and gallery space.  It is definitely worth googling. The architect who re-designed the museum, Mark Cavagnero, is said to have preserved the feel and concept of the original architect, Kevin Roche.  It really is a beautiful building.

 Loved this Viola Frey statue.  You can find another one of her statues, ethnic man, at the UMFA

 Going to a museum with a baby can be challenging.  He lasted about 15 minutes then we decided to lay out a blanket and let him crawl around outside while we took turns looking at the exhibits.

 These toys were on display as part of the weCustomize exhibit.  The museum allowed visitors to create these toys by re-constructing pieces from other toys.

 Loved this map that showed the diversity of the museum visitors.

 Hung Liu's exhibit was by far my favorite at the museum.  They didn't allow photography in the gallery, unfortunately, but you can find much of her work online.  Liu is a chinese-american artist whose works are personal, political, and very emotional.  My favorite part of the exhibit is a series of paintings she did after her mother's death.  She painted 51 small paintings within 49 days of her mother's passing.  I cannot even try to describe the emotion i felt when i looked at the series.

Museum rules were pretty humorous

Hand-Cranked drum set in the weCreate exhibit.  

Overall, we had a great time at the museum.  The museum had a great mix of history, fine art, and interaction.  It made me appreciate all the talent and amazing things we have in the state!