14 museums to visit in 2014
This was voted the top U.S. museum for 2013 on TripAdvisor, but that’s not why you should visit. Go because of its encyclopedic collections, particularly of Impressionist, Postimpressionist and American art. It seems as if just about every painting studied in art history class is here: Georges Seurat’s “A Sunday on La Grande Jatte-1884,” Monet’s “Water Lilies,” Edward Hopper’s “Nighthawks,” Grant Wood’s “American Gothic.” In 2009, the Renzo Piano-designed Modern Wing opened, making the Art Institute the second-largest art museum in the country. The wing’s top floor, which houses its Picassos and Matisses, is being renovated and will reopen in April. (Those masterpieces are on loan through Feb. 16 to the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth, which also recently opened a Renzo Piano Pavilion.) Upcoming: “Magritte: The Mystery of the Ordinary, 1926-1938,” June 24-Oct. 13. Info: www.artic.edu (Richard Derk / Los Angeles Times)
Large or small, urban or rural, old or new, classic or contemporary, portraits or Pop art, here are 14 art museums to visit in 2014.
-- Anne Harnagel
This is a bright cultural beacon in this city’s otherwise dismal landscape, with masterpieces such as Diego Rivera’s “Detroit Industry” fresco cycle and Van Gogh’s “Self Portrait,” the first of his paintings to enter a U.S. museum collection. Its diverse holdings make DIA worth a visit, but the city’s bankruptcy leaves the museum’s assets vulnerable to sale to help settle the $18-billion debt. As a step toward “monetizing” the collection, Christie’s auction house in December reported the fair market value of 2,800 city-owned pieces (about 5% of the collection), some of the finest in its collection, at as much as $867 million. Info: www.dia.org
Pictured: A panel of Diego Rivera’s “Detroit Industry” fresco cycle. (Carlos Osorio / Associated Press)
Give this one a chance. The Pérez, which opened in December, may be worth visiting more for its waterfront site on Biscayne Bay and airy design by Herzog & De Meuron than for the art on its walls. The local art world was up in arms when Related Group Chief Executive Jorge M. Pérez stepped in with cash and art worth $40 million to make up a funding gap for the museum. It remains to be seen whether collectors, miffed that his gift led to his name being affixed to the museum — funded largely with taxpayer money and sitting on public land — will ante up with donations of much-needed artwork. On view through March 16: “Ai Weiwei: According to What?” — the first major international survey of work by this Chinese activist and artist. Info: www.pamm.org
Pictured: The installation “For Those in Peril on the Sea” by Hew Locke. (Lynne Sladky / Associated Press)
This museum, opened in 2011 and tucked away on 120 acres, springs from founder and art patron Alice Walton of Wal-Mart fame and fortune, who spent millions of dollars on the building with millions more designated for art acquisitions. The collection, which spans five centuries of American art, has something for all tastes, whether it’s Gilbert Stuart’s “George Washington” or Andy Warhol’s “Dolly Parton.” The museum has recently acquired three more Warhols: the black-and-white “Coca-Cola [3],” an untitled work created by the artist while a student and a series of Polaroids. Upcoming: “The William S. Paley Collection: A Taste for Modernism,” a touring blockbuster organized by New York’s Museum of Modern Art, is on view March 15-July 7. Info: www.crystalbridges.org (Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times)
This jagged-roof museum, which opened in November in the swank Polanco district, houses an impressive permanent collection consisting mostly of works created after 1990 by Mexican artists and others. As assembled by Eugenio López Alonso, heir to the Grupo Jumex fruit juice company, it’s said to be one of the most important in Latin America. Four inaugural exhibitions are on display throughout much of this year, including one pairing pieces from its permanent collection with a show of sculptures by the late American artist Fred Sandback, as well as sculptures by Mexican artist Damián Ortega commissioned for the museum courtyard. Info: www.fundacionjumex.org/site/museojumex (Stefanie Keenan / Getty Images)
Marseille was named a European capital of culture for 2013 and now has a museum worthy of that honor. The museum opened in June on reclaimed land at the entrance to the harbor and adjacent to 17th century Fort Saint-Jean, also part of the museum. The collection of this first full-scale national museum outside Paris includes 130,000 prints, drawings and paintings; 450,000 photographs; and a rich assortment of textiles. A top-floor restaurant and bar offer expansive views of the bay of Marseille. Info: www.mucem.org/en (Boris Horvat / AFP/Getty Images)
