The Lights Fantastic : Museum’s Neon Cruise Shows Off the Glow of L.A.

Michael Hayden is fascinated by light. “It is a beguiling medium. It’s potent,” he says about the element he has incorporated into his neon sculptures for the last 25 years.

Hayden’s work, which includes a piece titled “Generators of the Cylinder” at the Los Angeles International Jewelry Center on Hill Street, is among the scores of neon artworks that adorn buildings throughout the city. And it is one of the stops along the route of the Neon Cruise, a trip through some lights fantastic that starts at the Museum of Neon Art (MONA), runs through downtown and the mid-Wilshire area, then to the Westside and Hollywood, before ending back at the museum.

“We want people to see what treasures are in their own back yard,” said Mary Carter, curator of MONA, which sponsors the monthly tours that began in August. “Neon signs are part of L.A. history and a very creative part of L.A. advertising. The goal of the cruise is to have fun and raise neon consciousness.”

Before embarking on the double-decker bus that transports the neon cruisers, patrons are free to view the museum’s exhibit, which changes every three to four months. The excursion first takes them to Broadway, a veritable trail of neon art. Sightseers can experience a trip into the past, as docent Betty Vick relates the history of the many movie marquees that line the avenue. G. Albert Lansbrugh’s Orpheum Theater (1911) and S. Charles Lee’s Los Angeles Theater (1931) are Baroque palaces that testify to the grandeur of the classic movie era. The lights of at least a half-dozen other theaters also sparkle on these sidewalks.

Just moments away is Hayden’s 270-foot-long “Generators of the Cylinder,” a series of 27 tubes lit in neon. Tour-goers may disembark to study the sculpture, which houses 27 infrared sensors that cause the lights to flicker in response to a human presence. “The piece is appreciative of human contact. It responds to body heat,” Hayden said.

“There’s some intelligence there,” he added, explaining that a computer regulates the various patterns of lights that can go unrepeated for up to 15 hours.

But despite the technological advances that Hayden embraces, he says his goal remains the same: to convey a sense of wonderment. “There’s a giddy, childish delight seeing something you haven’t seen before,” he said. “I love color and light. There’s an exuberance that is expressed.”

After the downtown portion of the tour, the bus moves to the mid-Wilshire area, where sightseers may view the Superet Light Church and its neon sign designed by founder Josephine DeCroix Trust in 1951. Then it’s on to the rooftop signs perched on the Ansonia and the Asbury apartment buildings, as well as the dazzling marquee of the Westlake Theater.

The bus next travels down Wilshire Boulevard to Unity Savings Bank in Beverly Hills. Lili Lakich, director and founder of MONA, is on hand to share the history of her sculpture, “Drive-In,” which is on display at the bank.

Until 1981, Delores’ Drive-In Restaurant was located at the site where the bank now stands, and Lakich was aware of the public outcry that ensued when the landmark restaurant was to be torn down. In 1985, when the bank’s interior designer approached her, asking for ideas for a sculpture for the bank, Lakich decided to create a work that commemorated the famous eatery. Her “Drive-In”--complete with ’57 Chevy fender--is the result.

Leaving Beverly Hills, the tour then takes in the sights of colorful Melrose Avenue, before proceeding up La Brea Avenue to Sunset Boulevard and, subsequently, Hollywood Boulevard. There’s a glimpse of Marilyn Monroe’s fluttering skirt at Cinema Collectors, a blinking, twinkling Coca-Cola sign and the unusual use of neon outlining the Hotel Hollywood before the trip finally concludes where it began.

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Lakich, who has been sculpting with neon since 1966, credits museum board member Joanne Cunha with the idea of starting the Neon Cruises. Most of the tours have sold out weeks in advance. A separate tour that will focus on neon in the San Fernando Valley is being planned for later this year.

Lakich says the growing interest in neon art is reflected in both the increased sales of neon artworks and the continued enrollment in MONA’s classes in neon design and techniques.

“I’ve been working in the medium for 23 years, but it’s only been in the last two years that I’ve been able to make a living,” Lakich said. “I hope it continues, but who knows?

“Neon is very American. A lot of people grew up with it. It’s important that people be aware of what’s going on in the city,” she added.

The Museum of Neon Art is located at 704 Traction Avenue, Los Angeles. Neon Cruises are scheduled for Feb. 11 and March 18 from 7 to 11 p.m. Tickets are $25 per person for non-members and $20 for MONA members. For additional information, call (213) 617-0274.