Cyberspace

If you can believe it, there are some who consider Los Angeles to be a cultural wasteland. Well, as proof that we have more to offer than tan lines and palm trees, here is a list of (mostly) local museum Web sites. Location, hours of operation, kids’ sections, special events, news and membership are de rigueur.

* Art Central: Our Los Angeles County Museum of Art runs the artistic spectrum:Works from 6,000 BC to the present, spanning myriad cultures, time periods, styles and mediums are represented. Picasso and Van Gogh exhibits as well as “Rhapsodies in Black,” a 20th century Harlem Renaissance multi-arts exhibition are coming soon. When was the last time you visited? All this and more at https://www.lacma.org.

* Fenders to Fossils: The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County is the place to go to learn about saber-toothed cats, microbes, Africans and Africa, beetles, sharks, Exposition Park, dinosaurs, Hollywood, mineral sciences and even cars. The NHM can offer all this, because it includes the George C. Page Museum, the Petersen Automotive Museum and the Hart Ranch and Museum. Of special interest: the fossil excavation of Pit 91 at the La Brea Tar Pits, which opened July 19. The main NHM site, which has links to the others, is at https://www.lam.mus.ca.us/.

* Getty Up: The Getty Center opened with much fanfare, but you easily could have missed the launch of its Web site at https://www.getty.edu/. The Getty has collections of antiquities, decorative arts, photographs, paintings, manuscripts, drawings, sculpture and architecture. The Getty Information Institute (https://www.gii.getty.edu) is taking steps to “bridge art and technology.” You can read about all of this online, though you’ll miss the cool tram ride.

* Modern Masters: For fans of contemporary art by the likes of Christopher Wool, Jackson Pollack, Jean Michel Basquiat, David Salle, Robert Longo, David Hockney and Willem de Kooning, the Museum of Contemporary Art (https://www.MOCA-LA.org/) is a must-see.

* Ocean Art: In 1996, the Newport Harbor Art Museum and the Laguna Art Museum merged to become the Orange County Museum of Art. Check out https://www.ocartsnet.org/ocma/) to see what’s there now and what’s coming.

* Wiesenthal Online: The Simon Wiesenthal Museum of Tolerance (https://www.wiesenthal.com/mot/) is featuring an Israeli photo-biography to honor Israel’s 50th birthday. The site also has a moving feature called “Children of the Holocaust” in which biographies of children caught in the Holocaust are added daily. You can take an online tour of the museum and view special exhibits.

* Oriental Treasures: During your online museum odyssey, don’t forget our city’s Korean American Museum (https://home.lacn.org/lacn/kam/index2.html), the Japanese American National Museum (https://www.lausd.k12.ca.us/janm/) and the Museum of Chinese American History (https://www.primenet.com/~suellen/mcah/).

* Screen Scene: If your tastes run more toward Elvis, Monty Python, TV Guide and Lucy, don’t feel left out. You have the Museum of Television & Radio (https://www.mtr.org/). You can also see what’s going on at the MTR in New York.

* Still Out of Town: The Louvre’s site is in French, English, Spanish and Japanese, so people from all cultures can enjoy it. OK, so you know the “Mona Lisa” is there, but what else? Jan Van Eyck, Theodore Gericault or Raphael ring a bell? Check it out at https://mistral.culture.fr/louvre/.

* Smithsonian Collection: The Smithsonian Institution’s Web site (https://www.si.edu/newstart.htm) is your online gateway to the massive museum complex in the nation’s capital. The site has links to the National Air and Space Museum, the National Museums of African Art, the National Museum of American History, the National Museum of the American Indian and more. Much like its real-life counterpart, it’s best to allow more than a day to explore the Smithsonian’s Web site. It’s just huge.

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