Emily Fox and Dan Kessler check out the Broad museum space on Bunker Hill on Sunday. Photos: Iris Schneider.
The Broad Museum held an open house on Sunday for the public to preview the space in advance of its September opening. The space is a feat of engineering, providing 13,000 square feet uninterrupted by interior columns. On the elevator ride up, a member of the engineering crew announced that the building "is one of the wonders of the world." It was also mentioned several times that the art elevator is the biggest in the city "despite what LACMA or MOCA may tell you." Only by a few inches apparently, but hey, who's counting?
The honeycomb windows allow only filtered light to enter and block the view of neighboring Walt Disney Hall. The splashy neighbor can only be seen through the windows on the north side of the building, but at sunset even a sliver is luminous. The jury on the Broad building is still out. Much will change with the interior space once the movable walls and art are installed. Reviews of the exterior are mixed. I think it's interesting to look at from the street, but feels very cocoonish inside. I found myself craving the light. For the art's preservation, they say, only filtered light will enter.
A sound and light installation on Sunday provided the public an opportunity to do some spontaneous shadow play, much to the chagrin of the artist, Yann Novak, who stood on the sidelines as adults and kids cavorted in the projector's light making hand puppets and hearts. "I wanted people to inhabit it and see themselves in it," Novak said. The public took his intention to heart, perhaps more than he anticipated. Tickets were $10 each.
Fun with shadows
A glimpse of Disney Hall from inside the Broad..
The exterior view.