Freebie Tuesday

My Photo of the interior of SFMOMA

If you are like me you can be very frugal with your entertainment dollars and Tuesday’s outing was an attempt to keep cost at minimum. I like museums, just do not like to pay for them, and the first Tuesday of each month allows for me to have my art with out spending a dime on entrance fees. The De Young Museum, SF Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA), the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, Legion of Honor, Cartoon Art and the Asian Art Museum has free Admission on the first Tuesdays of each month.

There are two photographer’s I have been waiting and wanting to see their exhibitions but have put it off but given the museums are offering free admission I had no excuse and headed off to the De Young and stopped in at SFMOMA on the way back.

(I do have dining and drinking tips for the excursion)

So I headed out on public transportation, did not want to pay the bridge toll and then for parking downtown for the stop at SFMOMA. Once in San Francisco I caught the “N Judah Line” and headed for the Inner Sunset. This is a great trip because it takes you through the Castro up Duboce Avenue to Duboce Park head to Cole Valley (Haight District), pops into the Sunset Tunnel and then drops on to Irving in the Inner Sunset. For best access to get off at the Irving and 9^th Avenue exit, walk North up Ninth the museum is about six blocks in Golden Gate Park If you are not into Museums the Inner Sunset is a great neighborhood to explore.

The De Young went through a major renovation a few years back, it is very opened and airy. The new observation tower, nine floors from the ground, is the tallest structure in the Sunset or Richmond Districts. The view is awesome on a clear day, worth the trip alone. But I came to see the photography of David Seymour. . The photographs in this collection—over seventy works—span his career, from his early years in France to photographs taken in Egypt in 1956 during the Suez crisis, when his life and that of photographer Jean Roy were cut short by Egyptian machine gun fire. Besides his photojournalistic photos Seymour was very engaging and cosmopolitan character allowed him to approach some of the leading personalities of the day to be the subject of his camera. Portraits include Pablo Picasso, Peggy Guggenheim, Bernard Berenson, Arturo Toscanini, Ingrid Bergman, Kirk Douglas, and Audrey Hepburn.

Here is an example of his work.

A little lunch and drink after all that art. There are three great bars in the neighborhood, Yancy’s Saloon (on Irving), Fireside (on Irving), Mucky Duck (on 9^th), and the Little Shamrock (on Lincoln Way). For Burgers try Darla’s or Sliders. I like Darla’s a lot very juicy burger. If you are into Japanese food then you hit the jackpot in the Inner Sunset, too many to recommend just stop and try, but I will tell you that I love the noodles at Hotei on 9^th. Today it was Darla’s and a beverage ay the Mucky Duck as I waited for the train back downtown.

The trip on Muni from the Inner Sunset to Downtown is about 20 minutes, non commute time, when the transit organization is running on time. So be patient on the trip back.

At SFMOMA went to see the Italian photographer and architect Gabriele Basilico: From San Francisco to Silicon Valley. The prints were visually incredible, but it was another photographer An-My Lê who captured more of my attention with her collection titled: Small Wars. The Andy Warhol and the Matisse were pluses on the visit. At the Yerba Buena Center for the art the had a collection focusing on Tibet. If you are into more modern and relevant art that almost American knows, try the Cartoon Museum around the corner. Well worth the stop.

Before heading back to the East Bay, stopped at Harrington’s on Front Street, to . . . let say . . . soak in all the day had to offer. Harrington’s is a great stop to see the working crowd, drink reasonably priced drinks.

Next Month it out to the Richmond District to see the Annie Leibovitz: A Photographer’s Life, show.

De Young
http://www.famsf.org/index.asp

SFMOMA
http://www.sfmoma.org/

Cartoon Museum
http://www.cartoonart.org

Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
http://www.ybca.org/visit/gallery.aspx

Asian Art Museum
http://asianart.org/

Legion of Honor
http://www.famsf.org/legion/visiting/index.asp