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The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and Andy Warhol!

I went to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) expecting to be entertained and amused, I was not expecting to be moved. But I was – moved and impressed. Maybe I’ve matured or maybe it depends on the artist and type of modern art. It also helps greatly to read the inscriptions about the art, so you can understand a bit about the style and what the artist was thinking. Can you tell I’m not an art student or appreciator?? Anyway, here’s the lowdown on my visit.

SFMOMA

SFMOMA bills themselves as one of the largest museums of modern and contemporary art in the United States. I wouldn’t know about that but I do know the building has seven floors and I only saw a small portion of the displayed art. I could definitely go back again and again. I was impressed with how large the rooms were, with plenty of standing space and comfortable padded benches arranged throughout. In fact, the original planners went above and beyond to make the museum accessible to everyone. READ about Accessibility here.

Ticket Prices

Tickets for adults are $25 with additional costs for special exhibits (like Andy Warhol). I paid $35 for entry to Warhol and the rest of the museum. The really cool thing though, children and teens up to age 18 are free! For special exhibits too! Click here for more on various ticket prices.

Samples of SFMOMA’s Exhibits

I spent most of my time in the Andy Warhol exhibit (spread out over three floors) but here is some of the other art I saw:

The Coffee Pot, by Pablo Picasso, 1944 (Picasso managed to make a coffee pot and mug look sexual)
Stony Path, by Franz Marc, 1911/1912 (depicting an icy path to the top of the alps)

Andy Warhol Exhibit

Okay – on to Andy Warhol. The main exhibit and the one you pay extra for is on the 4th floor, but there is plenty of great Warhol to see on floors 2 and 5. I took photos of his wall art, but the museum also showcases some of his videos, TV shows and collections of paraphernalia. It wasn’t too crowded, and I was there on a Sunday,  because tickets are sold on a timed entry basis and that really keeps the crowds under control.

Early Commercial Art –

Notice how sexual he made this!

4th Floor Exhibit –

Dick Tracy by Andy Warhol

Marilyn Diptych, Andy Warhol, 1962 – the black and white side represents her after death.
Liz #6, Andy Warhol, 1963

Nine Jackies, Andy Warhol, 1964
192 One Dollar Bills by Andy Warhol, 1962 (Warhol enjoyed emphasizing the frilly wig and shirt collar of George Washington’s clothing).

Skulls, Guns, Crosses, Andy Warhol, late 1970s – early 1980s. (Warhol was a life-long Catholic).

Cow Wallpaper, Andy Warhol, 1965

Celebrity Paintings by Warhol, 5th floor –

Blondie by Andy Warhol

Aretha Franklin by Andy Warhol
John Travolta by Andy Warhol
Cher by Andy Warhol
Jody Foster by Andy Warhol

Before I left the museum I spent a lot of time in the coolest room of all – and you don’t have to pay an entrance fee to get there. It is located at the Howard Street entrance on the 1st floor. The art installation is called –

The Chronicles of San Francisco

The Chronicles is a three walled panel of about 1200 people, filmed in black and white and put together in a collage. When you first look at it you might think that only a few people are moving but as you zero in you will notice that every single one of them is moving in slow motion. I could have stayed there for an hour. I will definitely come back. It is brilliant and my poor photo and accompanying video (see below) does not nearly do justice to it. But I have to say, my video shows some of the people watching the Chronicles and that is pretty cool too.

For More Info . . .

SFMOMA is located at 151 Third Street with entrances on Third Street and Howard Street. Parking is easy as they have a parking garage below the museum at 147 Minna Street.  I stumbled on it – Minna street looks like a little alley and I didn’t even see a parking sign, but it’s there!

For more information about hours and everything about the museum, go to their website.

2 Comments

  1. Warhol was sooo freakin’ awesome. I was an art major (never finished) but grew to love his work. This is an awesome diverse blog! Cool!

    • KarenGough KarenGough

      Thanks so much Stephen! I didn’t know much about Warhol till I saw this amazing exhibit. I loved his work.

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