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Along with de Young and Cali Academy of Sciences, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) is one of the most popular museums in the city. It is an exhibit of modern and contemporary art dedicated to pieces during and after the 20th century. What I find so fascinating about modern art is its use of urban materials, modern cultural references, and its exotic creativity. You gotta be on psychedelics to come up with some of the stuff seen in the MOMA.
Getting In
The SFMOMA is located on Mission and 3rd, right next to the Yerba Buena Gardens.
Tickets are $25 for adults. You can just walk in and buy at the door. Luckily, my company offers free entrance!
My Favorite Artworks
My favorite is the series of Television pieces by Nam June Paik. His experimental artwork recognizes the influence of television media and the technologies that empower it. One of his strangest works consists of a bunch of synchronized TV’s hidden in bushes. Yeah, it’s weird asf but quite cool.
Haegue Yang’s Yearning Melancholy Red is one of the more fun and interactive art pieces. There is a drumkit in the middle of the room. Triggered by MIDI, the room’s lighting changes as you play the drums.
There’s a “living wall” outdoors. It’s a huge wall covered with vegetation. Makes for a pretty cool backdrop for photos.
My Thoughts & Vibes
I appreciate the artists’ creativity and their takes on art, but SFMOMA made me realize that personally, modern and contemporary art isn’t for my taste. My friends and I spent a lot of time confused at what we were looking at and just started cracking jokes about the exotic art pieces. Modern art is just strange. It’s pretty quiet in the exhibit but that is to be expected for a museum.
However, just because I didn’t enjoy it doesn’t mean you wouldn’t enjoy it. Everyone should visit SFMOMA at least once. What I can guarantee is that you will at least find something interesting and puzzling.