Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego

Now free for military and their immediate family: D
Gorgeous museum with wonderful exhibits. Definitely a small museum — I like to look at everything and hang out with a few pieces and it only took maybe two hours tops to get through the whole place. Contemporary art isn’t my favorite genre but they have some great stuff here and the stunning ocean views are pretty great too.

I was expecting more, but nevertheless was impressed with the museum’s interesting space.
The Contemporary Art Museum of San Diego has a stellar location, with five-​star views of La Jolla’s picturesque waterfront. There’s a charming room tucked away in the back, where squares have been cut from its glass walls. In float the coastal breeze and melodic sounds of waves crashing at a distance — it’s unbelievably soothing.
Just steps from oceanic sounds and smells is a pretty special Álvaro Blancarte collection. His textured pieces have great dimension and are reminiscent of fissured mountains and rock. Blancarte’s exhibit is, in my opinion, the crown jewel of the current gallery.
While there are several other interesting pieces throughout the museum, I was continually bothered by one major installation faux pas — my reflection! In short, the museum’s lighting is terrible. Instead of being able to focus on the art before me, I continually felt like I was gazing into a mirror. The fluorescent bright lights cast extremely pronounced reflections on cased artwork, and ultimately detract from both the art and a visitor’s experience.
The gift shop is quite interesting, though it doesn’t strongly highlight the current exhibits. Either way, there is a mélange of creative areaware, books, stationery, and jewelry, with contributions from several local artists.

Bomb service and food! Must try! This is only the beginning for me San Diego! Follow me for daily reviews on grub, fun, etc!

I am not a fan of Museums or Art but I do occasionally enjoy going to one to take some cool pics or see some interesting art pieces. MOCA San Diego in La Jolla had none. They didn’t allow photos :(Anyway, pretty small museum — tiny floors indoor and an outside garden. The best thing here is definitely the ocean view. If you are under 25, you get to go in for free. Over 25 is $ 10 but its $ 5 if you have a student ID.

I’ve been here a few times over the years. I’m not a huge fan of contemporary art but some of it is just plain fun and makes me smile. As I told my husband, sometimes it gives me an idea for a project we could do ourselves around the house!
We went today using the Macy’s Museum month pass… making it quite a deal. And the cool thing is that our tickets are valid for 7 days, so if we want to go to the downtown location in the next week we can do that.
We had just come from Birch Aquarium — which was fun but super crowded & noisy with lots of kids on field trips. This was a good «decompression» experience, very calm & peaceful. Like some others have said, there are great views from inside the museum that can be as interesting as some of the art! The outdoor garden is nice, too.

Loved it. Some of the art was different but that’s what it’s all about. It was different and I loved it. Check it out.

Hitting up this museum is a great way to spend an afternoon. When we visited, most of the exhibition space was dedicated to local artists and artists with a strong San Diego connection. The installation that is essentially an awe-​inspiring ocean view was a pleasant surprise. As was coming across one of Warhol’s Liz Taylor pieces.
My only qualm is that I was expecting the museum to be a bit bigger with more if its permanent collection on display. We had originally purchased our tickets at the downtown location that had some interesting installations. We had no idea we were going to be directed to the La Jolla location to view the rest of the art.

Very organized venue. Recently I went to a book panel and signing for Sophia Amoruso aka #GIRLBOSS. Everyone working the event got everyone in and out in a timely manor without waiting very long to get in or out.
Along with that the tickets were very affordable with a lot of perks.
Overall if there is another event here I will definitely attend, thank you for such a great experience!

Great place, great view, I wish I could appreciate art more. I attended their «Shore Thing» event, during the summer during thursday the museum is free and there is guided tours, music, food and you can bring your own food and picnic blanket. How cute it that?
It was easy to find street parking. I didn’t have any problem and I horrible at finding parking.
I went there straight from work in my casual pant and a light sweater. Once I got inside, I looked around and felt so out of place. Most of the ladies were in such cute outfits. Went around the museum and I noticed, a lot of the gentlemen were making conversation with the pretty ladies here. Didn’t realize it was such a good place to meet people. Got to tell my single guy friends about this; they are missing out on all the action! Forget the clubs and bar! Meet your future spouse at the museum!
The day I went they were displaying Nicole Eisenman’s work. Her work were too sad for me. Some of her works I can appreciate especially with the help of the tour guide.

I love it here.
Beautiful inside and out.
Traffic in the area is a pain, but sometimes u get lucky.
Ppl are nice and I always find something cool in the gift shop.

Similar to other reviews, I was slightly surprised by the size of this museum. It’s very small and there aren’t that many pieces of art in it. You can walk through the museum very quickly.
Something special about this museum is the location. The views of the La Jolla shores are incredible. From inside the museum, there’s a beautiful viewing area. There’s also a very nice sculpture garden with a very short outdoor walking path that opens you up to the ocean breeze.
Anyone age 25 and under gets in free! Take advantage of this deal and come check it out. They also have a quaint café that looked beautiful. It had outdoor seating are and was very packed when I passed by!

I’m not the caftan-​and-​martini type who can look at a piece of modern art and wax on about its meaning. Do you remember Woody Allen’s classic pick-​up scene in «Play It Again, Sam»? (clip:
)…
Allan: That’s quite a lovely Jackson Pollock, isn’t it?
Museum Girl: Yes, it is.
Allan: What does it say to you?
Museum Girl: It restates the negativeness of the universe. The hideous lonely emptiness of existence. Nothingness. The predicament of Man forced to live in a barren, Godless eternity like a tiny flame flickering in an immense void with nothing but waste, horror and degradation, forming a useless bleak straitjacket in a black absurd cosmos.
Allan: What are you doing Saturday night?
Museum Girl: Committing suicide.
Allan: What about Friday night?
The art excels, but for the life of me, I couldn’t name any of the pieces on display here. The ocean view setting is what resonates the most in this sparse modern museum. I happen to get there at sunset, and I was probably more entranced by the Pacific framed by the golden hue of the sun than I was of the art in the room (photo:
). Once the residence of philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps, it’s not a huge space by modern art standards, only 60 pieces, but that apparently is changing since they are readying to triple the size of the museum.
I shall return when the expansion is complete because they have over 4,000 pieces in storage now. I assume they must rotate the pieces since I didn’t see the Warhol or Ai Weiwei works I was hoping to see. If you come a half-​hour before closing, they let you in for free, and I took advantage of that just to save the ten bucks. I entertained myself in their gift shop in the meantime. But you should come regardless. It is a spectacular location, and there was even a donor cocktail party in full swing in the patio below. Perhaps they can tell you about the deeper meanings of the paintings and the sculpture garden. I sure can’t. No caftan on me. Yet.

Excited to hear about the plans for the remodel and expansion at the La Jolla location.
Rumor has it most of the collection is in storage… And all those rich folks, who took their hard earned cash, buying art, then donating it to the museum just to have them sit in storage, They must be pissed! I mean, wouldn’t you be?
Parking is a bitch. It’s whatever you can scavenge on the streets.
The staff here are always fantastic. I’m not quite sure about the poor reviews about people skills from my fellow Unilocalers. I’ve experienced only the best. Sometimes the guard with the heavy accent will tell you something juicy about a piece of work. He’s got the insider information. Trust me. He knows.

It is a nice space with a beautiful view of the beach and ocean.
They had a fine exhibit recently on loan from the Tamayo Museum in Mexico City, if they had given that full space, I would have given this a five star review, there were pieces ranging from Picasso to Tamayo that were exceptional, and the galleries are such that they were put to good display.
However, there were a number of displays ranging from visual arts from UCSD students that were not great… to a truly awful exhibit featuring «artist» Tim Youd who uses the same make and model typewriter used by Raymond Chandler in this case, and types a novel on a single sheet of paper, which is backed by an additional sheet. The «artist» runs this paired paper through the typewriter repeatedly, until every word of the novel has been retyped. When done, the two pages… positive and negative image… are mounted as a pair, representing two pages of an open book… for all intents and purposes… it is an 8 ½″ x 11″ blob… and it also featured cardboard «sculptures» of the typewriters used. There is good art and there is bad art… this art is horrible.
The gift shop was well stocked, but imo, badly curated as the vast majority of offerings were not relevant to exhibits and many of the offshore mass-​produced items were readily available online at significantly lower prices… would have preferred works by local artists with references to such, and their relationship to the «local» scene, which would have been significantly more relevant, and enticing to purchase.

I’ve passed by this museum so many times, as it’s recognizable by the boat sculpture outside facing the beach, and was a college student nearby. But I actually visited it for the first time recently. I came for The Shore Thing that was an ongoing Thursday evening event for the summer. Along with complimentary admission to the exhibits, there was food, drink, and music out on their ocean view patio. It was a nice event with a good crowd, and you can’t beat the view, especially during sunset. Even from inside, their wall to ceiling windows provide a beautiful backdrop to the art you’re observing.
Before coming here, I read a few reviews and took note of the security guards. I actually didn’t really have an issue with them when I visited. I suppose they were a little more lax because it was an event. Their presence was known, but not necessarily felt. However, before I entered each gallery, I asked each guard whether it was okay to take photos, kind of as a way to let them know I came in peace. And they were very helpful and nice about informing me what was appropriate.
That being said, I liked walking through the exhibits and looking at what they had on display. Outside, the pizza and craft beer booths only accepted cash, but the DJ played some nice beats. The whole ambiance of the event was really laid back and social, and I noticed the majority of the staff during that hour to be outgoing 20-​somethings. I’ll have to visit during normal hours to see if there’s any difference.

Loooveee this place!
Not only does this museum constantly have new and unique exhibits, it’s right next to the ocean so as you browse and enjoy the art pieces you also get a great beautiful view of the ocean as well. I came here when a friend was visiting me here in SD, and I would have to say that this may be one of those go-​to attractions for entertaining your friends and family from out of town.
I would give 5 stars, but what made me feel really uncomfortable was how much it felt like the security guards would watch us like hawks, as if we were delinquents… When we went there were very few people because it was later in the day, and perhaps they just needed something to do… but it was kind of uneasy to feel like we were being followed when we were just trying to enjoy the art pieces. So for that reason they get 4 stars.
There’s a little gift shop, which doesn’t have as many unique things as other museums have, but nonetheless still interesting to stop by as well.
As it is a contemporary art museum, things are of course very modern, and some very abstract. So if that’s something that peaks your interest and even if it doesn’t there’s still some really cool pieces in there.

I don’t know why this place has so many good reviews. I really wasn’t very impressed with it. Even though the building is large, they don’t have a whole lot of art. And the few exhibits they do have don’t have very good flow to them and I didn’t really find my visit enjoyable. On the plus side I will say I had a positive experience with the staff. Even though we got in free with a reciprocal membership from our local museum the girl at the ticket counter was friendly. And the guards were helpful to us; I didn’t sense any of the rudeness that the other reviewers mentioned.
The best part about this museum is the amazing ocean view. I honestly found myself looking at the scenery thru the windows more than the art. I did really enjoy the sculpture garden, however. The art pieces were really cool and the garden itself is quite beautiful. That’s the only thing that made it worth the trip for me.

I always love stopping by for new exhibits. This location is great being that is is right next to the ocean. An awesome place to take someone that isn’t from San Diego. What is really great is if you’re under 25 years old, it is free.
This location has a little gift shop which is very nice. I would like to note the cards, very unique and a lot better than the ones you can find at a typical Walmart or Target. There are various rooms for different exhibits and some more contemporary than others. It is very spacious and a lot of room for each piece of art so that you can focus on one rather than an overflowing amount of pieces where you get overwhelmed.
One thing I’ve noticed is that the security, or the people that stand around making sure you don’t touch anything or have your sticker on you are absolutely UNPLEASANT. They are always rude and demanding. They always look miserable and when ask for your entrance sticker act like you stole something or that it is crazy that you didn’t place your sticker somewhere visible. That alone can ruin someone’s experience…
I would rate this location 5 stars if it weren’t for that. The location in downtown were almost similar in being hawked down as well. I also felt like because we were younger in generation than most of the people that visited, they had some notion like we were going to ruin a piece or some other ridiculous assumption.
I was horrified.

This is a review of Spike & Mike Festival of Sick & Twisted Animation which has moved to La Jolla Museum of Contemporary Art.
I mentioned to a friend in general conversation about a Film Festival called Spike & Mike’s Sick and Twisted Festival of Animation that I attended in the early 1990 – 1991. Several days later I found myself walking down Newport Ave in Ocean Beach when someone handed me a flyer, I looked at the flyer and there it was ‘Spike & Mike’s’ festival returning after a 5 year hiatus, I knew we had to attend. I remember attending 20+ years ago and watching several folks bail out of theater, I am not sure if they knew what they were in for.
I went online and purchased tickets for Spike & Mike’s and selected to attend on industry night (09-​05-​2013), which happened to be the only screening during the week, the rest of the dates are Friday & Saturday dates only. I paid $ 15 dollars per ticket plus a small $ 1.50 processing fee. Spike & Mike’s is being aired at the La Jolla Museum of Contemporary Art; ‘free’ street parking surrounds this area. Upon arriving at the ‘will call’ I obtained my tickets with no troubles, the employee working the ‘will call’ provided my friend and I with ‘barf bags’ which I thought was quite funny. Purchase 6 or more tickets online and you will receive a ‘free’ Spike & Mike DVD.
The film festival started right on time 7:00pm. The total length was just about 1 hour and 45 minutes, I wish it was longer.
If you are unfamiliar with Spike & Mike here is a little background. The Sick and Twisted Festival of Animation began in 1990 at Wheeler Auditorium at UC Berkeley. This is an unrated, adult version (18 years old, I.D. might be required) featuring gross-​out cartoons. In the Festival’s early days, Spike and Mike would take the stage and introduce the films. Frequently Spike’s dog «Scottie» would take the stage and be driven to shred just about anything (up to the size of a two man inflatable raft) by the audience cheers and applause.
Before the «Festival of Animation» it was difficult to see independent, experimental, and foreign animation. Spike and Mike went on yearly world-​wide film hunting expeditions. They signed-​on animation from the National Film Board of Canada, Cal Arts, Sheridan, Royal College of Art, Annecy, and select studios active amongst the art-​house scene that did not have a public venue. In the 1990s Spike & Mike screened early films from such animators as Nick Park, Marv Newland, Tim Burton (yes that Tim Burton), Barry Purves, John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, Will Vinton, and more. Spike & Mike’s is where cult classic shows like Ren & Stimpy, Beavis & Butt-​head & Futurama got their start.
This year’s festival was classic. I applaud the Museum of Contemporary Art for airing film festivals like this. The auditorium itself was nice; the auditorium was clean, large, comfortable seats, clean bathrooms and had adequate Air Conditioning.
Because my friend and I attended during the week concession stands were not set up. If you are attending on Friday or Saturday I was advised that concession stands are set up just outside of the doors of the museum.
The films themselves were classic. I have not laughed so hard in quite some time, I did not need the barf bag but it will definitely be a keepsake in put in the time machine=)

This one is smaller compared to the one at downtown SD, however, still worth checking it out. It’s located near the beautiful coastal la jolla so when you stepped outside of the museum, you get a beautiful view of the beach!
The «Photography in Mexico» exhibits runs through April 14. It’s various collections of photos taken from artist Manual Alvarez Bravo. Mainly black ‘n white photos taken in Mexico that exemplifies and showcases the historical culture of socio-​economic landscape, identity, spirituality, and society. — Interesting to check it out. (³⁄₅)
The «Edwards Sculpture Garden» has sculptures that are life-​size/​tall! Some are colorful, some are more of dark toned colors, and some were the alumimum color collections. I thought this was more interesting for my taste and definitely capured my attention. (⁴⁄₅)
The rest of collections are indoor and defintely represents a variety of media and genres in painting, sculpture, photography, works on paper. I liked the pop art of the 60s and 70s! (⁴⁄₅)
Overall a nice place to enjoy some artwork and coastal view of la jolla. I’d love to check out the one at downdown SD next time I’m in town! =)
NOTE:
*FREE 3^rd Thurs every month 5 – 7 pm!
*Closed on Wednesdays
*Students age 25 and under are FREE!
*Students over age 25 is just $ 5!
*There’s a café conveniently for you to enjoy breakfast/​brunch/​lunch!
*There’s the X Store. aka…gift shop