Art Review: Huntington Museum American Art Collection

Last week, I profiled the Huntington, the exceptional and always satisfying botanical garden, museum, and library on the edge of Pasadena, Calif. Today, I’ll focus on the Huntington’s collection of American art, which developed in earnest and with alacrity starting in the 1980s and has little to do with Henry Huntington (1850–1927), the founder. It’s a museum within the museum, and it adds a lot to the Huntington’s impact and allure.

The Huntington, along with the Hammer in Los Angeles, is now hosting Made in LA 2020, the biennial of bleeding-edge work by living artists in this vast region. I’ll write more about it later this week. It’s a bewildering, overwhelming, and moving affair, with a dollop of schlock. It was a thrill to see it at the Huntington, which doesn’t show much contemporary art, and it’s looking great in the two new, spacious, welcoming museum buildings.

About the Author

Brian T. Allen

Brian T. Allen is National Review’s art critic.

Last week, I profiled the Huntington, the exceptional and always satisfying botanical garden, museum, and library on the edge of Pasadena, Calif. Today, I’ll focus on the Huntington’s collection of American art, which developed in earnest and with alacrity starting in the 1980s and has little to do with Henry Huntington (1850–1927), the founder. It’s a museum within the museum, and it adds a lot to the Huntington’s impact and allure.

The Huntington, along with the Hammer in Los Angeles, is now hosting Made in LA 2020, the biennial of bleeding-edge work by living artists in this vast region. I’ll write more about it later this week. It’s a bewildering, overwhelming, and moving affair, with a dollop of schlock. It was a thrill to see it at the Huntington, which doesn’t show much contemporary art, and it’s looking great in the two new, spacious, welcoming museum buildings.