As a special contribution to San Diego LGBT Weekly’s Arts issue, I thought I would see what’s happening at museums around the county that may be less known than big institutions such as the San Diego Museum of Art, the Timken and the Midway carrier museum. I tend to go where I know and like what I like, but surprise is at the heart of art. Here are some finds discovered as I broke out of the box:
California Surf Museum
Current exhibition: Transitional Thinking: A Short Story 1966-1972.
I think it’s true to say that many people living in San Diego came here from somewhere else, somewhere without waves and Pacific coast beaches. Part of California’s appeal definitely includes a surf culture immortalized by the Beach Boys, and a Beach Blanket Bingo kind of lifestyle. So, throw on some board shorts and check out the current exhibition at the California Surf Museum in Oceanside which charts the transition from huge wood boards designed to head straight to the beach into zippier boards made for speed and turning, surfmuseum.org.
San Diego Model Railroad Museum
I have two younger sisters so let’s say there were plenty of Barbie Doll’s in my house growing up. But I broke gay-boy stereotype to some extent because I did like trains, train sets and train-tracks. Maybe this was because I could control an entire world of pretend passengers coming and going, maybe it’s because the train-stations and the trees and the cows were so adorable. In any case, the Model Railway Museum is home to one of the largest indoor model railway displays in the world. Head over to Balboa Park and recreate your childhood (or take your kids!) and enjoy mini versions of the Tehachapi Pass, Cabrillo Southwestern or the Pacific Desert Lines, sdmrm.org.
The Junípero Serra Museum
The Junípero Serra Museum in Presidio Park is one of the most familiar landmarks in San Diego. As a major symbol of the city, it stands atop the hill recognized as the site where California began. If you’ve only been up to Presidio Park for picnics and potlucks, step back in time and take a look at the area when native peoples used this hill above Old Town long before the Spanish, the Mexicans and then the Americans came along, sandiegohistory.org/serra_museum.html.
San Diego Chinese Historical Museum
Current exhibition: Interwoven Traditions: Chinese Minority Costume & Jewelry.
San Diego’s Chinatown near the Gaslamp is relatively small. But this museum is chock full of artifacts and ambiance from China and from early Chinese settlers to the region. Numerous educational events take place and there is even a small garden stream tucked along the side of the building. If you are a student of fashion check out the current exhibition for some ideas, take a walking tour or attend a screening at the upcoming San Diego Asian Film Festival, partly sponsored by the museum, sdchm.org.
