Author: Emily Birnbaum
The Museum of Neon Art, located in downtown L.A., is not your typical art gallery. In most museums you aren’t allowed to touch the pieces on display. At the MONA you are encouraged to do so. Flash photography is usually out of the question. At the MONA you may take all the superimposed pictures you’d like. Most significant, however, is that rather than observing sculptures, paintings, or other typical mediums, the MONA lets its visitors observe giant glass tubes filled with colorful electricity streaming chaotically inside. A museum of neon art, rather than what one might imagine (canvases splashed with highlighter green, yellow and pink) is rather a museum of light, electricity, and plasma.
I went to the MONA this past Friday with a group of friends. We arrived at 6 pm– an hour before the website claims the museum closes. Upon attempting to enter, however, we discovered that the door was locked. In fact, the museum actually closes at 6.
Thankfully, the woman running the gallery, seeing us struggle and probably detecting the sinking feeling I was experiencing, opened the door. Not only did she welcome us and apologize for the mistake on the website, but she then proceeded to reopen the museum, which involved a flip of a switch, and let us enjoy our private visit.
The MONA is much smaller than I expected. It is only one room and there are no more than 20 pieces on display. This is not to say it is not worth a visit. The art is fun and interesting, ranging from vintage neon signs to various neon art pieces. The donated vintage pieces included: a huge advertisement for “Funland” (an old New York amusement park), a shoe repair sign, a windmill on top of an advertisement entitled “Von De Kamps Bakery,” and various others, all of which were brightly lit and humming.
One of my favorite art pieces was took up an entire wall. It consisted of a butterfly at the center of 3 giant rings of intertwining tubes. The butterfly and each ring had their own colors. Beginning with the butterfly, light moved outward, creating a mesmerizing display of color and movement. The feeling you get from watching the light transfer from one color to the next, methodical and never-ending, is absolutely addicting. I found myself staring at it for a lengthy amount of time, and only realized I had been doing so when my friend’s camera flash went off.
Much of the art at the museum was created by a member of MONA’s first board of directors, Larry Albright, who is most celebrated for patenting and commercializing the famous plasma globe, a glass sphere filled with wild manifestations of light that jump to your finger when you touch it. There was a slew of plasma globes and cylinders throughout the museum, which were probably the most fun part of the experience.
The sight alone is incredible, but what makes plasma globes even more interesting is the magnetic effect your finger has on the electricity inside. As soon as you make physical contact with the globe, the raging demonstrations of light race to your finger, giving you the power to change the light patterns within.
The Museum of Neon Art is unique and interesting. It is a fun adventure and is definitely worth the five dollar student fare. It is open Thursday through Saturday from noon to six, and Sunday from noon to five.
I would recommend planning some other activities downtown to accompany your visit, however, because it does not take long to see everything. And don’t forget to bring your camera!
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