Art Outside Los Angeles (Pacific Standard Time #8 and #9)

Pomona (technically, Claremont) and Palm Springs are obviously not known for their art or art museum but I would not have otherwise visited these art institutions if it had not been for Pacific Standard Time.  Pomona College Museum of Art is within the Claremont Colleges and the exhibit reminded me of a time when art was just plain old wild, crazy, sex, drugs, anything goes.  Not that I lived that era but there was a definite 60s or 70s feel to every piece they showed in this small museum just a short walk from Claremont Village.  Names that regularly make the MOCA rounds in LA (Baldessari, Burden, Chicago) had significant stays in Pomona in the period 1969-1973.  About 75 miles to the east is the Palm Springs Museum of Art.  My visit last week was my first to the museum as well as to the city of Palm Springs and was not disappointed both in the art as well as the vibe of the city.  I knew moving to Rancho Cucamonga did bring me closer to the desert communities and driving home from Palm Springs on a Friday afternoon took a lot less time than driving home from LACMA or MOCA or The Getty.  "Backyard Oasis" is all about Southern California and I would recommend it to anyone who loves this place -- from LA all the way to Palm Springs.  The center of attraction are four David Hockney (Polaroid) collages of swimming pools and they are just phenomenal.  No one does collage better than Hockney.  Period.