For the second time in a row I took my landlord’s son to the same museum. I serve as his mentor and took him to see the “Treasures of China” exhibit last summer. The one with the jade burial suits and 5,000 pound bronze single castings from pre Christ times.
I knew that the museum would be torn down in the near future because it was not seismically safe enough for the SF Bay Area. Well, today I made a point of going through the museum from top to bottom, including the “Between Clouds and Rain” temporary exhibit of Chinese scroll paintings.
Before exiting, I asked a docent when the museum was to be closed. She replied, “At the end of December.” Well, I 've been going to this museum for my entire life. It’s sort of sad, even though the structure is totally outdated. Even worse, the new one will have twice the viewing area (SF’s museum’s only have the room to exhibit 10% of their collections) but will have all the charm of a glass and steel warehouse. The old one is no stunning masterpiece, but it works a lot better with the rest of the Beaux Arts buildings around it, including the beautiful Greco-Roman bandshell where they give concerts in Golden Gate park.
So, for any of you who live in San Francisco, head on over to the De Young museum (right next to De Olde museum) and see it for one last time. I really need to go and photograph it before it’s gone.