We first met Caren Anderson and her husband Carl Baldwin in 2009 during our Portland trip and were thrilled that they relocated in Los Angeles...
The Velveteria was featured in Anthony Bourdain's "No Reservations" (the Pacific Northwest episode) and shortly after our 2009 visit, was also featured on Andrew Zimmern's show.
A random click onto my old blog post featuring the Velveteria led me to their website. I hadn't read it in months because it hadn't been updated. If I had read it last December, I would have found out sooner that they reopened in downtown LA's Chinatown! At the same time, Caren checked on their blog's stats and saw that "someone" from my blog (which was me) was looking at their site. She emailed me and we got in touch once more. The miracle of the internet.
Going to the Velveteria was a great "excuse" for this impromptu road trip...
Where else can you go to see works of art featuring past and present pop culture icons as well as cultural oddities and obscurities? (All photos by the way, were taken with permission...)
The sitting room with their awesome pink velvet sofa...
Their story:
Velvet info:
Here are just a few highlights from "behind the pink velvet curtain"...
The museum features only 400 of their 2000+ collection. Walls are grouped by theme such as religion, musicians, Elvis, the South Seas, and the awesome Black Power wall. The cool painting of black Last Supper was a highlight of the religious wall...
Of course, they had the VoG there as well!
It was nice to see the blinged out painting of Dolemite again, keeping company with Jimi Hendrix, Tupac Shakur and Huey Newton...
Look closely at the Mad Magazine book (the cover is a spoof of the Black Power fist) which has six fingers!
There are several rooms hidden in the back featuring poodles, unicorns (I have the t-shirt of the "Unicorn Combover"), and Liberace...
and of course, the King himself, Elvis Presley.
Gotta love that pompadoured tiki head!
If you ever go here (and I think you should), don't forget to check out the Black Light room...
and the bathroom...
Yes, that is Anderson Cooper in a thong! If you "sit down" and look to your right, you will see even more interesting folks sitting on the toilet...
Nearby is the
There's more of course, but you really must consider visiting if you are a fan of pop culture and art.
Both Carl and Caren have a lot to say about their collection and you are certain to learn a thing or two or ten about their paintings and the artists. Their unbridled enthusiasm and knowledge for this art form is evident and a fresh breath of air.
Need I say more? Get thee out of town and head over to the Velveteria to enrich your life today!
Velveteria
711 New High St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012
velveteria.com
Their blog: velveteria.blogspot.com
Admission - $10 and TOTALLY WORTH IT!!!
They were recently featured by Al Jahzeera's Balkan channel:
Older Articles (from when they were still in Portland):
"Talking Naked Ladies and Sweaty Elvises" Houston Press, June 19, 2008
"Velveteria: Museum of Velvet Paintings" (written prior to the January 2010 closing)
Recent Articles:
"Two Collectors show there's a lot more to black velvet than dogs playing poker" TucsonWeekly (not sure of the date but it's post 2010 but pre-Los Angeles move)
"Welcome Back Velveteria" RoadsideAmerica Trunkations, December 2013
"Velvet Underdogs: In praise of the paintings the art world loves to hate" CollectorsWeekly, December 4, 2013 (this is actually quite a excellent and comprehensive article detailing the history of black velvet painting)
"Chinatown's Shrine to Velvet Paintings" LA Downtown News, January 22, 2014
Our mini road trip wasn't over yet. Lunch at a Depression-era institution was next, just a few blocks away...
2 comments:
Hola. Chica. Greeting from greetings from grand cayman. Miss sN Diego badly. Hope you are well.
Hey Michael! Yes, all is well with us! So nice to hear from you!!! Hope all is well in the islands with you guys!
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