Gallery Tour: The Everyday in Art

Museum walls are full of grand subjects, but some of the most interesting pictures show people doing ordinary things. On Thursday, November 12, a LACMA docent leads a one-hour Gallery Tour built around that idea, a quiet pick among the upcoming events in Los Angeles for anyone who likes art with a story attached.

When: Thursday, November 12 at 2 PM (until about 3 PM) Where: LACMA, David Geffen Galleries, 5905 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles Price: Free with museum admission Length: About 60 minutes

What the tour covers

The tour looks at five key works from LACMA's collection, all chosen for how they treat the "everyday." The listing describes surprising stories behind scenes of daily life, local landscapes and contemporary events, told through paintings and objects.

The route runs from George Bellows' Cliff Dwellers, painted around 1913, a packed tenement street with laundry strung overhead and children underfoot, to Betye Saar's I'll Bend But I Will Not Break, from 1998. Nearly a century separates them, and that gap is part of the appeal. Standing in front of both with someone who knows the backstory shows how artists have used routine moments to say something larger.

Good to know

LACMA says these tours are volunteer-led and subject to cancellation. If you are making a special trip, ask a member of the museum team on the day to confirm the tour is running and where the group gathers.

The tour itself adds no charge once you are inside. You still need general admission, unless you already have access through a membership or a free-entry program. LACMA's event page has the current details.

Making a day of it

A 2 PM start on a weekday leaves the morning open. The museum sits along Wilshire in Mid-City, close to the other museums on Museum Row, so the tour fits easily into a longer afternoon. It also earns a place on any list of things happening in Los Angeles that cost little and ask only for your attention.

Browse more arts and culture events or see what else is happening in Mid-City.