Museum goers never really mind getting their hand stamped or being handed a ticket or pushing a small, round sticker on their lapel, a sticker with the museum's insignia.
All of those things typically signify that the person has paid admission, or has purchased a membership, and may enter the museum and stroll around, soaking up the brain-enhancing goodness.
It is, in short, a pleasure to give back in this way. Unarguable? Pretty much, right?
But oh... when a bunch of museums go free, for an evening, spirits are high and the lookie-loo-ing is intense. That intensity, and those high spirits, shall be out in full force at ArtNight Pasadena. It's on Friday, March 14, and the happy upshot? A whole mess of institutions in and around the Crown City are saying "nope" to admission for the night.
So nice. Yes, we want people to support institutions, but a few hours of random wandering from painting to sculpture? And listening to music? And swinging by food trucks? And running into people you know? It's a gift to the community from a bevy of places that give to the community in lots of ways.
Those places include the Armory Center for the Arts, the USC Pacific Asia Museum, Kidspace Children's Museum, Pasadena City Hall, and, indeed, the Norton Simon.
Did we already type "so nice"? We'll do it again: so, so nice, with an extra "so" for good measure. ArtNight is much beloved -- some 14,000 people turned up for the fall outing -- and a fine way to get to know those spots you've meant to visit but haven't yet.
The Scene
Want to find new things to do in Los Angeles? The Scene's lifestyle stories have you covered. Here's your go-to source on where the fun is across SoCal and for the weekend.
Or maybe you'll return to an old favorite. No judgment. When paintings, tacos, and running into friends are involved, on a pretty spring Pasadena evening, and admission is verboten for the night, everyone wins.
