New entrance at The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. ; Credit: Tim Street-Porter/The Huntington

For years, I’d feared the worst. Behind that intrusive belt of chain link and green canvas fence, with all the hidden noise of power digging machines, smashing jackhammers and growling tractors going on behind it, and heaps of dirt piled high, I dreaded that something terrible was going on in the dark, hidden heart of our dear old Huntington.

We were promised a new visitor center, a new store, a new cafe and restaurant. I imagined the Disney-fied worst: Henry Huntington’s Roller Coaster Red Car Ride; Pinky’s Pinkberry Parlor. The Blue Boy Fashion Center. Maybe even a giant Rem Koolhaas-LACMA style amoeba of purple reinforced concrete sprawling all over the lawns between the library and the old gallery.

My fears were groundless. The $68 million (not much more than the Getty paid for its new Manet) 52,000 square foot Education and Visitor Center addition is in perfect harmony with the early 20th Century original library and art gallery, perhaps more so than some previous increments, such as the nearby and blankly imposing Munger Research Center. 

The addition is named after outgoing Huntington chief Steven S. Koblik, who engineered much of the funding and planning for the facility. He’s got something to be proud of in his retirement: a new garden-centered segment of new facilities that founder, pioneer transit tycoon Henry Huntington, would probably have enthused over.

(The Huntington Store at The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. Photo: Tim Porter-Street/The Huntington)

With its mighty $400 million endowment and the muscular fundraising power that enticed squillionaire Charlie Munger to donate hugely to this project (not to mention that research center), the venerable Huntington institution could have easily erected something expensively and grandiloquently modern.  

But its directorate and patrons seem to understand an important fact about the place: Most visitors don’t go there to be dazzled. We go there to be enthralled, even comforted by the century-old institution’s enduring and deeply reassuring ambiance that we are privileged to inhabit during our visits to its galleries of great art, its acreage of exquisite gardens and Arcadian vistas.

The Huntington possesses what designer Sheryl Barton, who co-created the new landscaping with the Huntington’s Jim Folsom, spoke of at the opening press conference as “the choreography of experience.”

That experience includes the new California-Mediterranean groves and gardens and the low-lying new structure that includes an expanded store, new classrooms, courts, cafes and an auditorium. With its simple, Tuscan-columned loggias and red-tiled roofs (and, oh, yes, even that showy glass dome on the Rose Hills Foundation Garden Court), it all effortlessly blends into the traditional whole.

Although the Huntington doesn’t seem to be planning on a new influx of visitors, it’s hard to see this new, more user-friendly front office isn’t going to attract more people to its San Marino location than the current 600,000 per year.

Particularly considering how regional museum attendance in general has boomed over recent decades. Will this abate the quiet private experience many of us Huntington fans have shared and treasured over the years?

(The Huntington will be installing this Alexander Calder sculpture, the  Jerusalem Stabile, this spring. Here, it's seen at the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Calder Foundation; gift of the Philip & Muriel Berman Foundation to the Calder Foundation. Copyright © 2015 Calder Foundation /Artists Rights Society (ARS) Used with permission of The Huntington)

Probably. But there will also be important new things to see — like  Alexander Calder’s 12-by-20-foot Jerusalem Stabile, which beckons you into the new addition, and two powerful, newly acquired murals by the great 20th Century California artists Millard Sheets and Doyle Lane. Plus a new and glorious vista from the cafe’s terrace over to the original old Huntington villa — now gallery — where all this began, over a century ago.

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

What is Huntington's disease, its symptoms and possible future medical breakthrough to cure this disease.

The event is designed to show how the joy art can bring people.

Key Housing is a best-in-class provider of corporate rentals throughout California from Southern to Northern California. The company is announcing its January 2024 featured listing for the Orange County region.

From August 25th to the 27th, celebrate the incoming football season with Huntington Fine Jewelers as we celebrate the boys in crimson and orange.

Show your support for our local college teams as they start their new football seasons, and between August 24th - 26th at Huntington Fine Jewelers your jewelry could have incredible savings.

Under the guidance of Dr. Melissa and Dr. Jeremy, Magic Fox Orthodontics is on a mission to transform smiles with precision, affordability, and comfort.

Enhancing Smiles, Enriching Lives: Discover Magic Fox Orthodontics' Comprehensive and Cost-Effective Solutions for Every Smile in Huntington Beach

Meet the newest four-legged member of your family at Barktober Fest from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on October 28 at the OKC, Midwest, and Yukon locations of Huntington Fine Jewelers.

Save up to 50% on in-stock diamond jewelry at all Huntington Fine Jewelers Oklahoma jewelry stores all December.

Ring in spring this April 5-6 and 12-13 at any of Huntington's Oklahoma jewelry stores with great deals on beautiful engagement rings and dream wedding bands.

Enjoy a summer vacation on Huntington Fine Jewelers when you spend $3999 or more at any of their Oklahoma jewelry stores May 20-25, 2024.

Be dazzled this June by one-of-a-kind pieces of jewelry when you visit any of Huntington Fine Jewelers' Oklahoma jewelry stores.

Between July 26-27 & August 2-3 at all of their Oklahoma jewelry stores, when you spend $2,999 or more, receive an incredible 7 night stay of your choice!

Throughout September explore one-of-a-kind and limited edition Le Vian jewelry at Huntington Fine Jewelers' Oklahoma showrooms.

Join Huntington Fine Jewelers this October in their Oklahoma jewelry stores as they host several incredible events this month.

Huntington & Ellis, A Real Estate Agency, an affiliate of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, has announced it has ranked No. 2,781 on Inc. Magazine’s annual Inc. 5000 list, a prestigious ranking of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies. Achieving a 192% three-year growth rate, this marks the brokerage’s fourth-consecutive year being recognized and…

The post LeadingRE’s Huntington & Ellis Listed on Inc. 5000 for Fourth Consecutive Year appeared first on RISMedia.

Scientists have used an organoid model to gain new insights into Huntington's disease, a fatal genetic disorder that causes neurodenegeration ...

Scientists have used an organoid model to gain new insights into Huntington's disease, a fatal genetic disorder that causes neurodenegeration ...

Archives, Room Use Only - CS71.V129 1947

Henry E. Huntington in 1907.; Credit: Theo C. Marceau, New York City. The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens

One of the most prized treasures of LA County is 100 years old this year.

The Huntington Library is beloved for its lush botanical gardens and fine art.

As KPCC's Brianna Flores reports, you can trace its origins to a pivotal moment in Southern California history.

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

New entrance at The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. ; Credit: Tim Street-Porter/The Huntington

For years, I’d feared the worst. Behind that intrusive belt of chain link and green canvas fence, with all the hidden noise of power digging machines, smashing jackhammers and growling tractors going on behind it, and heaps of dirt piled high, I dreaded that something terrible was going on in the dark, hidden heart of our dear old Huntington.

We were promised a new visitor center, a new store, a new cafe and restaurant. I imagined the Disney-fied worst: Henry Huntington’s Roller Coaster Red Car Ride; Pinky’s Pinkberry Parlor. The Blue Boy Fashion Center. Maybe even a giant Rem Koolhaas-LACMA style amoeba of purple reinforced concrete sprawling all over the lawns between the library and the old gallery.

My fears were groundless. The $68 million (not much more than the Getty paid for its new Manet) 52,000 square foot Education and Visitor Center addition is in perfect harmony with the early 20th Century original library and art gallery, perhaps more so than some previous increments, such as the nearby and blankly imposing Munger Research Center. 

The addition is named after outgoing Huntington chief Steven S. Koblik, who engineered much of the funding and planning for the facility. He’s got something to be proud of in his retirement: a new garden-centered segment of new facilities that founder, pioneer transit tycoon Henry Huntington, would probably have enthused over.

(The Huntington Store at The Huntington Library, Art Collections, and Botanical Gardens. Photo: Tim Porter-Street/The Huntington)

With its mighty $400 million endowment and the muscular fundraising power that enticed squillionaire Charlie Munger to donate hugely to this project (not to mention that research center), the venerable Huntington institution could have easily erected something expensively and grandiloquently modern.  

But its directorate and patrons seem to understand an important fact about the place: Most visitors don’t go there to be dazzled. We go there to be enthralled, even comforted by the century-old institution’s enduring and deeply reassuring ambiance that we are privileged to inhabit during our visits to its galleries of great art, its acreage of exquisite gardens and Arcadian vistas.

The Huntington possesses what designer Sheryl Barton, who co-created the new landscaping with the Huntington’s Jim Folsom, spoke of at the opening press conference as “the choreography of experience.”

That experience includes the new California-Mediterranean groves and gardens and the low-lying new structure that includes an expanded store, new classrooms, courts, cafes and an auditorium. With its simple, Tuscan-columned loggias and red-tiled roofs (and, oh, yes, even that showy glass dome on the Rose Hills Foundation Garden Court), it all effortlessly blends into the traditional whole.

Although the Huntington doesn’t seem to be planning on a new influx of visitors, it’s hard to see this new, more user-friendly front office isn’t going to attract more people to its San Marino location than the current 600,000 per year.

Particularly considering how regional museum attendance in general has boomed over recent decades. Will this abate the quiet private experience many of us Huntington fans have shared and treasured over the years?

(The Huntington will be installing this Alexander Calder sculpture, the  Jerusalem Stabile, this spring. Here, it's seen at the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Calder Foundation; gift of the Philip & Muriel Berman Foundation to the Calder Foundation. Copyright © 2015 Calder Foundation /Artists Rights Society (ARS) Used with permission of The Huntington)

Probably. But there will also be important new things to see — like  Alexander Calder’s 12-by-20-foot Jerusalem Stabile, which beckons you into the new addition, and two powerful, newly acquired murals by the great 20th Century California artists Millard Sheets and Doyle Lane. Plus a new and glorious vista from the cafe’s terrace over to the original old Huntington villa — now gallery — where all this began, over a century ago.

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Studies show that tooth loss can increase the risk of heart disease.

San Diego County-based Man K-9 trained police dogs in Huntington Beach by employing a helicopter and using gun fire to simulate realistic situations the dogs could face.

Terry Perucca Joins HMRI Board of Directors

Four-Time Gold Medal Olympic Diver, Greg Louganis, to Deliver Keynote Speech

Dr. Rassouli warns patients about the unknown dangers of gum disease and its link to other health issues including Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and respiratory infections.

Center achieved all four AHCA/NCAL national Quality Initiative goals

The Hill Medical Corporation Brings Subspecialty Imaging to Arcadia

While reporting its financial results for the first quarter on Thursday, Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII), a military shipbuilding company, noted that the COVID-19 pandemic did not materially impact its first-quarter financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

Huntington Beach California USA Huntington Beach

On a beautiful day, nothing beats the botanical gardens at the Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens. There's something for everyone.

Danielle's mum Lisa is in the final stage of Huntington's and needs full-time care.

Huntington Ingalls was awarded a $187.1 million contract modification Wednesday for the refueling complex overhaul of USS John C. Stennis, according to the Pentagon.

Huntington's disease -- Patients -- Care.

Three members of the group Indivisible OC 48 staged an hourlong protest to bring attention to the people who are following Gov. Gavin Newsom's stay-at-home orders during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pluripotent stem cells research provides insight into how Huntington's Disease (HD) develops and may help pave the way for identifying pathways for future treatments.

Genetic screening helped to detect genes that protect against the toxic effects of a mutant protein causing Huntington's disease. These efforts yielded

She made a very stylish appearance at the Saint Laurent fashion show in Paris on Tuesday night.

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, 31, didn't even need to be on the catwalk as she showed off her model prowess front row at the Loewe show in Paris Fashion Week on Friday.

She showed off her petite waist with the cream coloured top which had large shoulder pads incorporated into it.

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Jason Statham stepped out to attend the Vanity Fair post-Oscars party on Sunday evening.

The supermodel, 32, looked incredible as she showed off her jaw-dropping figure in a racy white lace underwear set.

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley couldn't resist teasing her new M&S collection as she shared some sneak peek snaps of herself on Tuesday.

Between 2,500 and 3,000 anti-lockdown protesters gathered near Huntington Beach boardwalk in California Friday in response to Gov. Gavin Newsom's closure of Orange County beaches.