Encinitas Art Museum Offers a New Twist

Overlooking the San Elijo Lagoon in Encinitas, California, the Lux Art Institute stands out as one of Southern California’s most compelling museums thanks to its artist-in-residence program.  Here, visitors have the chance to experience the artistic process on-site as internationally-acclaimed painters, sculptors, and visionaries are invited to live and work at the museum for several months, during which they create a commissioned piece and then exhibit it.

Artists who have previously graced Lux include Elizabeth Turk, who magically transforms 400-pound blocks of marble into fantastic and improbable shapes  like pinwheels and ribbons, and New Yorker Susan Hauptman, known for her near-photographic charcoal self-portraits.

Starting March 27th,  New York City sculptor Robert Lobe will be in house.  Lobe is known for his depiction of natural objects like rocks and trees in shimmering hollow metal where light and shadow play across the hammered aluminum surfaces.

Lobe’s Mother Maple piece─a tree, branch and stone─has been on loan on the Lux property since October 2009.  His work has been commissioned and exhibited in galleries and museums across the country, including the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and the Whitney Museum of American Art, both in New York; National Gallery, Washington, D.C.; Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles; and Walker Art Center, Minneapolis.

A LEED-certified building, Lux has also garnered a top design award, the Grand Orchid from the San Diego Architectural Foundation.  Myriad art programs are available for all ages, along with summer camps for children. In its Phase II plan, Lux will install another 25,000 square feet of galleries and classrooms.

The museum is located at 1550 South El Camino Real in Encinitas.  Hours run Thursday & Friday from 1pm to 5 pm; Saturday, 11am to 5 pm.  $10 for two visits.