Cowboys and Presidents

We've talked about it all summer and today we finally made it. Kevin and I went to the Gene Autry Museum of the American West. There's an exhibit there we wanted to see called 'Cowboys and Presidents'. It's an interesting commentary on how cowboys - or more specifically, 'the cowboy way' - have influenced American presidents throughout history. From Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Rider days, to LBJ, to Reagan and beyond. What a fun exhibit! They had all sorts of interesting paraphernalia, but unfortunately, they didn't allow photography.

There was another incredibly interesting exhibit at the museum entitled 'All the Saints of the City of Angels'. Interesting concept: it's a look at all of the streets of the city of Los Angeles that are named for saints - for example: San Vicente, San Pasqual, San Fernando, etc. Basically the artist divided the city into sections and researched each of the "Saint" streets and those for whom they were named. Then, he took faces of folks that he met in and around L.A. and painted them into the artwork to depict the Saint. Though some of the subject matter was a bit darker than we'd imagined, it certainly was a compelling exhibit. All in all, a very fun adventure!