On Nov. 22, Intermediate Art students at UHS visited The Broad, a contemporary art museum located in downtown Los Angeles. 

The trip began at Tustin Metrolink station where students traveled up to L.A. by train. From there, they visited The Broad, food vendors at Grand Central Market and El Pueblo de Los Ángeles, a small Mexican village. 

UHS art teacher Christin Ibrahim shared that The Broad was selected because most of her students had never been to a museum before. Her goal was to allow students to experience a museum where they could learn about different art pieces and museum etiquette without becoming overwhelmed.  

“The museum has a gallery feel with lots of natural light, making it more casual and safe to talk in the space,” Ibrahim said. “The collection itself is filled with well-known artists such as Andy Warhol, Basquiat, and Roy Lichtenstein, and students get excited seeing work that they have heard or learned about in school.” 

Besides selecting a museum that included popular artists, Ibrahim mentioned that another reason this museum was selected was due to how inexpensive it is, which can encourage her students to visit again. 

“The museum is free to the public, along with the low cost of the group train ride, the field trip is financially accessible to everyone which is something I keep in mind when planning my field trips,” Ibrahim said. 

The Broad includes work from over 200 artists. A piece by Cecily Brown titled “Black Painting I” was among the students’ favorite pieces.

“There was this one piece of art where the background is mostly black, but near the middle and bottom of the canvas, there was white paint,” senior Zoeya Atcha said. “ It looked really cool to me. In a way, it looked like a person laying down on a bed.” 

Two other popular pieces were “Green Studio” by Susan Gothenberg and Mike Kelly’s “Infinite Expansion.” 

“My favorite color is green so ‘Green Studio’ instantly caught my attention and brought me joy,” senior Laura Serra-Larios said. “’Infinite Expansion’ is something that I have never seen before. I really liked that it was in black and white, and it was so incredibly captivating.” 

In addition to gaining exposure to greater art dialogue, another purpose of the trip was to seek knowledge outside of the classroom.

“I believe that learning should feel like an adventure, and I wanted students to be exposed to public transportation and feel the joy of going on a train to a new land,” Ibrahim said. “The idea of seeking knowledge beyond the classroom is something I want to model through taking students on field trips.” 

The students who went on the trip appreciated the experience for different reasons.

“I’d never been on a train before, so the train ride was fun itself, and the outlay of the museum was also pretty cool,” Atcha said. “I go to LA every other week, so I was pretty familiar with the streets, but I’ve never been there without my family so, being with friends and just hanging out for an entire day was probably the most fun.” 

Other students particularly enjoyed Olvera Street, which is a part of El Pueblo de Los Ángeles filled with a variety of vendors and restaurants. 

“I’m a big fan of color, and it was one of the most colorful streets I have ever been to,” Serra-Larios said. “Aside from that, it was fun to learn about my Mexican culture and speak the language with the shopkeeper.”

As a whole, not only did the trip broaden students’ minds when it came to art but also in terms of traveling in general. 

“I learned how easy access[able] the train rides are, I always pictured them as more complicated for some reason, and they are crazy cheap,” Serra-Larios said. “I would definitely recommend them, but other than that, I also took away how art can be so random and still create emotion within people, whether or not there was a deep meaning behind it.” 

Ibrahim mentioned her satisfaction with the trip also bringing up her excitement for the next trip as well. 

“The students engaged in the artwork, and I found them sketching throughout the trip,” Ibrahim said. “Overall, I think it was a great experience for the students and I can’t wait for the spring field trip.”