Visiting an art gallery never fails to feel satisfying. A good gallery provides insight into a region’s local art scene and/or a curator’s unique point of view, among other benefits. A bad gallery confirms the superior level of one’s own aesthetic sensibilities. Santa Monica has several good ones, conveniently concentrated in Bergamot Station Arts Center. The former warehouses of the rail station now house art galleries, and since 2016, the center also has a stop on the light-rail Metro Expo Line. As of this writing, most Bergamot Station venues are closed Sundays and Mondays.

We also paid a visit to the remarkable L.A. Louver in Venice, the Los Angeles neighborhood immediately to the south of Santa Monica. 

Lois Lambert Gallery

Also billed as the Gallery of Functional Art, this two-floor space displays works in a range of media that will appeal to art amateurs and connoisseurs alike. You might find anything from sculptures of cats made of fake leaves to colorful abstract paintings. We noticed a handful of esoteric pieces, like an old valise filled with broken ceramics, but few works were so conceptual as to be incomprehensible. A boutique filled with decorative objects and home goods make this longstanding gallery a great place to shop for unique gifts to bring back.