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Bergamot Station
Well over half a million people a year choose Bergamot Station as their resource for culture and art when visiting the Los Angeles area. Built on eight acres in Santa Monica, the Bergamot is home to the Santa Monica Museum of Art, as well as an abundance of architecture and design firms, an eatery, and a frame shop.
The name comes from the site the complex is situated upon. In 1875, it served as a train station for the Red Line Trolley which ran from LA to the Santa Monica Pier, bringing urbanites to the coast on a daily basis. The Red Line closed in 1953, leaving the property to warehouses and local businesses. Soon after, the city of Santa Monica purchased the property with the intention of using it as a station once again, this time for a proposed light rail system. These plans did not come to fruition, however, and with the help of designer Wayne Blank, the area was transformed into the cultural center it is today.
A couple of the primary draws of the center concern the architecture itself and the ease of use. The architecture has retained the industrial flavor from the time the center’s site was used as a trolley stop and this alone can provide reason for visitors to explore the area and imagine its prior use. In addition to this, art lovers are enthralled with the center for allowing them to view its twenty galleries all in one place, rather than having to drive from storefront to storefront in the heavy Los Angeles traffic. For this reason and others, Bergamot Station is a must see for any tourist with an interest in the arts.
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