LA Story

Like a good Hollywood story, the Barnsdall Art Park made a great comeback. Once an overlooked urban space in LA, this 36-acre East Hollywood hillside park is now a burgeoning center of art and local history. Home to the Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery and the Frank Lloyd Wright–designed Hollyhock House, Barnsdall Park also has one of the best views the city has to offer.

Take the stairs that start on the northeast side of the parking lot. The three long flights will get your heart pumping as you approach the park's peak. At the top stroll through a shaded pine grove that passes the LA Municipal Art Gallery.

A right turn has you emerging from the trees to an open grassy knoll and views of three famous features of the LA landscape: the Griffith Observatory, the Hollywood Sign, and palm trees as far as the eye can see.

To your left, you'll see the recently renovated Hollyhock House, Frank Lloyd Wright's first house in LA, which was designed in the 1920s for oil heiress Aline Barnsdall and donated to the city in 1927. The hilltop lawn is the perfect spot to bust out a picnic and watch as the sun dips behind the Hollywood Hills, lighting up the skyline with fiery reds and oranges. Perfect way to end the day in LA.

Barnsdall Art Park is located at 4800 Hollywood Blvd. and is open from 5:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. daily. Free parking on-site. The grounds are dog-friendly!