[photo credit: The Gamble House]
The talks are part of a monthly series that carries the Gamble House’s interpretive work off its own grounds and into a gallery in another city, where furnishings from Greene & Greene houses have been on permanent view for more than 30 years. The Gamble House is owned by the City of Pasadena and operated by The Gamble House Conservancy, a nonprofit. Its docents make the trip on the second Saturday of the month.
The sessions run at 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., and 1:30 p.m., within a window that ends at 2:00 p.m., in the Greene & Greene Gallery at The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens in San Marino, the Gamble House said. They are drop-in and free with admission, though The Huntington requires admission reservations on Saturdays.
The talk will cover how the rug was designed and manufactured, and how the firm’s decorative arts designs supported its architectural schemes, the Gamble House said. The organization describes the living room rugs as unique and artistic elements of the house.
The gallery sits in the Dorothy Collins Brown Wing of the Virginia Steele Scott Galleries of American Art. It holds stained-glass windows, lanterns, sconces, lamps, chandeliers, rugs and andirons from Greene & Greene houses, along with a recreation of the dining room of the Robinson house, which the Gamble House dates to 1906.
The Huntington said in an Oct. 28, 2021 news release that the permanent exhibition was established in 1990 in partnership with the Gamble House. The museum announced then that it had acquired roughly 6,000 items of Greene & Greene archival material, a gift from the Conservancy. The archives had been at The Huntington since 1987.
Edward R. Bosley, who retired that month as executive director and CEO of the Conservancy, said in the release that the relationship between the two institutions had made it possible “to collaborate on a range of educational opportunities.”
Sandra Ludig Brooke, the Avery Director of the Library at The Huntington, said the material would add to the library’s Southern California architecture holdings. Erin Chase, assistant curator of architecture and photography at The Huntington, said integrating the collection would make it easier to find and search.
The Greenes moved to Pasadena in 1893 and opened their practice there, dissolving the firm in 1922.
The Huntington is at 1151 Oxford Road in San Marino, open 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Wednesday through Monday. Parking is free, and the museum says the lot can reach capacity on weekends. As of Aug. 4, Saturday admission is $34 for adults; $28 for seniors 65 and older, students ages 12 to 18 or enrolled full time, and military, all with identification; and $15 for youth ages 4 to 11. Children under 4 and members enter free, and a SNAP EBT cardholder and up to three guests pay $5 each through Museums for All. Reservations are at tickets.huntington.org. Visitors who need assistive listening devices, sign language interpretation or real-time captioning are asked to call 626-405-3549 at least 10 days ahead. Details are at gamblehouse.org/mec-events/ggrug, or call the Gamble House at (626) 793-3334.
A rug is the part of a house people walk over without looking down. On Saturday, three times, it will be the thing everyone in the room is looking at.
NEED TO KNOW
Greene & Greene Drop-in Talk: Rug takes place Saturday, Aug. 8, 2026, with sessions at 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., and 1:30 p.m., within a window that ends at 2:00 p.m. The talks are drop-in and free with admission to The Huntington, which as of Aug. 4 costs $34 for adults; $28 for seniors 65 and older, students ages 12 to 18 or enrolled full time, and military, all with identification; and $15 for youth ages 4 to 11. Children under 4 and members enter free, and a SNAP EBT cardholder and up to three guests pay $5 each through Museums for All. Admission reservations are required on Saturdays. The talks take place in the Greene & Greene Gallery, in the Dorothy Collins Brown Wing of the Virginia Steele Scott Galleries of American Art, at The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens, 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, California 91108. Parking is free in the museum lot, with entrances on Oxford Road and Allen Avenue; the museum says the lot can reach capacity on weekends and encourages carpooling or rideshare. For more, call The Huntington at 626-405-2100 or the Gamble House at (626) 793-3334, or visit gamblehouse.org/mec-events/ggrug.
