Il Museo is a weekly themed vintage art and home decor bazaar located in Morro Bay. Many San Luis Obispo locals and San Luis Obispo High School students and staff have found themselves intrigued to go explore the Bazaar and see what it’s all about.   Expressions set out to interview the owner and curator of Il Museo to learn more. 

Expressions: What inspired you to start Il Museo? 

Il Museo Owner and Curator Jordan Cody: Well, Let’s see… I went to university to study Cultural Anthropology and Art History. Since then, I have spent time pursuing projects where these two subjects cross paths, Il Museo being one! I am interested in how our environment affects each of us, especially one as personal as our living spaces. I like viewing vintage and antique goods as artifacts as relics of the past and continuing their journey by using them, like living history in our homes. Also, curating a new space each week or month is a bit like installation art… which is one of my favorite genres. Each Saturday, my customers can engage with a room I have made for them and hopefully find a piece to take home with them. As a bonus, because this sort of business set up is a creative expression it’s inherently intimate, which I find to be very important for human connectivity and further more human happiness. 

Expressions: How do you come up with each month’s/week’s bazaar? 

Cody: There isn’t one formula to coming up with a concept for each week or month’s bazaar. Sometimes I sit with a sharp pencil and notebook paper and think of what I would like to be doing if I could be anywhere in the world doing anything at all… I write, “Oh, a Turkish coffee sounds so nice…and smelling all those spices piled high in the Grand Bazaar. So many scents at once making it difficult to discern what exactly you’re smelling but in all it’s mystery, it’s Istanbul” … and thus an Il Museo Bazaar day called  “Tasseography Table.” Other times, I wake up and read a good magazine with a cup of tea and become so inspired by what I’ve read that I think I should make one Saturday Bazaar dedicated to starting your day with reading and call it “ Read it in a Magazine.” Then other times, I am hunting in the early morning for goods and I see a large Peruvian vase and suddenly—The idea hits me! A whole room for this perfect vase. I call that week’s Bazaar: “The Museum.”

Expressions: How do you collect/find the items that are being sold each week? 

Cody: Well, this is a bit like a Magician telling how she does her tricks. I will however reveal this: my favorite place to go find (or “pick/picking” as we say in the business) is a good outdoor market. My 1989 Toyota pickup and I can’t seem to drive past one without pulling off to see what I can find. 

Expressions: When someone thinks about Il Museo, what is your goal of what you want them to think about? 

Cody: Mostly, I would like the shop to inspire curiosity and intrigue. I believe that your life is as interesting as you make it to be. I’m passionate about finding pieces and creating space that inspires people to live as interesting and interesting a life they can.

Expressions: Is there anything else you would like to share about Il Museo? 

Cody: I suppose the only other thing I would add is that at the end of November I will begin also offering vintage based Interior Design services. Whether it’s enhancing the space and pieces you already have, starting a space from scratch or a combination, I would love to work with a variety of environments and situations. I am offering free consultations and quotes! Check out www.ilmuseobazaar.com for more details and ways to contact me directly with any questions.  

Next time you’re feeling a creative bazaar way or just want to get out on a Saturday morning, go visit Il Museo!