It's been a few weeks, but Isaac and I went up to DC to visit my brother, Steve. It's been awhile since we've had a chance to see him so we were excited to go hang out with him. After many hours, yes hours, in the car trying to make our way the short distance to DC, we finally arrived at his house at 2330. Then we drove around looking for a parking space for another 45 minutes. Can I just say I am not a fan of driving in DC, or any city for that matter. So we just visited for a bit and then all went to bed. We didn't have any special plans for our visit, just a little relaxing and enjoying our visit.
We went to breakfast at Panera, because well I love Panera and they have yummy breakfast. And then we decided to go to the National Portrait Gallery. None of us have ever been there and considering we've visited DC a lot we decided it would be a nice change. We really enjoyed it.
Isaac and Steve hanging out in front of the museum waiting for me because of course I have to document our adventure. And I did not want to carry my camera with me so I took everything with my Droid Incredible.
Isaac was really excited to see John C. Fremont made it in to the Gallery. Twice or three times even. Fremont was an explorer in the western part of the United States. He was the first American to see Lake Tahoe. Fremont Lake in Pinedale, Wyoming was named after him, where he surveyed the area in 1842 while mapping the Oregon Trail.
We also saw portraits of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young.
Not a portrait, but Isaac Singer's 1854 patent model that was submitted for an improved model of the Singer sewing machine made an appearance.
I really liked this portrait of "Men of Progress"
As we were walking through one hall I noticed this beautiful piece of art in a side room. I just had to take a look. This is an 1865 oil painting titled "Aurora Borealis" by Frederic Edwin Church. "The ship and sled team in this image belonged to Frederic Church's friend, polar explorer Dr. Isaac Hayes. Hayes had lead an arctic expedition in 1860, and gave his sketches from the trip to the artist as inspiration for his painting."
Isaac really liked this oil painting titled "Burning Oil Well at Night, near Rouseville, Pennsylvania (about 1861) by James Hamilton.
And another favorite of mine, oil on canvas, Mist in Kanab Canyon, Utah (1892) by Thomas Moran.
Then we wandered through a special exhibit of patents. We weren't able to take photographs in there but it was pretty interesting and amazing what people come up with.
Then we headed toward the Presidential Gallery. Isaac wanted to see the portrait of Stephen Colbert which was supposedly hanging near the bathrooms near the Presidential Gallery. We didn't find it and that would be because it was hanging there in 2008 for only 6 weeks. So we were just a little late. But there were some neat portraits in the Presidential Gallery.
George Washington
Mezzotint, c. 1793
"In 1793 Massachusetts artist Edward Savage, who was in London learning various print making skills, published a mezzotint of George Washington...Dressed in black velvet rather than the usual military uniform, Washington contemplates a plan of the new federal city and the future of the government it was built to accommodate. Here was a statesman rather than a soldier, a man with age, wisdom, and dignity in his face. Savage's mezzotints...established this image as one of the most popular of Washington's presidential years.
I really liked this representation of Washington. We often see him in military clothing so I really liked this change.
Thomas Jefferson
Oil on Panel, 1836
"This profile portrait was the work of Charles Bird King, who copied it from a likeness drawn by Gilbert Stuart during the fifth year of Jefferson's presidency...King made this copy from the Stuart original at the request of Jefferson's granddaughter, Virginia, and her husband Nicholas Trist."
I loved this different look for a portrait of Jefferson. I think I need to incorporate more profile representations in to my work.
Teddy Roosevelt
I like this nice, traditional portrait of Teddy.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
The artist was experimenting with different views of FDR's hands. I like this study of hands because hands are very difficult to photograph, and draw, to make them look interesting and well proportioned in relation to the rest of the body. A good artist handles hands well.
John F. Kennedy
I LOVE this piece of art. I love the colors and the free brush strokes. It is such a fun piece of art.
Richard Nixon
I found this portrait a nice composition. Norman Rockwell said of creating this portrait he wanted to represent a pleasing side of Nixon because he knew what he was capable of.
Bill Clinton
With this work I appreciated the creativity of the artist. I am intrigued with the use of shapes and color to create this work of art.
The Black List by photographer Timothy Greenfield-Sanders
I really enjoy this photographer's work. I love the idea for this collection.
"The portraits represent some of the most dynamic and inspiring personalities in the fields of politics, music, business, civil activism, literature, the arts and athletics as well as a few people who are not as recognizable but who are influential in their field. The exhibition includes 50 photographs and an ongoing video of the accompanying interviews."
And of course last by but not least we had to visit the History of Video Games exhibit. I know, not really a portrait thing, but very interesting. It was pretty crowded in there so we just meandered through.
What I love about the Smithsonian Museum is that there is so much to see and learn and every time we go we can still find new things to explore.
We had a great time visiting Steve and walking around the city. Now if only we could twitch our noses to travel to and from so we wouldn't have to drive in all that traffic.
We went to breakfast at Panera, because well I love Panera and they have yummy breakfast. And then we decided to go to the National Portrait Gallery. None of us have ever been there and considering we've visited DC a lot we decided it would be a nice change. We really enjoyed it.
Isaac was really excited to see John C. Fremont made it in to the Gallery. Twice or three times even. Fremont was an explorer in the western part of the United States. He was the first American to see Lake Tahoe. Fremont Lake in Pinedale, Wyoming was named after him, where he surveyed the area in 1842 while mapping the Oregon Trail.
Then we headed toward the Presidential Gallery. Isaac wanted to see the portrait of Stephen Colbert which was supposedly hanging near the bathrooms near the Presidential Gallery. We didn't find it and that would be because it was hanging there in 2008 for only 6 weeks. So we were just a little late. But there were some neat portraits in the Presidential Gallery.
George Washington
Mezzotint, c. 1793
"In 1793 Massachusetts artist Edward Savage, who was in London learning various print making skills, published a mezzotint of George Washington...Dressed in black velvet rather than the usual military uniform, Washington contemplates a plan of the new federal city and the future of the government it was built to accommodate. Here was a statesman rather than a soldier, a man with age, wisdom, and dignity in his face. Savage's mezzotints...established this image as one of the most popular of Washington's presidential years.
I really liked this representation of Washington. We often see him in military clothing so I really liked this change.
Thomas Jefferson
Oil on Panel, 1836
"This profile portrait was the work of Charles Bird King, who copied it from a likeness drawn by Gilbert Stuart during the fifth year of Jefferson's presidency...King made this copy from the Stuart original at the request of Jefferson's granddaughter, Virginia, and her husband Nicholas Trist."
I loved this different look for a portrait of Jefferson. I think I need to incorporate more profile representations in to my work.
Teddy Roosevelt
I like this nice, traditional portrait of Teddy.
The artist was experimenting with different views of FDR's hands. I like this study of hands because hands are very difficult to photograph, and draw, to make them look interesting and well proportioned in relation to the rest of the body. A good artist handles hands well.
I LOVE this piece of art. I love the colors and the free brush strokes. It is such a fun piece of art.
I found this portrait a nice composition. Norman Rockwell said of creating this portrait he wanted to represent a pleasing side of Nixon because he knew what he was capable of.
With this work I appreciated the creativity of the artist. I am intrigued with the use of shapes and color to create this work of art.
The Black List by photographer Timothy Greenfield-Sanders
I really enjoy this photographer's work. I love the idea for this collection.
"The portraits represent some of the most dynamic and inspiring personalities in the fields of politics, music, business, civil activism, literature, the arts and athletics as well as a few people who are not as recognizable but who are influential in their field. The exhibition includes 50 photographs and an ongoing video of the accompanying interviews."
We had a great time visiting Steve and walking around the city. Now if only we could twitch our noses to travel to and from so we wouldn't have to drive in all that traffic.
Thanks for sharing. I have to say, Richard Nixon looks kind of.....he looks very nice. Well done to the artist.
ReplyDeleteChristine