WHEN CHARLES LANG FREER was scouring the shops of Cairo's antiquities dealers a century ago, two falcon sculptures, pictured above, caught his eye. The "two great stone Hawks," he wrote at the time, "would nobly defend my little group of Egyptian art when permanently housed."
While amassing 1,400 items might seem a gigantic feat, Freer's Egyptian collection is fairly modest, with some of the best on display in a tiny room on the east side of the Smithsonian museum that bears the art collector's name. While most internationally regarded museums with Egyptian collections will show off a giant sarcophagus or two, or a golden funerary mask, the Freer has a fascinating showcase of small glass objects, including vessels, beads and amulets, which you could easily miss when strolling through its galleries. But if the Freer's Egyptian gems catch your eye, you could easily spend an hour surveying the array of diminutive but fascinating objects.
The collection should be a required stop at the Smithsonian museum, especially since there aren't too many Egyptian treasures in the museum collections in the nation's capital. It's also a nice retreat from the hustle and bustle of the Mall and the mind-numbing nature of the thousands of federal offices adjacent to the Smithsonian campus, perfect for a lunchtime or late afternoon visit, when you can have the place all to yourself.
Continue Reading "Escape the Office: Egyptian Gems at the Freer" »
WHILE HEADING DOWN to this past weekend's Jamaican Independence Day festivities at the Organization of American States, we had two options for artistic escapes from the intense heat along 17th Street NW: The Corcoran Gallery of Art or the Renwick Gallery, part of the Smithsonian American Museum of Art. Both have air conditioning, but only one is free: the Renwick, whose Grand Salon we featured earlier this year.
Facing a city of free museums, the Corcoran has been in the midst of redefining itself trying to draw new visitors after a few years of instability at the gallery. And as The Post's Jacqueline Trescott reports, its highly touted show, "Modernism: Designing a New World 1914-1939," wasn't a exactly flop, but missed an attendance projection of 100,000 visitors by some 7,000 people, figures show. The museum is pleased by the 1,800 new members brought in during the course of the 116-day exhibition, organized by the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
Continue Reading "Corcoran Dog-Paddles in Sea of Free Museums" »
IN WEATHER LIKE THIS, venturing to a museum or gallery might leave you sweaty, but it comes with sweet rewards: great exhibitions and air conditioning.
August is usually when the city's museums and galleries prep for new shows, so here's a quick list of some exhibitions you should check out soon before they close.
NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY
» Great Britons: Treasures from the National Portrait Gallery, London: Do you have tickets to Thursday's sold-out D.C. United-L.A. Galaxy game and fear that David Beckham's bad ankle will keep him from playing at RFK? Never fear, the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery has a video portrait of the soccer star in bed. It's all part of the "Great Britons" exhibition, featuring portraits from the Smithsonian's counterpart in London. You'll find everyone from Tony Blair to Oscar Wilde to Queen Elizabeth I, pictured at right.
Organized by the National Portrait Gallery, London; exhibition closes Sept. 3
» Harry Benson — Being There: At the end of the "Great Britons" exhibition, you'll be greeted by a giant portrait of then-Texas Gov. George W. Bush taken in 2000 by photographer Harry Benson. In it, a clearly more youthful Bush sits in the governor's mansion in Austin with one fist clinched and a confident smirk the American public has not seen in quite some time. A photo of Richard Nixon resigning sits within view. Amid all the show-stopping photographs of the Beatles and American presidents, don't miss the haunting image of the reclusive Greta Garbo swimming off Antigua or a grieving father sitting at National Airport, holding an American flag after his son's funeral at Arlington National Cemetery in 1971.
Organized by the Scottish National Portrait Gallery, Edinburgh; exhibition closes Sept. 3
» National Portrait Gallery, Old Patent Office Building, 8th and F streets NW. Hours: 11:30 a.m.-7:00 p.m. (Gallery Place-Chinatown)
Continue Reading "Around Town: Last Chance for Exhibits in August" »
BASTILLE DAY IS ON SATURDAY, but Friday is the day that the 33rd annual Original Bastille Race for Waiters & Waitresses gets off and running. Well, speed-walking, actually.
Starting at 10 a.m., Pennsylvania Avenue will be closed between 12th and 13th Streets NW so that restaurant workers from across the area can put their tray-carrying skills to the test.
Those who want to compete in the race, which starts at 2 p.m., can register from noon until 1:45 p.m.
The event's not just for runners, though — the block in front of Brasserie Les Halles is set to turn into a mini street festival on Friday afternoon. So if you're up for steak and merguez sandwiches, plus plenty of frites, head down for the race.
The $10 suggested entry and food and beverage sales will benefit Best Buddies.
Photo of 2005's race by Preston Keres/The Washington Post
NEGATIVE OPINIONS about the state of affairs under President Bush have apparently prompted even some Republicans to long for the leadership of a president from a different era. No, not Ronald Reagan. Richard Nixon. Yes, the same 38th president who resigned in the face of impeachment, Watergate and all of the political acrimony of the early 1970s.
Journalist Elizabeth Drew sketched out her Nixon nostalgia hypothesis in an op/ed in The Post on Saturday:
Anger and frustration with [President Bush] have produced an unusual turn of late. Numerous people have been moved to remark, "I'm beginning to miss Nixon," or, "I wish we could have Nixon back" — this usually followed by, "He was so progressive on domestic policy."So if you're truly itching for more Nixon, where can you find him? Sure, there's plenty in the holdings of the National Archives, including this tapestry given as a gift from then-Imperial Majesty Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi of Iran. But what's more easily accessible?
Since it's unlikely we're ever going to see a statue of Nixon go up in place of Mexican president Benito Juarez in front of the Watergate anytime soon, the spot to get your Nixon fix is at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery. Norman Rockwell's famous portrait of Nixon, pictured above, is among the more peculiar in the gallery's presidential collection. Peculiar as in Nixon looks as harmless as a teddy bear, a departure from the stern, scowling figure seen in many depictions. According to the gallery, Rockwell intentionally made the portrait flattering:
The reason he did, Rockwell said, was that Nixon's appearance was troublesomely elusive, and if he was going to err in his portrayal, he wanted it to be at least in a direction that would please the subject.But not everything else in the National Portrait Gallery paints Nixon — or his administration — in such an ideal light. If you explore the rest of the gallery, you'll discover some other key Nixon nuggets ...
Continue Reading "Escape the Office: Satisfying Nixon Nostalgia" »
Express' Michael Grass did something unwise over the weekend: With the National Mall mobbed with Memorial Day visitors, he ventured into the National Gallery of Art.
THE WOMAN IN HOT PINK brushed up behind me as I was waiting to pay and threw her gelato-tasting spoon at the ground near my feet. "This tastes like craaa ... son-uv-a ...," she fumed. Spotting the manager in the distance, she charged forward.
She had apparently been wronged by the National Gallery of Art's gelato operation and wanted her voice to be heard. Never mind that she'd cut in line in front of me in the process so she point at the "that and that" she wanted to try. When I finally got a chance to order, the now-dissatisfied woman made it clear in a voice cured by years of smoking that she didn't appreciate that I was now suddenly in her way.
Her opinion aside, the gelato is, as The Post's Blake Gopnik described it in 2004, "one of the museum's hidden gems." And a tasty one at that — a perfect distraction from the maddening crowds on the Sunday before Memorial Day.
If you skipped town for the weekend, I can assure you that there were plenty of tourists ready to take your place. It was hot, humid, and. if you ventured onto Metrorail or downtown, crowded. But the gallery provides an air-conditioned shelter — one that's especially enjoyable if you avoid the cafeteria/bookstore concourse and find a nice tucked-away gallery in the West Building to peruse.
And if you're a downtown worker, or just want to pop in for an hour to look at one or two specific pieces, it's best, of course, to have a set agenda planned out. All the easier to avoid the tourists. Especially the ones in hot pink.
Continue Reading "D.C. Diary: Finding Refuge at the National Gallery" »
SO THE WEATHER isn't the best for a big downtown rally, but things could be worse. But this being D.C., just the fear of nasty weather, which has been known to squash outdoor events before, could keep turnout down. Capital Weather says, "It will feel much more like early March than the second half of April."
Nevertheless, this afternoon's D.C. voting rights rally is still on schedule.
At 2:30 p.m., D.C. voting rights advocates of every stripe will gather on Freedom Plaza in front of the Wilson Building on Pennsylvania Avenue between 13th and 14th streets NW. At 3 p.m., the march moves down Pennsylvania Avenue to the Capitol Reflecting Pool. Here's a link to a list of scheduled speakers.
» "The Week Ahead: Warmer Each and Every Day" [Capital Weather]
» "Voting Rights Rally Program" [D.C. Vote]
TODAY'S SUNNY SKIES and warm temperatures make a trip down to the Tidal Basin to look at the cherry blossoms particularly inviting. (Perhaps consider a two-hour lunch if you work downtown ...) But if a leisurely stroll along the Tidal Basin seems out of reach, there are plenty of people out there who have taken photos and put them up online. With peak bloom set for Wednesday, the best are sure to come in the coming days — but there are plenty of nice ones up right now.
The cherry blossoms might not be as playful as Tai Shan on the National Zoo's pandacam, hunting around for cherry blossom picks might be the next best office distraction. Here are some of the better ones out there right now.
1 » 2 » 3 » 4 » 5 » 6 » 7 » 8 » 9 » 10
» MORE PHOTOS can be found at the Cherry Blossom Festival photo pool over at Flickr and The Post has a nice photo gallery, too.
» COMPLETE cherry blossom event listings from washingtonpost.com's City Guide can be found here.
Photos above by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
WHEN YOU LOOK AT HISTORIC photographs of the Capitol taken from the west, there's always some sort of greenhouse in the foreground. A few years after the British burned the Capitol (and other parts of the capital in 1814), the first greenhouse and gardens took shape at the foot of Capitol Hill. Though there have been different structures under different organizations, what is now the U.S. Botanic Garden should be considered one of the city's most historic institutions. And for Capitol Hill staffers, or anyone else working near the Department of Health and Human Services, the place offers up a great escape from the nearby offices of federal bureaucracy.
IS AN INFUSION of Starbucks necessary for your daily survival? Do you like premium drip coffee? You're in luck.
Starting at 10 a.m., Starbucks baristas everywhere will struggle to keep smiling as they're mobbed by customers in search of free caffeine. The gratis java will be served until noon.
Think about it, in the greater Dupont Circle area, you could get seven free cups in the span of 45 minutes! Follow our map below to get your maximum fix.
» "Starbucks Coffee Break" [Starbucks]
Photo by Tim Boyle/Getty Images
Addison Road