Filed under: art, rest & relaxation, travel | Tags: Smithsonian Hirshhorn Museum, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C.
Today I headed back to the D.C. Mall for some more art. I completed the National Gallery of Art’s modern wing, then headed to the Hirshhorn Museum of modern and contemporary art, and finally ended up at the Air & Space Museum with an hour-plus to kill.
I wish I could do a slideshow of the art I saw today, but instead you’ll need to scroll down the page. First, some detail from French painter André Derain’s “Mountains at Collioure” (1905).
One of my favorites from today: This massive 1971 acrylic from Chuck Close.
While I wasn’t so into the rest of this large, fractured canvas, I loved this portion of David Salle’s “Coming and Going” (1987).
I also loved German-born Anselm Kiefer’s “Zin Zum” (1990). Here’s some detail.
Another German painter, Sigmar Polke’s “Hope is: Wanting to Pull Clouds” (1992).
Alberto Giacometti’s “Walking Man”.
How cool is it that these museums allow photography? The Hirshhorn was no exception. My two favorite pieces there were a 30-minute film by Peter Fischli and David Weiss, “The Way Things Go,” which you can view a sampling of here, and Doug Wheeler’s “Environmental Light Installation” (1969), which was, to put it mildly, really fucking cool. It’s in a deep white room, which I’m not sure comes through clearly from these pics. Note, the dude in the first one is a visitor, and not part of the installation.
I couldn’t resist. I need a new Facebook photo.
Here’s some more highlights from the Hirshhorn. I really dug Kent Henricksen’s “Absence of Myth (White)” (2007), which features embroidery.
John Jurayj’s “Untitled (U.S. Embassy, 1983, #1)”, from 2005-06.
Check this funky one out. The canvas is wood paneling, and the 2006 piece is by Iona Rozeal Brown. Check out the detail.
A little (big) Lichtenstein …
I found this small sculpture by Klaus Ihlenfeld quite cool.
As was this dangling sculpture from 1966 by Eva Hesse.
Finally, doesn’t this Barry Flanagan sculpture from the Hirshhorn’s sculpture garden remind you of the rabbit mask in Donnie Darko?
After all the art, I took in a short IMAX flick about the sun at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum.
The museum closed at 5:30, so I didn’t get to spend much time there. I wish I would have walked around the Natural History museum instead. Maybe tomorrow.
Filed under: art, rest & relaxation, travel | Tags: Lincoln Memorial, Smithsonian National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C., Washington Monument
So technically today was Day 2 in D.C., as I arrived yesterday around 1. But I didn’t do anything touristy yesterday. Chris and I went to a Steelers bar to watch the game, and all three levels of it were jam-packed with Pittsburgh fans. Then we went to another bar to watch the Rays eliminate the Red Sox.
Today I went to the National Mall. This being my first time in D.C., it was also my first time seeing the sights that some of you have probably tired of by now. Anyway, humor me. First, the psychedelic lobby in Chris’ apartment building.
And the humongous church outside his apartment buiding. This is the Washington National Cathedral, which despite its classical gothic architecture wasn’t completed until 1990, 83 years after construction began on the behemoth. Since it’s nearby, I may take a tour of it while I’m here.
I’m supposed to be on the lookout for a good place to get East Coast pizza. Of course, the joint just down the road from Chris serves…
I wandered out of my subway stop into the middle of a mass of buildings. I had no clue where I was, but I quickly found The Mall thanks to this sure sign.
Standing in the Washington Monument’s shadow.
Then it was on to the WW2 Memorial …
… which had some interesting, overwhelmingly forceful verbiage.
Why don’t our current generals have a way with words like this passage from Gen. MacArthur?
On to the reflection pool, and my own attempt at an amateur postcard.
The animals in D.C. are entertaining.
Ever since I’ve been a wee lad I’ve had a fascination with the Lincoln Memorial. It did not disappoint in person.
In my humble opinion, our ode to Lincoln slays our ode to Washington. Maybe it’s just that I’ve grown accustomed to the Gateway Arch in St. Louis (and hence the Washington Monument doesn’t blow me away), but the Lincoln Memorial seems more majestic and certainly more awe-inspiring. Check out the ceiling above the statue.
Some wise words from Honest Abe.
On my way down the steps of the memorial, I paused to take a snap shot of the reflection pool with the Washington Monument in the distance. Some old lady bumped my elbow and my camera went flying down the steps, boucning a couple times before coming to a rest 10 steps below me. Luckily the camera survived with just three dents. The old woman didn’t bother to say she was sorry.
Of all the Smithsonian museums, I was most excited to go to the Museum of American History … which was closed for renovation. So I headed to Plan B, the National Gallery of Art. The entrance is a bit daunting.
Once inside, I found more jaw-dropping sites …
… not to mention the art.
Edouard Manet’s “The Dead Toreador,” circa 1864.
Toulouse-Lautrec’s oil-on-cardboard masterpiece “Alfred la Guigne,” circa 1894.
I love this portrait, and not just because the subject is throwing the Westside gang sign. Sandro Botticelli’s “Portrait of a Youth,” circa 1485.
And this sculpture is pretty cool. It’s Giovanni Della Robbia’s “Pieta,” circa 1520. Who knew that Christ wore stylish, striped track shorts?
I didn’t make it through the modernist wing, so I’ll have to try that later in the week.
Tomorrow, the zoo!
