We spent Friday evening and Saturday celebrating our wedding anniversary in Maryland and DC. I was in charge of planning, so I planned to tackle something new.
Friday evening we attended the temple in Kensington and enjoyed a ten p.m. dinner at 2 Amy's Pizzaria in Bethesda. Then on Saturday we walked the National Gallery of Art and toured the Capitol and Library of Congress, ending the evening with a delicious meal at Dupont Circle at La Tomate. I snapped several shots of my favorite things along the way, and I tried to catch Dan in there when he didn't notice.
A whole room of Calder mobiles, and roomfuls of other beautiful sculpture in the East Building at the National Gallery.
The West building was full of the work of the masters. Walking through each gallery gave a sweeping view of nearly six hundred years of painting. At a quick pace, it was easy for much of it to look the same, but many stood out. Love this "Madonna of the Goldfinch."
I was impressed by the sinewy figure of this "Healing of the Parilytic" done by an unknown Dutch artist. I especially love it because it is the perfect follow-up for another painting I love by Heinrich Bloch.
The Memorial to Robert Gould Shaw inspires such reverence and respect. A whole roomful of students sat sketching quietly and I wondered if we should all take the same careful notice of the details of this story.
We were able to closely admire the works of many of the portrait painters from the days of the founding fathers. These three men dedicated themselves to this country and were deserving of portraits in their likenesses.
But this grouping of three portraits was my favorite--I love how each of the subjects is captured mid-task. One takes her glove off. One sews. One leans out from behind his geranium.
I couldn't get decent photos of all of my favorites from Rembrandt, Monet, Van Gogh, Peale, Wyeth, Modigliani, Degas, and so many of the others. Someday I'll take our kids back and show Homer's boys on the boat and the tiny dots of Seurat's work. I took note of the selections for the museums children's tour, and someday my kids will appreciate those pieces.
We slipped in a tour of the Capitol building in the afternoon.
Our tour guide confirmed the myth of the parabolic reflection in the senate chambers. I took mostly pictures of things directly above our heads. The spacious, majestic domes hold hundreds of symbols and stories and design details.
The Library of Congress was worth the visit, too, with it's both byzantine and art deco design. We were jealous of the people inside who had total access to the books, but we opted to look on at the main hall instead. The windows in this place are truly portals of illumination.
(This is Dan's thinking look.)
A Gutenberg Bible behind glass.
I'm so glad for my marriage to Dan and for chances to be with him. It's such a relief that my kids are old enough to stay behind with friends without distressing too much. I'm already looking forward to our next anniversary celebration in a year's time.
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