The Nutcracker: A Holiday Tradition

We've made it over 1,100 page hits! I just wanted to thank everyone who reads my blog.

In honor of the season, I wanted to branch out a bit from exhibits and explore one of my favorite holiday traditions at one of the best cultural institutions in the country: The Nutcracker at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

I have seen the Nutcracker every December since I was 3 years old, so it holds very special place in my heart. Its just not Christmas without Clara, Herr Drosselmeyer, and the Nutcracker Prince. 

This year, we saw the Joffrey Ballet perform at the Kennedy Center. One of the great things about living in the DC area is that we get to see so many different companies perform the Nutcracker at the Kennedy Center. And the Joffrey is never a disappointment.

It was a total girls night out. My mom invited two of her friends and I invited two of mine. Before the show, we had dinner at one of our go-to restaurants within walking distance of the Kennedy Center: Notti Bianche. Its this great little Italian restaurant tucked into the basement of the George Wasghington University Inn. 

We all had an amazing dinner (most of us went for pumpkin ravioli, which was amazing!). And decided to have after dinner drinks before heading off to the ballet.

The atmosphere in the Opera House was festive before the curtain went up. Mom got us amazing orchestra seats this year, close to the stage. And  as the music began and the curtain went up, the holiday season truly began.

If you are in the DC area and have never experienced the Kennedy Center, I strongly encourage you to go. If you are under 30, you can join a program called MyTix, which allows you to attend Kennedy Center productions for a reduced price. And if you have never seen the Nutcracker, find a production and go see it! The music and dancing is just amazing and the perfect way to celebrate the holiday season. 

Thank you all again for reading Exhibit Life. Please feel free to subscribe to the blog if you like what I've been posting and feel free to leave comments and suggestions.

Van Gogh at The Phillips

I hope everyone had a fabulous Thanksgiving and are staying safe during the Black Friday madness. 

I got a text last week from my friend Elaine asking if I wanted to go see the new Van Gogh exhibit in town. My first thought was, "There's a new Van Gogh exhibit in town?" immediately followed by, "Cool, I wonder if we can do brunch after?" So after a little further investigation and planning, we headed into the city for what we hoped would be a fun day of art and food.

We were not disappointed.

The exhibit, entitled "Van Gogh: Repetitions," is at the Phillips Collection, which is an amazing private museum tucked right off Dupont Circle. Tickets are required for the exhibit, but are only $12 ($10 for students with valid ID) and include entry into the rest of the museum. 

Elaine purchased our tickets ahead of time and had chosen the first time slot available, in hopes of avoiding a large crowd. Because we went on a Sunday, the earliest available time was 11:00 am when the museum opened. When we arrived at the museum, however, there was already a line out the door (strangely enough it was mostly will-call).

Luckily the line moved quickly and we made it into the museum without any complications. Upon entering the museum proper, we were greeted with an introduction to the exhibit. From there, we headed up to the museum's third floor, to see what masterpieces the exhibit had in store for us. Unfortunately, photography is not allowed in the Van Gogh exhibit, so you will just have to go see it for yourselves.

Overall, I really enjoyed the exhibit. While I usually prefer to enjoy art for the beauty of it rather than the techniques used, it was really interesting to see different variations of the same subject. The exhibit includes series of both landscapes and portraits, with didactics showing the slight differences between each repetition. The works showcased in this exhibit include: The Road Menders, The Bedroom, The Postman, and The Moulin de la Galette, along with many others. The exhibit also touched on Van Gogh's influences and his contemporaries, although I have to admit I did not spend as much time on those parts of the exhibits, mostly because of the crowds. Although we had gone early and had an entry time, the exhibit was fairly crowded. There were people checking tickets, but they were not checking entry times, which could account for the overcrowding. There were also a few areas that seemed to easily bottleneck in the center of the exhibit, mostly around the more well-known works. 

One thing that I did learn from this exhibit was that although I have never been a fan of Van Gogh's portraits (there is just something too odd about the skin-colors he used), I really love his landscapes. There is something about the vidid colors and the perspective that just drew me in. The exhibit did what it promised to do: it draws attention to the detail and precession that went into each variation in a series. 

Since I couldn't show you the Van Gogh exhibit, I thought I would show you some of works on permanent display at the Phillips Collection. These include a room of four works by Mark Rothko.

Renoir's Luncheon of the Boating Party (my favorite in the collection).

Several beautiful  impressionist landscapes by Pierre Bonnard.

The Wake of the Ferry II by John Sloan.

And The Opera, Paris by Raoul Dufy. This is my second favorite piece in the collection (right behind Luncheon of the Boating Party). I don't know what exactly I love about this piece, it may be the colors, the technique, or simply the feeling of the painting, but I love it. Its a must see if you go to the Phillips (Hint: its on the second floor). 

And finally, the Laib Wax Room. Yes, you read that correctly, there is a room made entirely of Beeswax. It is meant to be a meditation room, although I have to admit that I was really just curious. But it does smell really good when you are in the room.

After we found our way out of the maze of rooms and staircases, we decided to explore the shop before heading to brunch. There are always fun things in museum shops. This time my favorite was the Postman's beard. Do you think it could start a new trend?

After goofing off long enough in the museum store, Elaine and I headed off to brunch at Darlington House, which is just a short walk from the Phillips Collection. Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures of the restaurant (really cute old row house) and our food (delicious). But what brunch would be complete without Mimosas and Bellinis?

The exhibit "Van Gogh: Repetitions" will be on display at the Phillips Collection from now until January 26, 2014. 

"Three Shots Were Fired" - Remembering JFK on the 50th anniversary of his death

On the 50th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assignation (November 22, 2013), I wanted to share the Newseum exhibit "Three Shots Were Fired" with you. It is the second temporary exhibit about John F. Kennedy currently installed at the Newseum.

 Image from "Creating Camelot" exhibit

To get to the second exhibit on JFK, you need to get to the top floor of the Newseum. The easiest way to do that from the ground floor is to take the museum's glass elevators up to the top of the building. If it's a nice day outside, you should take the terrace route to the other side of the top floor. From the terrace you can get some of the best views of the Capital and Pennsylvania Ave. 

 The Capital (and the Canadian Embassy)

Pennsylvania Ave

The second exhibit devoted to JFK at the Newseum is a much more somber experience than the first. Which is to be expected, given the subject matter. The exhibit "Three Shots Were Fired" focuses on that fateful day in Dallas, TX when President John F. Kennedy became the 4th American president to be killed in office. 

The exhibit begin with Kennedy's arrival in Dallas.  The Kennedy's were on a short goodwill trip to Texas, beginning first in San Antonio and scheduled to end at Vice President Johnson's ranch in Johnson City. On November 22, 1963 at 11:40 (CST), Air Force One arrived in Dallas. 

At 12:30pm (CST), less than an hour after arriving in Dallas, President John F. Kennedy was shot. And pandemonium broke out.

That pandemonium was captured on live TV, with reports breaking on all networks. It is this live coverage that the exhibit focuses on. In the first room focuses on the motorcade's race to Parkland Hospital and the first announcements of the attack on JFK. The live coverage of the events following Kennedy's assignation was unprecedented. And it is the video of that live coverage that draws the visitor into the first room in the exhibit.

The didactics in this room cover the moments directly before and after those fateful three shots rang out. The objects in the room are related to the radio and television coverage from that day.

Even though the video is technically at the end of the exhibit design for the room, it is the first thing that people fixate on. And for some visitors, it appears to be the only thing in the room.

The rest of the exhibit looks at more of the particulars of the case surrounding Kenendy's assignation. From panels exploring the Zapruder film to retracing the exact root the motorcade took that day to Kennedy's funeral, the exhibit fully covers America’s obsession with the president’s assignation. 

And just like in the Berlin Wall exhibit, walking through this JFK exhibit with my mother added a whole other perspective to the experience. She was a young girl in 1963, but clearly remembers where she was when she got the news of his assignation. To her this wasn’t a historical event, it was one of the most important events during her childhood. 

At the end of the exhibit there is a wall where visitors can share their memories of where they were when Kennedy was shot. It was a nice way to bring the visitors into the exhibit, although there were many examples that simply said, “Not born.” 

But no matter what age you are, this exhibit reminds you of all the hope the country had surrounding the young president and what possibilities were lost on that November day, 50 years ago. 

"Three Shots Were Fired" will be open at the Newseum through January 5, 2014.

The Rise of Camelot: The Newseum Part 2

JFK. Those three letters invoke not just a name, but a man who defined an entire era for hundreds of thousands of Americans. And when he was assassinated, it shook the county. Now, at the 50th anniversary of his death, the Newseum presents two temporary exhibits that chronicle very different periods in John F. Kennedy's life.

The first, entitled “Creating Camelot”, focuses on the photographs of Kennedy’s campaign and first year as president, taken by photographer Jacques Lowe. 

These images are not perfectly posed political pictures, but more intimate snapshots of everyday life. 

Of course, it is the Kennedy version of everyday life, but still, these images show what appears to be a a young, beautiful couple who would go on to become America's version of royalty. The first photographs are images from the family home in Hyannis Port, during JFK's first sitting with Lowe. The label text describe a Kennedy as a somewhat shy, reluctant subject. Apparently he was not at ease with the first sitting until Jackie brought out Caroline to help take his mind off the photographs. And the photographs that accompany this anecdote reflect that. The images are an intimate glimpse into a day in the life of a young family.

As the exhibit progresses, there are photographs from some of JFK’s stops along the his presidential campaign root, but once again, they are not quite what you would expect. There are many that focus on JFK's successful stops along the campaign trail, but the most memorable one for me was an image taken after an unsuccessful one.

 I don't know exactly what it is about the image, but I couldn't help but be pulled in. Maybe its because of his stance, or the water, or simply that fact that you can tell he's disappointed, but there is something powerful about this image.

One of my favorites!

Although mostly photographs, the exhibit does contain a few objects, including Lowe's camera.

As the exhibit transitions from JFK's campaign to his presidency, the intimacy of the images remains. From images of Jackie and Caroline...

...to intimate moments between Jackie and John. (This series of three images is one of my favorites!)

The last wall is devoted to Jackie. It is only fitting as she became one of the defining people of the era, and changed American style forever.

Although it was full of beautiful images and the didactic panels were extremely well done, I had a few issues with the exhibit itself. The main one was the flow of the exhibit. There was no real indication where the exhibited started, so many visitors went through it backwards. The large wall devoted to Jackie seemed to immediately draw people to it, which became a problem when they came to the end of the wall and entered the rest of the exhibit from the end. There also seemed to be a bit of a bottle neck in middle of the exhibit, but that appeared to be mainly because of space constraints. Over all, "Creating Camelot" was a very enjoyable exhibit that left me feeling like I had been given a glimpse into the private lives of America's version of the royal family.

The exhibit will be on display at the Newseum until January 5, 2014.

An interesting fact about this exhibit is that most of the images were not produced from the original negatives, as those were stored in the World Trade Towers and were lost on 9/11. 

The next post will cover the exhibit on the fall of Camelot: November 22, 1963.

History through the News: The Newseum part 1

So, with so many of the DC museums closed because of the shutdown, there were only a few museums to choose from when my cousin came to visit on her fall break. Of those museums, the one that looked the most interesting to both of us was the Newseum. I had been to the Newseum years ago when it was located in Virginia, but hadn't been since the new facility had opened on Pennsylvania Ave. So, deciding to brave the rain and the protesters, we got in the car and headed into the city. 

View from the Newseum's terrace. 

It was strange that on the Sunday of a holiday weekend, we got a prime parking spot right in front of the National Museum of Natural History. It was only a three block walk to the Newseum, and before I knew it we were looking at a tall, sleek building. The buzz created by the visitors was a sharp contrast to the locked Sculpture Garden and the closed Archives we had passed on our short walk there. When we stepped inside, I have to admit that I was impressed by the shear size of building and excited to see what the day had in store for us.

After purchasing our tickets (they are good for 2 days and there is a student discount available), we made our way down to the orientation video, which explains what is the best for visitors to explore the museum. Having decided to follow the museum's recommendations, we began our tour on Level 1, where we saw three very different but cool exhibits: The Berlin Wall Gallery, Creating Camelot, and FBI Exhibit. And of course I took enough pictures to make each their own posting. 

The first post will cover the permanent exhibit that I thought was the best done in the entire Newseum: the aforementioned Berlin Wall Gallery.

Looking down from level 6 of the Newseum

The Berlin Wall Gallery is the first gallery you come to after exiting the orientation video. The gallery space is designated by a large section of the wall itself. 

After briefly touching a “piece of history” as instructed by the label text, my mom, cousin, and I headed over to get a closer look at the wall. 

There is something about this object that is awe inspiring. The art/graffiti on it tells part of its history, in stark juxtaposition to the clear surface of the concrete on the other side. After studying the art on the wall’s original West side, we headed into the gallery.

In the center of the gallery stands an imposing concrete tower. There are no panels explaining what it is on the outside of the structure, but it had an ominous feeling about it. Walking into the doorway - one of the only openings in the tower - you can hear indistinct industrial noises. There is a small panel labeling the tower a “Death Tower.” During the period when the wall was up, 300 of these towers lined border between East and West Berlin, from the East side. These towers were used to prevent illegal border crossings. This particular one used to stand at Stallschreiberstrasse, less than a mile from the most famous border crossing in Berlin- Checkpoint Charlie. 

After exiting the Death Tower, we moved to the first of the main text panels. These panels, which are on the three walls of the gallery, tell the story of the wall, from its very beginning to its famous fall. That story is told through the use of multimedia text panels. There is the traditional text that tells the historical narrative and personal stories. My favorite of these was the story of the young reporter who was one of the first to see (and report on) the first barricades that went up between East and West Berlin. 

But the story was not just told in still images and label text. Each panel had a video screen that added not only a multimedia dimension to the exhibit, but also a more emotional connection to the narrative. The videos were collections of news clips and stories about from different periods in the wall’s history, keeping with the museum’s intent to teach history through the news that made it. 

There were also a few other objects selected for the exhibit, to add a more tangible dimension to the panels. The first object is what is probably one of the most recognizable signs in from the recent history: the sign for Checkpoint Charlie. The other object in the main gallery is harder to place, but the inclusion of a photograph on the panel above it identifies it as one of the anti-tank barriers used at Todesstreifen. 

The final panel tells the story of the breaking down of the Soviet control of East Berlin and the tearing down of the wall. It focuses on the images made famous by newspapers around the world of the wall coming down. It is a very moving ending to the story. 

Now, I was a year old when the wall came down (although my mom did prop me up in front of the TV so I can say that I did watch it come down), so it wasn’t as powerful to me as it was to my mom.  Throughout the entire exhibit she had been talking about what it was like to live through certain events and how it seemed like the wall would always be a barrier between the two Berlins. Her commentary enhanced my experience at the exhibit, because to me, this is all history. But to my mom it was her childhood and early adult life. This was her news, not her history. Which I think is one lesson the exhibit is trying to get across to people born after the wall came down. This was millions of people’s reality, unfolding daily in the media. 

The gallery is not large and the panels are not as in depth as they are in many other of the Newseum’s exhibits, but this exhibit may be worth the price of the ticket on its own. It flows well, tells a meaningful story, and invokes an emotional response from patrons. Definitely one to check out. 

And next time, the Newseum part 2 and the JFK exhibits.