Love in the time of corona

Wedding joy amidst the cherry blossoms on Constitution Avenue/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Now this is bliss, amidst the cherry blossoms near the Washington Monument. The white figure in the distance is the bride seen in the photo above/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Could this be love in the cherry blossoms?/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Between the rows of flags at a famous address in Washington, D.C., the Washington Monument stands center/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Guards making rounds on Sunday afternoon at the White House and leaves blowing in the wind at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue were almost the only things moving outside the gates/Photo by Patricia Leslie

On the 15th St. NW side of the White House on Sunday afternoon/Photo by Patricia Leslie

At the Department of Justice building, patriot Nathan Hale (1755-1776) stands erect, continuing to serve his country. He was a spy for the Continental Army, captured by the British and executed. "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country," or a variation of these words were supposedly his last and are carved at the base of the statue./Photo by Patricia Leslie

At the Federal Trade Commission building on Constitution Avenue, Gov. Andrew Cuomo  arrives to rein in the rampaging disease /Photo by Patricia Leslie

Parking was easy to find along Constitution Avenue Sunday afternoon, and the sidewalks were almost empty. We went for exercise and biking which is allowable under present rules/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Degas at the Opera will open again, won't it? Before it closes again, this time, scheduled to exit July 5, 2020 at the National Gallery of Art/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Multi-colored red tulips brighten a sad afternoon at the U.S. Botanic Garden. We may not be able to go inside the Botanic Garden building, but we can surely enjoy the scenery outside/Photo by Patricia Leslie

More beauty at the U.S. Botanic Garden/Photo by Patricia Leslie

The U.S. Botanic Garden/Photo by Patricia Leslie

A host of golden baby daffodils, tulips, and hyacinths at the U.S. Botanic Garden. Is there a fragrance any better than hyacinths'?/Photo by Patricia Leslie

One of the loveliest park scenes in all of D.C. when the Bartholdi Fountain is working. Prithee, Architect of the U.S. Capitol, wherefore are thou, water? Shut off for coronavirus?  We cannot enjoy the park's beauty?/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Have the Russians landed in D.C. to join their friend in the White House? What looks like Catherine the Great's gift to her Grandfather-in-Law, Peter the Great (which welcomes visitors at the River Neva in St. Petersburg) is actually General Jose de San Martin (1778-1850) "Liberador" and "Leader of the Argentine Independence," a statue which is found in Triangle Park at Virginia Ave., NW and 20th St., NW. It's a copy of one in Buenos Aires, sculpted by Augustin-Alexandre Dumont who completed the original in 1862.  Argentina gave this duplicate in 1925, and it was rededicated in 1976, according to the Smithsonian Institution Research Information System/Photo by Patricia Leslie

 More about General Jose de San Martin at his statue/Photo by Patricia Leslie

General Jose de San Martin (1778-1850) "Liberador" and "Leader of the Argentine Independence" found in Triangle Park at Virginia Ave., NW and 20th St., NW/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Peter the Great Statue, the Bronze Horseman, a gift to Peter from Catherine the Great dedicated in 1782, St Petersburg, Russia. Note the similarities to Gen. Juan de San Martin's statue, the outstretched right hand, the rearing horse (which strikes a serpent under Peter). The "Thunder Stone" which holds Peter is the largest ever moved by humans (1768)/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Peter the Great Statue, the Bronze Horseman, St Petersburg, Russia/Photo by Patricia Leslie

 

Peter the Great Statue, the Bronze Horseman, St Petersburg, Russia/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Tiptoe through the daffodils and smell their fragrance at the U.S. Botanic Garden/Photo by Patricia Leslie


PatriciaLesli@gmail.com

Electric cherry blossoms light D.C.

All hail the power of flowers!  Lift your hands and watch flowers move in the design made by Akiko Yamishita with Sachiko Yamashita & Mikitype, Hana Fubuki, 2019 at Artechouse/Photo by Patricia Leslie

A little girl atop a man's shoulders is mesmerized by the power she weaves at Artechouse.  Digitized art reflects a pond of colors /Photo by Patricia Leslie

And you just thought they were gone.

At Artechouse, you can still see them, an inside, electric visualization with womanmade flowers which fill walls from floor to ceiling in a dream-like world.

And the floor reflects them.  

It's like skating on a frozen pond of glass, with colors and shapes to cover the floor and take you to fantasy land in a psychedelic swirl.

Flowers, flowers everywhere at Artechouse /Photo by Patricia Leslie

He raises his arms and like swim strokes making waves, he moves flowers at Artechouse /Photo by Patricia Leslie

Bend this way and that at the Artechouse and command the universe/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Artechouse is not only for adults; children are welcome and encouraged to visit this "new age" experiment in "augmented reality," a different expression of art, digitized with music to deepen the experience.
 
Here visitors weave magic with a sweep of their hands or arms. Watch synchronized flowers move with human motion. See them sway with the "wind."  Or, dance a jig and observe the power of humans to make blossoms respond.

 

Not mannikins but figures enveloped by surround sights and sounds in a starry night at Artechouse/Photo by Patricia Leslie

By Lisa Park, Blooming, 2018. This is a hi-tech cherry blossom tree with changing colors in its very own gallery at Artechouse/Photo by Patricia Leslie

If we point that way, the flowers follow our movements. At Artechouse /Photo by Patricia Leslie
 
And if we point both ways, they match us in floral movements. At Artechouse/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Touch a plant and turn on a light.

Enchanted Garden is found in another section of the gallery, created by "augmented reality" using natural and recycled materials to tell the story of a Japanese folk tale, the Rabbit in the Moon. 

Paige, an Artechouse employee, turns on a light by touching the plant. Must see to believe! /Photo by Patricia Leslie

The designs are creations of two Japanese sisters who were inspired by their grandfather, a poet and nature lover whose adoration of the outdoors was passed to his progeny.

Come on in and take a peek. Or a sweep, and experience art in a new way.
 
A bar is onsite.

What: In Peak Bloom

When:  Now through May 27, 2019. Sunday - Thursday, 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. After Hours, 7 - 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. After Hours, 5:30 - 11:30 p.m.

Where: Artechouse, 1238 Maryland Ave., S.W. Washington, D.C. 20024. A few steps from the Mandarin Oriental Hotel.

Admission: Adults, $16 (online), $20 (onsite); students, seniors, and military, $13 or $15; children (2-14) $8 or $10 plus tax and processing fee.

Metro station:  Smithsonian, exit 12th and Independence Avenue; walk 10 minutes (.3 mile).

The bar: Opens at 11 a.m.
   
Footcovers:  Mandatory and available. (No charge.)

For more information:  No telephone number found. Email: tickets@artechouse.com.

patricialesli@gmail.com