Maya Lin's 'One Life' closes Sunday

Maya Lin, age about 4, who said later that "play," despite advice from a professor, has always been an important part of her life and work. From a photograph at the National Portrait Gallery exhibition.

Maya Lin  (b. 1959) was only 21 years old and an undergraduate student when her submission for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial  was chosen as the winning design from approximately 1,420 entries.

When the winner was announced, her design met considerable opposition and resistance. Former U.S. Senator James Webb of Virginia, himself a Vietnam veteran, called it "a nihilistic slab of stone"; President Ronald Reagan's secretary of the interior delayed issuing a building permit. 

Since its dedication in 1982, the memorial has become "something of a shrine," according to the founder, Jan Scruggs. 

The U.S. Department of Defense says more than five million people visit the memorial annually, making it the most popular monument on the National Mall ...  and the first monument there to be designed by a woman.

On two pieces of black granite, the names of 58,320 persons (the number is debatable) who are missing in action or died as a result of the Vietnam War are carved in chronological order of their deaths.

Closing Sunday at the National Portrait Gallery is a short celebration of Ms. Lin's life in an excellent exhibition, One Life:  Maya Lin.  

In 2016 President Barack Obama awarded Maya Lin the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the U.S./by Chip Somodevilla (b. 1972)

In the Maya Lin gallery at the National Portrait Gallery/by Patricia Leslie

In the Maya Lin gallery at the National Portrait Gallery/by Patricia Leslie

Her life's story is shown in chronological order with family photos, personal items, three dimensional models, designs and pictures of other buildings she has accomplished since the memorial thrust her into the world's limelight which has never waned.

Dorothy Moss, the museum’s curator of painting and sculpture, curated the show.

Maya Lin's Langston Hughes Library in Clinton, Tennessee, from a photograph by Timothy Hursley (b. 1955), National Portrait Gallery

Maya Lin's Riggio-Lynch Interfaith Chapel, Clinton, Tennessee, from a photograph by Timothy Hursley (b. 1955), National Portrait Gallery

The introduction to Maya Lin at the National Portrait Gallery/by Patricia Leslie

The introduction to Maya Lin at the National Portrait Gallery/by Patricia Leslie

When Ms. Lin entered college, she wanted to be a zoologist. Part of her schooling took her to Denmark where she learned memorials could become community spaces. 

As a child she spent hours playing with her brother in the woods behind the family home in Ohio, nature's surroundings which continue to play a criticial role in her life and work as an environmentalist and climate change soldier.

This is the museum’s first One Life exhibition dedicated to an Asian American.

For photos from the memorial on Memorial Day 2014, go here. For a visit Ms. Lin made to the former Corcoran Gallery in 2009, go here.

What:  One Life:  Maya Lin

When: Closing April 16, 2023. The National Portrait Gallery is open daily from 11:30 a.m - 7 p.m. 

Where: Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, 8th and F streets, N. W., Washington, D.C. 20001

Admission: No fee

For more information: 202-633-8300 or visit the website

Closest Metro station: Gallery Place-Chinatown or walk 10 minutes from Metro Center

patricialesli@gmail.com

Last weekend to steak out a Renaissance artist at the National Galley of Art

     

"Come in to my abode, my pretty, and see what jewels I have to show you." One of Vittore Carpaccio's dragons, considered to be the devil.

Vittore Carpaccio, Saint George and the Dragon and Four Scenes from the Martyrdom of Saint George (detail), 1516, oil on canvas, Abbazia di San Giorgio Maggiore, Benedicti Claustra Onlus, Venice

The first retrospective exhibition ever held outside Italy of a Renaissance artist's paintings and drawings will close Sunday at the National Gallery of Art.

Because few museums in the U.S. can boast of having any of his works, the name of Vittore Carpaccio (c.1460/1466–1525/1526) is unfamiliar to most Americans who more likely recognize his surname, chosen by a Venetian restauranter in 1963 for a special dish he cooked up for an ill countess.

Based on the artist's unique reds, the cook anointed  his special dish of raw meats, "steak carpaccio."

Vittore Carpaccio, Portrait of a Woman Holding a Book, c. 1500-1505, Denver Art Museum Collection, gift of the Samuel H. Kress Foundation

The National Gallery show has mounted a glorious show of 45 paintings and 30 drawings by Carpaccio, a native Venetian, who made them for societies, churches, and wealthy families.

He painted large, colorful religious scenes from Bible chapters, and for individual patrons, his works were mostly secular, all in the era's style of flat faces, mostly lacking expressions (except when it comes to bored women).

For the wealthy, Carpaccio's figures are, naturally, dressed in the finest fashions of the day.

Carpaccio made several portraits which included women with books, which is commendable that patrons wanted him to paint subjects in intellectual pursuits, however, most women then didn't read to gain knowledge per se but to learn how to teach their children how to read. 

Wealthy families hired tutors to educate their daughters.  

Carpaccio's characters occasionally hint at a smile as in Portrait of a Woman Holding a Book, above, compared to Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa, whose mouth is more flirtacious than Carpaccio's Portrait. I suppose one must strain to catch a glimmer of a smile in Carpaccio's Woman, but my imagination permits me to see one because I want to see one. Rather like hearing what you want to hear other than what is really said. 

Since the two Italian artists lived about the same time [da Vinci, 1452-1519], might they have been trained in the same school?

Vittore Carpaccio, Two Women on a Balcony, c. 1492/1494, Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia, Museo Correr,  Venice.This work has been reunited with its partner, Fishing and Fowling on the Lagoon, c. 1492/1494, from the J. Paul Getty Museum. Both were painted on the same wooden panel and believed to have been part of a folding door at a Venetian palace.  In the 1700s, the works were split in two but reunited to introduce the exhibition. The forlorn, sculpted women wait patiently on their husbands who are out fishing. (More than 500 years later, things remain the same.) 

Vittore Carpaccio, A Young Knight, 1510, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid. This is a large painting, filled with symbols. Pick them out before you check the link

Another large painting is Carpaccio's The Martyrdom of the Ten Thousand Christians on Mount Ararat, 1515, loaned by the Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice. It is based on the lives of the saints and 10,000 Christian converts killed by Romans and Muslims with whose empires Venice was engaged in conflict. Vasari mentions The Martyrdom in his 16th century Lives of the Most Famous Painters, Sculptors, and Architects.

Vittore Carpaccio,The Martyrdom of the Ten Thousand Christians on Mount Ararat, (detail) 1515, loaned by the Gallerie dell'Academia, Venice

Vittore Carpaccio, Allegorical Figure, (detail) c. 1498, private collection. She's probably "Virtue"; read below.

Vittore Carpaccio, Youth in a Landscape, (detail) c. 1498, Accademia Carrara, Bergamo. He is probably Hercules who weighs whether to follow "Virtue" (the woman above) or "Vice," pictured on another panel which is missing, and, of course, a woman. For all good Venetian fellows, Hercules chose "Virtue," laying the groundwork for them to follow.  A flowing landscape also connects these works, probably part of a chest. Giorgione was thought, originally, to have been the artist, according to the catalog. Until the 1930s, they were in a private Venetian collection, but the two female panels entered the New York art market in 1939 where "Vice" was swallowed up by...? And since absent from the public.  

Wherefore are thou, "Vice"?  To show up on "Antiques Roadshow"? Check your attic.  "Vice" looks like a twin of "Virtue" (disguised, per usual), looking in the opposite direction towards Hercules, according to an illustration found in the catalog.  "Virtue" and "Vice" originally appeared on either side of our hero, much like you see the morning "tee-hee" talk show hosts positioned on CNN and Fox.  Without a doubt, those producers studied Carpaccio to design their sets.

At the exhibition's exit,  one of Carpaccio's dragons bids "arrivederci" to departing guests. 

On the exhibition website, NGA’s John Strand writes Carpaccio drew his dragons smaller than imagination, likely because they could be more easily "defeated." Dragons were a symbol of the devil and Carpaccio makes them into scary creatures with the  teeth of daggers. 

Carpaccio is a favorite son of Venice which, at the turn of the 16th century, was a thriving marketplace, equivalent to New York City today and what was Hong Kong. The city looks forward to the artist's return March 18 to the Pacazzo Ducale, where his works will be on view through June 18, 2023.

A large catalog with 300 illustrations, many in color, has over 340 pages and is available in the shops, or it was. Since I now cannot find it, perhaps it's sold out and once seen, readers will understand why!

I nominate Susan Marsh and her team of book designers for the Academy Award in Book Covers for their magnificent choices of Carpaccio's, Two Women on a Balcony, c. 1492/1494, who grace the cover and look longingly towards the book's spine where, on the back cover, Carpaccio's men enjoy a sporting good time fishing and boating in Fishing and Fowling on the Lagoon, c. 1492/1494.

If you can't find the catalog, the National Gallery has plenty of other Carpaccio items for you to consider, ranging from prints, magnets, china, cards, and (the symbol of Venice) the Lion of St. Mark Corset Cuff Bracelet, made especially for NGA ($370, choice of red or blue with gold).

Valentines, anyone?

Peter Humfrey of the University of St. Andrews was the curator, in collaboration with Andrea Bellieni from the Museo Civici di Venezia and NGA's Gretchen Hirschauer.

What: Vittore Carpaccio: Master Storyteller of Renaissance Venice

When: Through February 12, 2023. The National Gallery hours are 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. daily.

Where: West Building, Main Floor National Gallery of Art, 6th and Constitution, Washington

How much: Admission is always free at the National Gallery of Art.

Metro stations for the National Gallery of Art:
Smithsonian, Federal Triangle, Navy Memorial-Archives, or L'Enfant Plaza

For more information: (202) 737-4215

Accessibility information: (202) 842-6905

patricialesli@gmail.com

Adieu (soon) to 'King Tut' at National Geographic

At the entrance to King Tut's simulated tomb at National Geographic/Photo by Patricia Leslie

History.com says the discovery of King Tut's tomb 100 years ago is "the greatest archeological find of all time," while Wikipedia calls it "the best-preserved pharaonic tomb ever found in the Valley of the Kings."  

And if you can't get to Cairo to see King Tut's tomb and all his worldly afterlife possessions, National Geographic has brought a semblance to you.

Inside Immersive King Tut at National Geographic/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Although the presentation lacks any artifacts, the tomb story is told in pictures, maps, video and recreations in another "immersive experience," but something is better than nothing, yes? 

Yes! 

A reproduction of the Dec. 12, 1922 page from the Times of London and its explosive pictures and articles upon the discovery of King Tut's tomb, pictured at National Geographic/Photo by Patricia Leslie

The entrance to King Tut’s tomb from a newspaper photograph at National Geographic/Photo by Patricia Leslie

An enlargement of the photograph of a luncheon party on site after the tomb was discovered, pictured in the London Times, Dec. 12, 1922. At National Geographic/Photo of a photo by Patricia Leslie

Some of the artifacts found in the King's antechamber, to help the King on the way to the afterlife. It took ten years to record all the contents. A photograph of a photograph at National Geographic/Photo by Patricia Leslie

It was 100 years ago that the tomb of King Tut (1342 B.C.E. - c. 1323 B.C.E.) was discovered and several times since then that millions of people have seen some of his funerary pieces which have traveled the globe (including Washington, the last stop here at the National Gallery of Art, 1976-1977).

Besides National Geographic, museums around the world are celebrating the centennial of the discovery of the tomb located with about 5,400 artifacts and undisturbed by evil intruders which spells its significance, the only Egyptian pharaoh's tomb discovered mostly intact, one grave robbers had not plundered, although some contents were damaged by humidity and dry conditions. 

At National Geographic/Photo by Patricia Leslie

At National Geographic/Photo by Patricia Leslie

At National Geographic/Photo by Patricia Leslie

At National Geographic/Photo by Patricia Leslie

King Tut became pharaoh when he was only nine years old, about the same time that he married his half sister. He died mysteriously about nine years later, perhaps of gangrene, the effects of a broken leg, or was it blood poisoning or something else?

The tomb's artifacts have permitted archaeologists to examine his life, that of other pharaohs, and the lifestyles of Egyptian royalty, leading to more questions and more research. 

Biography.com says the king accomplished little in his lifetime.  (But, in death..., oh my!)

At National Georgraphic a fascinating family tree is on a wall which shows King Tutankhamun's wife was also his half sister. King Akhenaten was the father of both. Inbreeding was common then/Photo by Patricia Leslie

The nine-foot high golden sarcophagus in King Tut's tomb held as many as eight coffins which nested one inside the other. This reproduction at National Geographic is similar in size to the actual one in Cairo/Photo by Patricia Leslie

A copy of King Tut's gold mask,  the most recognizable symbol of Ancient Egypt and weighing in at 22 or 25 pounds (depending upon your source), pictured at National Geographic/Photo by Patricia Leslie

At National Geographic all King Tut merchandise is priced at half off. Scarves, books, cups, and reproductions of period postcards are some of the products available/Photo by Patricia Leslie

The entrance to the National Geographic presentation starts in a closed "antechamber" with a pre-recorded introduction and film. Then, when the talking ends, a large door opens to reveal the beginnings of a cavernous, darkened hallway where visitors slowly wind their way on a a self-guided tour where wall displays tell the tomb's story. 

To add to the experience, rushing water sounds and funereal music fill the hallways to create a sense of underground hallowed spaces. 

Visitors have plenty of unlimited time to walk and read at  leisurely paces since large crowds were absent, at least when I was there, but more may come, the closer it gets to the ending date of February 6, 2023.

At the entrance to King Tut, National Geographic has free beautifully designed, 24-paged booklets in full color and in different languages about the tomb. The booklet informed me that a "water boy" was the actual discoverer of the tomb when during Howard Carter's sixth attempt to find King Tut, the boy made room in the sand to prop water jars upright and he found a step which eventually led to the tomb.

When I visited and descended into the tomb in 2017, no mention was made of the "water boy."

To ease navigation during the exhibition and for study of various scenes, National Geographic has available at no charge, portable, lightweight seats which guests may carry and use throughout the show.

Immersive King Tut has already traveled to many major American cities with more on the calendar. 

Cairo will "soon" exhibit the King's tomb and all its belongings when it opens its long-awaited Grand Egyptian Museum at the Giza pyramids, to be the largest museum in the world and  about five years behind schedule. 

(A note to the producers:  What I'd like to see:  Prince Harry's "Spare" as an immersive experience.)

 

What:  Beyond King Tut:  The Immersive Experience

When:  Daily through Feb. 6, 2023, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. The last tickets are sold at 4 p.m. Allow about an hour.

Where:  National Geographic Museum, 1145 17th Street NW, Washington, DC, 20036

Tickets:  From $12 (children, ages 5 - 12) to $20 (adults) with $4 discounts for seniors, military, students, and educators. Children under age 5 are free. Discounts for groups of 20 or more. Same day tickets are not available online but may be purchased on site, subject to availability. 

For more information: (202) 857-7700.

Metro stations:  Near Farragut West and North, McPherson Square.

patricialesli@gmail.com

 

Let the American History Museum entertain you!

The entrance to Entertainment Nation, National Museum of American History/Photo by Patricia Leslie
 

This is Althea Gibson's Wimbledon uniform when she won the women's singles title in 1957, the first black player to win the title there and at the U.S. National Championship. Displayed at Entertainment Nation, National Museum of American History/Photo by Patricia Leslie

When the Dixie Chicks (now, just the Chicks) spoke out against George Bush and his Iraq war in 2006, they endured immediate backlash which didn't stop them from becoming the best-selling all-woman band and best-selling country group in the US. At the time I went right out and immediately bought two of their albums to show my support for the Chicks. This is a poster at Entertainment Nation, National Museum of American History/Photo by Patricia Leslie

In 1992 Kristi Yamaguchi became the first Asian American woman to win an Olympic gold medal in figure skating. Her grandparents had been held captive by the U.S. government in a Japanese internment camp in World War II.  Her signed 1990s skates and photo are at Entertainment Nation, National Museum of American History/Photo by Patricia Leslie

This is Cyndi Lauper's outfit from the cover of her solo debut album, She's So Unusual (1983). At Entertainment Nation, National Museum of American History/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Who remembers Howdy Doody?  He's here, too, at Entertainment Nation, National Museum of American History with Mr. Rogers's red sweater and shoes/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Thank you, Billie Jean King for beating that rascal and "male chauvinist pig" (his words) Bobby Riggs in 1973 in a heralded moment in tennis!  This is the uniform she wore in the "Battle of the Sexes" match. At Entertainment Nation, National Museum of American History/Photo by Patricia Leslie

The Lone Ranger and Tonto are here, too. This is a mask Clayton Moore wore as the Lone Ranger, 1949-1957, found at Entertainment Nation, National Museum of American History/Photo by Patricia Leslie

This is the Cardinal Wolsey costume worn by actress Charlotte Cushman around 1857 at the Entertainment Nation exhibition/Photo by Patricia Leslie

No need to identify these celebs at Entertainment Nation, National Museum of American History/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Prince's "yellow cloud" guitar from 1983 at Entertainment Nation, National Museum of American History/Photo by Patricia Leslie

All those area stranded Southwest Airlines customers waiting at National Airport must have found their way to the National Mall for that's where it seems like thousands converged like it was July 4th in December,  but, maybe it's always like this during Christmas week.

Anyway, it’s been a long time since I’ve been to the National Museum of American History, one of my stopping places during Christmas break.

At the information counter, I told the volunteer I was an area resident, searching for something new at the museum.  

Did he have any recommendations?

"Well," he said, "there’s the entertainment section which is new. I was up there about 30 minutes ago, and it was like…" and he trailed off like it was the Southwest Airlines counter at everywhere.

He was right; Entertainment Nation was crazy packed, like Disney World in a museum, the place was slammed, but not crowded enough that you couldn't move pretty fast through the aisleways if you know how to manuever.

But where was my fave, Michael Jackson? Maybe I missed him amidst all the people. 

Nowhere could I find Michael but there was Prince and his yellow guitar, and Cyndi Lauper's dress and Diana Ross's dress and lots more. Even, Mr. Rogers's sweater! 

It's Howdy Doody Time! 

But, no Michael.

Photographs by Richard Avedon adjacent to Entertainment Nation at the National Museum of American History/Photo by Patricia Leslie

The reading room at the Richard Avedon photo show at the National Museum of American History/Photo by Patricia Leslie 

 

The reading room at the Richard Avedon photo show at the National Museum of American History/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Meanwhile, across the hallway was a Richard Avedon exhibition, a disorganized mess and confusing to boot. He (1923-2004) was THE photographer of famous persons, just a few of whom are included in this maze.

The subjects are not identified with their pictures. No, across the aisle are labels with names and you only have to walk back and forth across the aisle to see who is pictured "left" and who is "far left" and who is "right" and who is "far right" and "center," and upstairs and downstairs, and there will be a test at the end to see if you can still walk straight.

A wheel chair would be useful at this presentation and the museum has a few to loan out!

The best part of the Richard Avedon show is the reading room where visitors may sit (or sleep, depending upon energy level) in comfortable chairs and leaf through actual copies of old (like 50 years old!) Life magazines, Highlights for Children, and more.

The magazines' advertisements are the best parts ("Do not let baby sleep on pillows!" admonishes one with a drawing of a mother tucking her baby on top of a pillow), and include many "motion picture" ads and a feature on It's A Wonderful Life!

Thank you, Richard Avedon's estate, for donating (I am guessing) these photos to the Smithsonian, but this exhibition could stand for reorganization, if you will.

I think I've figured out Michael Jackson's omission: his estate has not donated anything. Is that right? It is unfathomable that the Smithsonian with all its possessions would omit Michael Jackson from this inaugural exhibit so...

Please, Michael Jackson Estate if you are reading this, donate something, anything (THE glove? A show costume? P l e a s e) to the Smithsonian Institution so we all can enjoy it and not have his likeness and belongings omitted from this grand exhibition! Thank you for consideration.

And, thank you, contributors, for your gifts to the nation so we may see them up close and personal.

Applause to the Smithsonian for including all labels in Spanish, too!

And, if hungry, take your big wallet to NMAH. The fixuns' at the Museum's cafeteria ain't cheap. No charge for mustard!

What: Entertainment Nation "will feature a powerful, ever-changing selection of objects and interactive experiences" embracing theater, television, film, music and sports.

When: Now through "ongoing." The Museum is open daily, 10 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. but hours on New Year's Day and January 2, 2023 hours may vary. Call to find out: 202-633-1000.

Where: National Museum of American History, 1300 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington, D.C. 20560. Museum entrances are located on Constitution Avenue on the first floor and Madison Drive (National Mall) on the second floor. There may be a short wait to enter the building.For more information: 202- 633-1000

Tickets: Always free admission at NMAH!

Metro stations: The Smithsonian and the Federal Triangle stations.

patricialesli@gmail.com