Valley Forge and Philadelphia

This past weekend the whole Washington Seminar group + Elder & Sister Fulkerson (senior missionary couple assigned to the Barlow Center + Professor Goodliffe's family went on a bus ride, first to Valley Forge, and then on Saturday to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Here are some of our photos from the trip. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I'm not really in the mood to write down everything we did.

Murray, our guide at Valley Forge 

Outside a replica of the hut that George Washington made the soldiers build during their time at Valley Forge 

Arch built in memorial

Washington's Valley Forge Headquarters 

Outside Washington's Headquarters

Standing in front of the George Washington praying statue 

Independence Hall in background in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Posing with the Liberty Bell

The Liberty Bell

The bell and me

View of Independence Hall from the Liberty Bell

Standing on the court side of Independence Hall--essentially the first Supreme Court in the US

Court side of Independence Hall

Declaration of Independence & Constitution writing and signing side of Independence Hall 

The famous side of Independence Hall

Famous side of Independence Hall--even with the seat George Washington sat in with the rising sun

A cool statue I saw on our walk through Philadelphia dedicated to the Holocaust 

Corcoran Art Gallery Visit

These were some of the works of art that interested me in the gallery today.  I've found that as I've been visiting art galleries, that going on a tour (if available) is helpful to get me into the mindset of looking at all the different types of art, especially if it is more abstract.  I'll try to record my thoughts under each art piece about why I took a picture of that specific piece of art.

Private Silence/Public Violence, 1989, Robert Morris, American

This piece spoke to me as soon as I turned my head and saw it on the wall. The images were originally the most striking part of this painting, with the reflective quality--though even that is slightly off (look at the suit colors!)--and the more focused strokes on the bottom panel of the painting and the blurring and smudging on the top panel.  But then I looked at the words.  This painting is saying that when I keep my thoughts to myself, that could be the cause of public violence, I thought.  Wow.  What thoughts have I kept to myself that maybe I shouldn't have because if I'd said something it would have prevented someone from getting hurt in some way.  Unfortunately, I know that has happened with me at school; there were things going on at school and I had my own opinion and view of things. I voiced those thoughts in a private setting, but maybe if I had said something, then a lot less hurt would have happened to those involved.

The Veiled Nun, c. 1860, Guiseppe Croff, Italian

I just have a love of looking at transparent drapery in the medium of marble. It is fantastic, looks incredibly hard, and is beautiful.  Plus, the nun herself was pretty.

Indian Girl in a White Blanket, 1917, Robert Henri, American (portrait of Julianita, schoolgirl from a pueblo)

The frailty, youth, and beauty in this girl's face captured my attention. That was probably the point since it is the brightest spot on the canvas, with her body wrapped in a soft white blanket and the background in shadow.  While this photograph makes the red on the girl's face look like she was crying, it didn't look like that in real life. It looked more like she'd just woken up from a nap and her face was pink from sleeping.

Imagination, 1932, Oscar Bluemner, American
From the information card: "Bluemner's Imagination is a dreamlike amalgam of cultivated and rural landscapes, featuring an intensely red house and green foliage against a dark background.  In works such as this, the artist associated color with meaning and identified in particular with red, which to him represented masculinity, vitality, imagination, and the self.  Bluemner also likened viewing his paintings to listening to music, and instructed his audience to 'look at the space filled with colors and try to feel; do not insist on understanding what seems strange.'"

I tried to take the artist's advice on this one and found myself oddly moved by this painting. I'm not entirely sure why, but perhaps it is his use of color, with the monochromatic shades of red and green. It also may have appealed to my imagination because I painted something similar when I was in fifth grade during Masterworks on a small four by six inch canvas rectangle.

Into Bondage, 1936, Aaron Douglas, American

Unfortunately my camera and the lighting in the room does not allow you to see how blue this painting is. Anyone who knows me well, knows of my irrational love of blue.  That was what I loved first about this painting.  Second, I loved the multiple layers of meaning in this painting. This was one of the paintings pointed out to those of us on the tour, where we discussed how the star in this painting could reflect the North Star with the underground railroad, or for the ship's navigation leading the Africans into bondage, or hope for the main African in the painting.

Girl Fishing at San Vigilio, 1913, John Singer Sargent, American

I'm not going to say much on this painting except that the water is so lifelike, the dabs of white to indicate light on the woman are beautiful, and that I really liked this painting.

Mount Corcoran, c. 1876-1877, Albert Bierstadt, American

Niagra, 1857, Frederic Edwin Church, American

I've seen both of these paintings before in my art history class in high school. However, seeing them side-by-side in the gallery really showed the difference in the portrayal of water.  An interesting fact that I learned on the tour: Church was told early on in his painting career that his depiction of water was weak and unmoving.  He took that critique to heart and decided he would specialize in water.  The result? Niagra.  Talk about turning a weakness to a strength.

The House of Representatives, 1822-1823, Samuel F. B. Morse, American

Yes, it is true. Morse code inventor=painter.  Well, he started as a painter but this wasn't a big hit, so he turned to code instead.  Fun fact: When the time came to redecorate the House of Representatives wing after the fire in the fifties, this was the only documentation that existed about how it looked so they used it to redecorate.

The Sons of God Saw the Daughters of Men That They Were Fair, modeled by 1918; carved 1923, Daniel Chester French, American

From the bottom of the stairs when I saw this statue, I thought it would be a cupid sculpture. But then I went up the stairs and saw the inscription on the sculpture (the title) and started to chuckle.  Apparently, the daughters of men didn't think that the sons of God were as fair as they thought the daughters were? I wish I could have gotten a photo of the female's face, but I was forbidden to go past that point on the staircase. Again, I love marble.

The Capitol and Library of Congress

I went exploring again today.  My destinations were to visit the Capitol and Library of Congress (hopefully with a tour at each place), and if I still felt up to it, the Botanic gardens.  Well, I didn't feel up to it.

Fun facts from today

1. The Capitol caught on fire twice before being completed (once during the War of 1812 and had to be completely rebuilt; the second time in the 1850s from an accidental fire).
2. There is a crypt in the Capitol when it was built the second time so tht George Washington could be buried there; however, apparently Washington really didn't want to be buried there because he put in his will to be buried as Mt. Vernon.
3. Legislation has to be passed about which statues can be on display in the rotunda.
4. The Jefferson Building, where the Library of Congress is located, was the first government building to be built with electricity.
5. Anyone 16 and older can use the Library of Congress by going to the Madison Building and getting the appropriate clearance; you don't even have to be an American citizen (which makes sense since so many people from other countries come to use the primary documents).
6. When the Jefferson Building was being built, aluminum was just discovered and was more precious than silver which is why the window panes are aluminum and not silver.

Me standing outside the Capitol (north side)

Supreme Court Building (under construction)

View of the Capitol from just outside the Library of Congress

Inside the Library of Congress

Inside the Library of Congress

Inside the Library of Congress

Inside the Library of Congress

Inside the Library of Congress

Inside the Library of Congress

Inside the Library of Congress

View of the Capitol inside the Library of Congress

Inside the Library of Congress

Inside the Library of Congress

Inside the Library of Congress

Inside the Library of Congress

Inside the Capitol (statue gallery)

Inside the Capitol (statue gallery)--Rosa Parks

Inside the Capitol (statue gallery)

Inside the Capitol (statue gallery)--over the door 

Inside the Capitol (statue gallery)--Brigham Young

Inside the Capitol (statue gallery)

Inside the Capitol--Rotunda

Inside the Capitol--Rotunda--PAINTED, not carved

Inside the Capitol--Rotunda 

Inside the Capitol--Rotunda

Capitol Building

Capitol Building

Inside the Capitol Visitor's Center 

Inside the Capitol--Crypt

Braving the rain

After it rained all day Thursday, Friday, and half of Saturday, I decided that I would go out today even if it was raining.  And it did rain.  I ran in a sprinkle rain first thing this morning.  Oddly enough, it didn't rain a lot while I was doing laundry and cleaning (nice inside jobs).  However, as I gathered my belongings to go on my walk down to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, it was pouring.

The Hall of States, there is a practically identical parallel hall called the Hall of Nations with flags from the countries with whom the US has diplomatic relations. 

Tried to capture a picture of the pouring rain outside the Kennedy Center

My tour guide, Mike, was really nice as he led the group of one (me!) around the three main halls in the Kennedy Center.  He pointed out the nice art pieces and fun facts about each hall. However, because I had a semi-wet purse, semi-wet umbrella, and sopping wet shoes, I didn't think I wanted to risk pulling out my camera to take pictures on my tour. I did manage to take one picture as I reorganized my purse before leaving.  The weather now, five minutes after returning?

View from our window of the beautiful blue, sunny sky now

Lessons I'm learning in D.C.

I finished out the school year, set up my new classroom, visited my family in Michigan, and then on Monday I was reunited with my husband after 33 days apart.  Frankly, I don't advise 33 days apart if you can help it. It was hard, but now it's over.

I decided I would spend my first day in D.C. as a proper/improper tourist.  What I mean by that is that I dressed up in dark clothes, including a skirt, so I would look like someone going to work, but then I went and visited tourist attractions.  My ruse worked and as I was on my way to my first tourist attraction, a man and his wife stopped me and asked me a question about transportation.  Thankfully, I knew the answer or I would have had to admit this was my first day back in the city after two years, and even then, I'd only been here for three days.

I visited the Smithsonian Castle (which is where the Moongate Garden is), Freer and Sackler Galleries (in a nutshell: Whistler, Leyland, and Asian art), Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden, and Renwick Gallery.

In the Hirshhorn Scupture Garden

The Burghers of Calais by Rodin in the Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden

Looking at the fountain in the center of the Freer Gallery

Smithsonian Castle viewed from my bench in the Moongate Garden

The Moongate Garden

Lessons I've already learned so far:
CVS does not have a public bathroom
McDonald's does have a public bathroom and the museums
Most museums and galleries open at 10 but the Castle opens at 9 and has free wi-fi
Traffic lights don't really apply to pedestrians; if the way is clear, you go
Try to get a map of the National Mall before you realize you've almost walked by it completely
Asian art is really cool

My second day in DC was a lot less uneventful in terms of sightseeing.  I did the laundry, bought groceries, vacuumed our apartment (for the sole purpose of passing out on the floor in a nap later in the afternoon), vacuumed the common area on our floor and swept the laundry room (I did those rooms in addition to our apartment because 1)I was the only one around and 2)I like to walk around without shoes on when I'm home and I didn't like continuously getting things stuck to my feet), finished Hunger Games and started Catching Fire, took an hour and a half walk in which I got several awesome blisters on my feet and still didn't find my way to the French Embassy, made dinner, went and got a milkshake with Cody at Johnny Rockets, and watched some Studio C skits.

Now with day three, I'll be working on research in two hours, I'm anticipating reading and possibly writing.  I've contacted a friend who worked at a temp agency last year when she was in DC and hoping maybe I can get some leads for that.  I just don't think I can sit around all day.  I mean, if it doesn't work out, I'll just have to be creative...and that wouldn't hurt too much for me to practice that.