Where: National Portrait Gallery
When: closing June 3, 2018
I've made it through the shows closing in May and am now on to June and July. Not sure if I'll be able to get to many exhibits this coming week, due to various other things going on, so I made the most of the past week!
The Portrait Gallery has an area for displaying items that require low light, mostly very early photographs, daguerreotypes and ambrotypes. Full lighting would ruin them, so they're tucked away in a little alcove, very close to the Archives of American Art and the One Life room.
The current offering is of Matthew Brady work from before the Civil War. Although best known for his work photographing that terrible conflict and the people who fought in it, Brady was an accomplished photographer in the years before the war.
It seems to be a theme of the shows I've seen recently that the subjects are those who are master self-promoters, because Brady was not shy about advertising his services. He started out doing daguerrotypes, then moved to ambrotypes and then salted paper prints. With each new technological innovation, he jumped on board and made the most of it. I admire his ability to adapt to changing circumstances.
He courted celebrity sitters; my favorite of the pieces on display is one of Dolley Madison, in later years. Although she's pictured as an elderly woman, you can see her lively personality. She looks like someone you'd want to invite to your party, even if she might not be able to dance every dance.
Verdict: An interesting little show; if you're in the neighborhood, have a look.
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