I Want the Wide American Earth: An Asian Pacific American Story

Where: American History Museum

When: through June 15, 2013

Getting to the third floor of the American History Museum is no longer so easy as it once was.  Since they're renovating half the floor, the escalator is closed.  I ended up finding a back stairway and walking up, but look for the elevators which will also get you there.  Add to the wandering around I did just to get to the exhibit, the huge crowds that were there when I went yesterday, and it took much longer to actually get to the show than to see it.

This is what's called a "banner exhibit."  When I saw this description, I wasn't sure if they meant it was memorable or on banners.  Turns out they mean banner in the literal sense; it's a series of 6 or 8 banners hung in a hallway on the third floor.

This trip made me think once again what an ugly and inconvenient museum American History is.  Don't misunderstand me, I love the exhibits and have learned an enormous amount by visiting, but it doesn't seem to matter how they fix the place up, it's still awful.  The nicest part is the space with the Star Spangled Banner.  The rest of it?  It just seems as if they've shoved the exhibits in the building however they'll squeeze in, leaving the visitor to wander around empty hallways and overcrowded shows.

Ah well, enough of my grousing!  On to the show.  The banners depict the story of Asian Pacific American immigration to the United States, which started before there was a United States.  If you think the first arrivals from the west were the boat people pictured above (800,000 people arrived in the US this way; more than that number died trying to get here), you're missing hundreds of years of journeys.  As early as 1565, the Spanish in Mexico were trading with the Philippines.  Native Hawaiians worked as seamen and laborers from Peru to the Aleutian Islands.  In the 1800s, the Chinese were told that treasure was being plucked from the ground, and many of them came to pluck their own treasure.  Turns out the streets were not paved with gold, but the Chinese stayed and took far less lucrative jobs.  Asian Pacific Americans fought in the Civil War (yet again, a Civil War reference), and Chinese laborers made up 80% of the Central Pacific Railroad workforce.

In Hawaii, plantation owners brought laborers from other parts of Asia to the islands to work the fields; when Hawaii joined the Union, it was the first and only state to have a predominantly Asian/Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander population.  The terrible discrimination against Asian immigrants led to a migration eastward, and significant numbers of people of Asian and Pacific Islander heritage throughout the country.  Asian food, for instance, has transformed American cuisine (I was reminded of the display case with the Chinese food signs).  Many people of Asian descent are of mixed race - a harbinger of the greater diversity in American society generally.

Verdict: A nice little exhibit, but be prepared for a trek to get there!

Pictures in the Parlor

Where: National Portrait Gallery

When: through June 30, 2013

I mentioned a couple of posts ago that I was already seeing shows that closed in June - this is the last one at the moment, so next week I'll be onto July closings.  Of course, the Smithsonian or National Gallery could always add a show, but right now, I feel as if I'm racing through the year!

This exhibit is different than every other art show I've attended, in that all of the pieces are done by unknown artists.  It's a collection of photographs that middle class people in the 19th century had in their living rooms (parlors), taking the place of painted portraits owned by wealthy Americans.

This represented a democratization of home decor; in the colonial period only the very wealthy could afford to have their pictures painted.  By the 1840s, the price of photographs (and their precursors) had dropped to the point that the less well-to-do could put up pictures of themselves, their children or their homes.  On display are some hand-colored photographs - reminiscent of the early photos I saw in "Faking It."  Some were also clearly meant to look like oil paintings, taking the mimicry of the upper classes a step further.  Many of them really did look like oil paintings; one wonders if the guests of the owners were fooled.

One thing I noticed was the bored or puzzled looks on the faces of the children - not unlike many photos you see of modern kids!  You can almost hear them saying, "Mom, when will this be over so I can go play?"  The photo pictured above is a good example.

Perhaps my favorite photograph was one entitled "House with Decorated Car in Front" from 1910.  I can't improve on the title in terms of describing the subject of the photo, but I'll say the car was decorated with what looked like fringe.  It reminded me of the beaded car I saw at the American Indian museum last year.  What prompts people to decorate their cars?  I just can't imagine waking up one morning and thinking, "I know what I want to do today!  I'll put fringe all over my car."

Another part of the exhibit is dedicated to "scrapbook houses."  These can best be described as collages that young women would make out of pictures clipped from magazines.  They were meant to represent items that they would want in their homes one day.  They might feature pieces of furniture, people, musical instruments, linens, pets, flowers - anything, really that one might reasonably find in a family residence.  The idea behind this activity was to train girls to run and decorate their own homes.  Frankly, it strikes me as rather a dull way to spend an afternoon; I'd much rather read a book.

Finally, there are several examples of painted tintypes.  These are photographic images on black-lacquered iron.  They were very popular in rural areas and small towns, in the later part of the 19th century.  It was a way for the less affluent to mimic the fine portraits of the upper class.  The thing I noticed was that it was clearly not the custom for people to smile for the camera.  Every one looks terribly dour.

Verdict: An interesting show.  Nothing in comparison to the big Civil War exhibit at the American Art Museum in the same building, but an intriguing way to spend a few minutes.

Albrecht Dürer: Master Drawings, Watercolors, and Prints from the Albertina

Where: National Gallery of Art, East Building

When: through June 9, 2013

In case you haven't heard, the National Gallery's East Building is closing at the end of the year for renovations.  Repair work needs to be done on the building, and a major expansion of the exhibit space will occur at the same time.  It sounds like great things will be happening, but the catch is that the building will be closed for three years.  Oh well, at least the building is going out with a bang.  In addition to the Durer exhibit discussed in this post, a show on the Ballets Russes will be opening in May.  That promises to be spectacular.  But enough about future events, let's talk about a current exhibit - the big Albrecht Durer show that just opened this week.

Durer was the German equivalent of da Vinci for the Northern Renaissance, and his drawing and printmaking increased the importance of those forms as independent types of artistic expression.  He "reconciled faith and curiosity, art and science in his work."  Most of the pieces on display are from the Albertina in Vienna, which has the finest Durer collection in the world.  Unlike so many artists, Durer was popular and successful  during his lifetime, which must have been very satisfying.  No need for pity here; he was no starving artist.

This is another big exhibit, so rather than give a lot of detail about each room, I'll just mention a few items that particular struck me.  "Innsbruck Castle Court" made me look twice.  The drawing is so precise, you might mistake it for a photograph, until you look closely.  Much of his work shows this incredible attention to detail and a sense of total control.  You might think of him as the polar opposite of the Pre-Raphaelites, who were all emotion.  As you might imagine, I liked the Durer show better!

Durer was a student of human proportions, in fact, he wrote a book on the subject.  There are numerous studies he did of the human form, showing each body part's share of the whole picture.  It takes the romance out of the nude, I must admit, but no one would find a wildly inaccurate nude very attractive.  I suppose it makes the non-artist like myself realize that art isn't just inspiration; there's a vast deal of hard work that goes into each piece.

Two of Durer's best-known works are here: "The Great Piece of Turf," pictured above and described as "a scene balanced between scientific observation and artistic poetry," and "Praying Hands," possibly the most famous drawing in the world.

Durer's career was helped along greatly by Maximilian I, the Holy Roman Emperor, who sought to increase his image and fame and preserve his memory through prints and illustrated books - would that today's rulers would do the same.  Durer painted the only known picture of Maximilian taken during his lifetime; it forms the basis of all other paintings of the Emperor.

One thing to note is that, when I was there, this exhibit was incredibly crowded.  That could be because it just opened, or because it's the week before Easter or because lots of local school districts are having spring break.

Verdict: Well worth seeing.  Note that this is a big show, and you'll have to move quickly to see it in a lunch hour.

Ambrotypes from the National Portrait Gallery

Where: National Portrait Gallery

When: through June 2, 2013

It's hard to believe that I'm already seeing exhibits that will end in June, but it's true.  I'm not sure if that's because I've taken a couple of days off here and there and seen several shows in one day, or if the Smithsonian hasn't put on as many shows this year.  Whenever I think I might run out of temporary exhibits to see, I remind myself of the system's permanent collection - I'll never have seen everything!

This show is in a little alcove at the Portrait Gallery.  I saw a show there before once on miniatures.  It has low light, so I suspect they put items in there that are delicate and would be damaged by being displayed in one of the regular rooms.  This alcove is also a good spot to view small objects, as you can get quite close to them and take in the detail.

So what, you ask is an ambrotype?  Good question; I'd never heard the word before I saw the title of this display.  It's an underexposed collodion negative that was made to appear as a positive image when viewed against a dark background.  All clear?  Me neither.  Basically, it's a photograph, except the technicalities are different.  They were cheaper to produce than daguerreotypes and were packaged in presentation cases, for use as gifts or mementos.  They were popular for over a decade.

Several Civil War figures are on display here including George Armstrong Custer, who, although now best known for his ignominious defeat, was a Civil War hero, commended for his bravery and battlefield daring.  Two women of note in the 19th century (and new to me) were also pictured: Anna Elizabeth Dickinson, the "Girl Orator," an ardent abolitionist and women's rights advocate, who captivated audiences with her "youth, intensity and dedication to reform" and Mary Ann Brown Patten, the first woman to sail a clipper ship around Cape Horn.  Her husband was the captain, who fell ill with tuberculosis, and the first mate had been jailed for insubordination.  Cape Horn is a dangerous location, and the fact that she was able to captain the ship, although only 19 years old and pregnant at the time, is amazing.

There are also several pictures of Abraham Lincoln, taken early in his career, before he grew his beard.  So much has been said about Lincoln, especially in recent years, that I won't add to the chatter.  If you're interested in Lincoln or the Civil War generally, there's much at the Portrait Gallery and the American Art Museum to entertain you for quite a while.

Verdict: This is a nice little exhibit.  Very easily managed in a lunch hour, and you get some information about the persons pictured.  You could combine this with a trip to the Archives exhibit or the One Life show.