Sneak Peaks into Hirschhorn Sculpture Garden

They've chained off the pathways into the Hirschhorn Sculpture garden during the pandemic, but that doesn't stop me creeping up close and poking my camera over the fence or over the spaces between the hedges to see some of the sculptures there. I guess the Burghers of Calais by Rodin is the most famous or most recognizable one, the others being more abstract and the labels not particularly accessible.  I'll have to come back for another wander around once the Washington DC Stay-At-Home order is lifted or they start to release the locked gates and chains so we can get in and see it all again. Supposedly, May 15 is when the order will be lifted, but you know, there are many street vendors coming back on the corners and even on the national mall we've seen ice cream trucks and hot dog sellers.

Neptune Holds Court on Capitol Hill, Nymph Downtown

Court of Neptune

Nymph and Fawn

For a long time every time I saw this lovely Court of Neptune fountain on Capital Hill it wasn't working, so I was delighted to pass by the other day and see the water spurting from the multiple spigots and dousing several giant bronze figures and fantastic creatures. This 1898 allegorical work consists of nymphs, and horses, turtles, conch shells and water snakes in a large semi-circular pool in front of the Library of Congress. On a hot day you just feel cool standing next to it. This amazing depiction of the force of water reminds me greatly of The Darlington Memorial Fountain that is downtown near Judiciary Square, in a small park next to the federal courthouse, DC. Described as a "Nymph and Fawn" and placed there in 1923, this gilded bronze life-style figure looks a lot like Diana of the Hunt. Who would have thought that scattered about in Washington DC are glorious naked figures representing beauty, thought and natural energy?

Meade in front of Prettyman

Stumbling along near the Mall recently, I noticed this sculpture of General  George Meade in front of the District of Columbia district court house, the Prettyman building.  Such sculptures and their locations often give me an excuse to delve into history and local development, an exercise that the Internet has made very easy and that allows me to tank up my personal knowledge database.  Apparently, Meade was an American Civil War Union general who commanded the Army of the Potomac and defeated Confederate General Robert Lee at the decisive Battle of Gettysburg in 1863, the largest land war in the western world. I was less aware of who E. Barrett Prettyman was but it turns out he was a longtime Chief Judge of the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, which meets in that building. Prettyman was also a tax expert teaching at Georgetown University and acted as the District of Columbia's tax attorney at one time.  This Prettyman building is the site of many historic legal arguments in cases such as involving the Pentagon Papers, the Watergate trials, the Francis Gary Powers U-2 spy plane and thousands more cases heard in the US District court. In fact, you can see news media camped out on the forecourt of the building -- "on the beach" -- their vans bristling with antennas and made-up news announcers staring into cameras during these major proceedings. Who knew that such a plain looking building and figurative sculpture would give me such keys into American history? Amazing!

Free Art All Over Bloomingdale

sculpture garden on 1st NW

Mural on W St NW

You really can't wander around in our section of the city very long without seeing some of the free art just lying in wait for your enjoyment. I've captured some of it here -- there's the iron lady sculpture on First Street, and there's now often a seasonal outdoor installation at the intersection of T and RI Ave, and for those who like to take walks up the alleys there's a huge colorful mural on the side of a house on W street. There's others if you go look but these were just a few I saw on a recent walkabout.

Easter Art on RI Ave NW

Union Station

About 34 years ago I came to Union Station and it was a total dump as the renovation had not yet occurred. It was dark and dusty with some sort of plywood paneling with bad posters lining a corridor that funneled train passengers away from the very dingy train tracks and out of the building. However, some federal and private funds were found and it was cleaned up, and redecorated and stores, movie theaters, food court and restaurants were brought in. Today, the station is a totally bustling, busy place with enough of the old features, like this clock and window, and those mysterious figures with shields guarding us at the frieze level to add elegance, charm and curiosity to what has become a city destination. I'm not sure everyone notices all the gilded, sculpted and leaded things when they hurry through from the Metro subway or on to the regional trains, but there's no comparison with Tyson's Corner or any of the super shopping malls, in my opinion, which have some of these elements but none of the history. And  its location near Capitol Hill makes it a great place to meet for drinks after work.

Golden Diana Between the Courts

Between D.C. District Court building and the Court of Appeals is a small park with a gleaming statue that beckoned me this hazy August morning. Of course, I had to run over and photograph it with the miracle of my cell phone camera. It was a gold painted (?) statue of a nude female figure standing with her dog contemplating a round pool in front of the District Court of Appeals building. I imagine that at one time there was a fountain from the base. But today the water was clear and still and the figure gleamed brightly against the gray buildings. I haven't been able to find the sculptor but it seems to be from that era of artwork installed in the city and that is an echo of the ancient pagan civilizations.  I recognized the figure instantly, both as the Roman's Diana of the Hunt and the Greek's Artemis and then remembered that both of them had once also personified justice and wisdom until reduced to lesser roles by the patriarchs. But for those who today see only figures of naked women as pornographic, this sculpture should be a reminder that Wisdom is present today in many forms.

Wisdom in Congress?

While on my way to a meeting in a Senate office, I happened across a collection of representational sculptures in one of the underground connecting passageways. These larger than life busty ladies and lusty lads had labels such as Wisdom and Knowledge and brandished spears and tools to emphasize the point to us passersby! I quickly snapped these fabulous figurines dressed in first century Greek garb with my very 21st century cheapo cell phone that allows me to miraculously send these images instantaneously to my computer for later retrieval when I want to blog about something.  What would those personages from that far-off time think of our everyday gadgets? Were these ladies about to jab me for daring to photograph them so glibly as I passed by their grand gestures on the importance of rational thought?   Alas, I'm sure they'd get pretty upset at our modern world for usurping their power and believing  in nothing but ourselves and our own strengths. Or does Wisdom forgive us such trespass?

Supreme Moment

It was 100 degrees Fahrenheit so I took a cab home past the Supreme Court the other day and when the cab paused at the traffic light, I rolled down the window and snapped this shot. In just a few seconds ancient Greece is captured, tourists visiting Washington, D.C., tons of gleaming white marble are displayed, not to mention some incredible representational sculpture, a security guard, an interesting lamp, and "equal justice under law". A closer inspection indicates a wonderful frieze of figures with a crowned Wisdom presiding over several figures, two admiring centurions, one holding a scroll and another holding a sword.She looks off into the far distance, through the netting that holds back the pooping pigeons, ignoring the steps, the tourists, the security guard, the hot pavement and my cab. Well, it's just a building but an awful lot hangs on it.