As bourgeois as it sounds, one of my goals when I take a trip is to visit an art gallery or museum. I strolled through the National Gallery during my May '07 trip and didn't remember anything notable in the permanent collection, but the Jasper Johns exhibition offered a fascinating glimpse into studies for more famous works (eg, Flag and Target).
Sometimes the approach works (when in DC, NYC, etc.) but others it doesn't. Such as in Austin where I was underwhelmed but enjoyed the Theodore Suess Geisel drawings and sculpture.
I stopped at the Corcoran Art Gallery near the White House to see the Richard Avedon photo exhibit. I think I went in backwards because I started at the 2004 Democratic Convention photos, but it was at the same room with the Camelot retrospective. Overall, the majority of the photos were, as expected, portraits of people (politicians, actors & actresses, writers, editors, etc.) against simple white backgrounds. His "Family" collection (originally commissioned by Rolling Stone) examined the Ford administration's policy makers, many of which were Nixon holdovers, was a fascinating wall of photos. It doesn't seem as though Ford died two years ago--rather, much more recent--but the faces and legacies of the Nixon and Ford administrations, many of which are and were still quite active. Some of which I think the country could have done better without allowing a return to positions of significant authority.
One of the highlights was two contrasting photos: the Chicago Seven (below) and Defense Department and military officials in Saigon (such as Creighton Abrams). In a narrow room, one was forced to view the bearded, hirsute, and overall shaggy men with the others, neatly coiffed, in suits and ties; looking uptight facing the almost nothing to lose group of seven men who sought to do little more than upset the establishment apple cart. Fascinating arrangement and one of the highlights of the entire exhibition.
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