Marvelous, Mysterious, Masterpieces…

…from Museums in Washington D.C.

It’s time for the letter M in Jenny’s Alpabe-Thursday.

This is fire etched wood relief called The Adoration of St. Joan of Arc, 1896, J. William Fosdick.  This first series of photos were taken at the National Portrait Gallery.

Sadly I didn’t take photos of all the descriptions of the art and I didn’t have my museum husband or daughter with me who read everything in museums to help me out. OYE!

This was so mysterious and sad. This is a bronze memorial of Henry Adam’s wife “Clover”. She committed suicide in 1885 by drinking chemicals used for processing photographs. Adams commissioned Augustus Saint-Gaudens to create this memorial of his wife.

A most interesting canvas…

Now I’m moving on to the National Gallery of Art…

For my finale I’m posting 2 more Masterpieces from Monet…

I’m going to be traveling out and about being a tour guide for the next few days. I’ll try to visit sometime this weekend.

We were so excited that the U.S. Women beat France on Wednesday to go to the World Cup Finals on Sunday. They will be playing Japan who beat Sweden on Wednesday. Go U.S.A.!

Russian Art in Washington D.C.

Marjorie Merriweather Post (1887-1973), heir to the Post cereal fortune, was the founder of Hillwood Museum and Gardens – her former twenty-five acre estate in Washington, DC. This is one of my favorite works of art that is housed in her former home.

 

This large painting depicts one of the most important social and political events of old Russia, a wedding uniting two families of the powerful boyar class that dominated Muscovite politics in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The artist has singled out that moment during the wedding feast when the guests toast the bridal couple with the traditional chant of “gor’ko, gor’ko,” meaning “bitter, bitter,” a reference to the wine, which has supposedly turned bitter. The newlywed couple must kiss to make the wine sweet again. The toast occurs towards the end of the feast when a roasted swan is brought in, the last dish presented before the couple retires.

For the rest of these photos I zoomed in on the painting above to get more of the detail to share…

 

The sumptuously attired guests at this lavish wedding feast fete the newlyweds in a candlelit dining hall replete with gleaming silver and gold and richly embroidered linens. Konstantin Makovskii painted this work in 1883, two hundred years after such an event would have occurred. The Russian revival style was quite popular at the time, as Russians were nostalgic for the traditions predating Peter the Great’s efforts to westernize the country.

 

Mrs. Post acquired the painting in the 1960’s. It was among her final major acquisitions as she and her curator, Marvin Ross, prepared to open her home as a museum.

 

 

On her death in 1973, Mrs. Post’s final and most important philanthropic gesture became reality when Hillwood, her last estate in Washington, DC, was bequeathed to the public as a museum. Her magnificent French and Russian collections remain on view at Hillwood Museum and Gardens, where her legacy of opulent beauty and gracious elegance continues to thrive.

 

I saw this next painting at the National Portrait Gallery. I was drawn to it again because of it’s Russian origin. The Samovar on the table suggests that it was a tea gathering. My parents and relatives were from the Peasant class so they never dressed up like this or had such a luxurious tea…

 

 

Many times at our Russian wedding receptions in the States the tradition of tapping our tea glasses with silverware to alert the newly wed couple that our tea was not sweet was performed. This was to inform the newlyweds they needed to stand and kiss each other to sweeten our tea.  The Russian receptions that I attended did not serve alcohol so the “tea not being sweet” replaced the “wine is bitter” Chai nye slotky is one phonetic way to pronounce “the tea is not sweet”…

Despite myself I’ve had a productive week so far. I mowed the lawn, got some laundry done, cooked some new dishes, ran errands, payed bills, picked up books at the library, and did some shopping. I’m getting ready to take a few days off to have some fun with a bloggy friend flying into town. The main event we’ll be enjoying is the Sequim Lavender Festival on Friday. Of course you’ll be seeing what we did and where we went because neither of us will be forgetting our cameras…

Have a great Wednesday! I’ll be watching the U.S. Women play France in a World Cup semi-final.

HT: Hillwood Estate Museum & Gardens Tour Guide.

Random Ruby in Washington D.C…

Here are some of my photos from Washington D.C. that happen to have a lot or just splashes of Ruby in them. I’m linking with Mary at Work of the Poet for Ruby Tuesday.

We really enjoyed the trolley tours that take you to lots of major monuments, etc. The drivers are really knowledgeable and you get a great D.C. education.

Hope your Monday went well and that your Tuesday will be even better!

Late Bloomers…

Here’s proof that things are taking a lot longer to bloom this year…

These photos were taken on July 9, 2010. Hydrangeas, and lavender blooming nicely and apples nice and round. This next mosaic are photos I took today July 10, 2011.

Just one bloom on my hydrangea bush. We have maybe a total of 12 apples on our tree and they all look a bit deformed. The lavender is just starting to show some purple.

Here are other slow bloomers this year…

Blueberries still green…

Lilie’s being reluctant to burst open.

Speaking of late bloomers did anyone watch the U.S.A. vs. Brazil Women’s World Cup Soccer game today? They kept me guessing but late into overtime during 3 added minutes Megan Rapinoe delivered a beautiful ball into the box and Abby Wambach headed it in to tie up the game. The women went on to win the game in penalty kicks! What a game.

And if that wasn’t enough soccer excitement for me our own Sounders beat our arch rivals the Portland Timbers in a back and forth game where we came out one goal ahead! We beat them 3-2. You should have heard the whooping and hollering in my family room today!  Yes soccer is my favorite sport…

I’m joining Mary at Little Red House for Mosaic Monday.

Beautiful Sunshine ~ Hymn

 

Beautiful Sunshine

Walk in the beautiful sunshine,
Smiling so cheerful and bright,
Chasing the mist from the mountain,
Flooding the world with its light.
Hark! the sweet voice of the Master
Whispers in accents divine,
Take thou no thought for the morrow,
Only the present is thine.

Refrain

Walk in the beautiful sunshine,
Smiling so cheerful and bright,
Chasing the mist from the mountain,
Flooding the world with its light.

Walk in the beautiful sunshine,
Falling in waves from the skies,
Gilding the streams and the valleys,
Scatt’ring the shadows that rise.
Hear the sweet voice of the Spirit
Softly and tenderly say,
Trust for what may be tomorrow,
Live in the joy of today.

Refrain

Walk in the beautiful sunshine,
Jesus thy footsteps will guide;
While thou art safe in His keeping,
Evil can never betide.
Hear the sweet voice of His mercy
Kindly and lovingly say,
God will take care of the morrow,
Be thou content with today.

Refrain

Words: Fanny Crosby, 1901.

Friday Was…

…a great day to brew a pot of tea and read a Tea Shop Murder Mystery. See my great old Tea Cozy from the early 70’s? A friend of ours in England made that for us as a wedding gift. It really does keep my tea pot nice and cozy. Today was not a hot day in the Northwest so Katie and I enjoyed our nice hot tea and sitting in a comfy chair with our throws and reading the day away…

I also managed to cook up a pot of Polenta Sausage Soup which I’ll post in the future on MGCC. The weather has never been a factor in when I enjoy soup. I like soup on a hot summer day as well as a brisk Fall day. How about you?

Speaking of Mennonite Girls Can Cook head over and get the 2 ingredient recipe I posted for a nice fruit dip to have with all that wonderful fresh fruit this time of year!

Photobucket replaced all my photos with blurred out versions and photobucket stamped versions. They are holding my photos hostage until I pay them lots of money. I’m slowly going through all my posts and trying to clean them up and replacing some photos. Such a bother.

FFF ~ Early July Fun…

Once again it’s time to look back over the last week to pick out your favorites. I enjoy this exercise in focusing on blessings and listing them. Thank you Susanne at Living to Tell the Story for hosting this worthwhile meme.

Here are my favorites.

1. The weather finally improved enough in the Seattle area for us to bring our patio furniture out of storage and onto the deck. Along with the furniture I spent some time decorating the deck area in red, white and blue for our upcoming 4th of July, Independence Day celebration.

2. Watching Women’s World Cup Soccer and seeing the U.S. Women’s salute to our military after scoring a goal!

3. A get together with family and friends with lots of good food and fellowship to celebrate our Nation’s birthday. By now you might know that I like party themes and for this one it was all about flags, stars and red, white and blue. We had blue drinks with white ice and red berries, cupcakes with red,white and blue sprinkles. Serving dishes and flowers followed the theme, too.

4. While we were working on the deck we had a fun little visitor, the green little frog in my mosaic.

5. Katie and I have been using our library more and we’ve gotten some books that we put a hold on. I’m looking forward to finally reading The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart.

Having a holiday on a Monday can throw me for a loop and it did. I’ve been a little off all week. I’m looking forward to a quiet weekend. How was your past week and what were your favorites?

Photobucket replaced all my photos with blurred out versions and photobucket stamped versions. They are holding my photos hostage until I pay them lots of money. I’m slowly going through all my posts and trying to clean them up and replacing some photos. Such a bother.

Can You Name That Statue?

Oh dear me…

I saw and took pictures of so many statues while in Washington D.C. I’m embarrassed to say I don’t know who half of them are. Maybe you can help me? If not I’ll have to start googling images and try to figure it out. I was also in a quandary as to whether I should call them statues or sculptures.

This one is for my Canadian friends. The statue is in the plaza area of the Canadian Embassy in Washington D.C.

Grand Army of the Republic
Organized at Decatur Illinois, April 6, 1866
By Benjamin Franklin Stephenson M.D.

On some of the statues I managed to get the name in the photo so that is helpful. This statue of Major General Winfield Scott Hancock was sculpted by Henry Jackson Ellicott in 1896. Hancock fought in the Mexican, Seminole and Civil Wars.

Another easy one of Ben Franklin in front of the Old Post Office which is now a mall.

Sitting statues are popular in D.C. Here is the Majesty of Law Statue in front of the Rayburn House Office Building.

Contemplation of Justice

These last two sit in front of the Supreme Court Building. This one is called Authority of Law.

This is the Columbus Statue that sits outside Union Station.

Architect John Russell Pope placed four monumental statues around the National Archives Building. Each was cut from a single block of limestone weighing 125 tons. Aitken’s “The Future” sits on the Pennsylvania Avenue side of the building. The young woman lifts her eyes from the pages of an open book and gazes into the future. Its base is inscribed with a line inspired by Shakespeare’s play The Tempest: “What is Past is Prologue.”

This was taken on the grounds of the National Cathedral in D.C., George Washington.

The white marble Peace Monument was erected in 1877-1878 to commemorate the naval deaths at sea during the Civil War. Inscribed “In memory of the officers, seamen, and marines of the United States Navy who fell in defense of the Union and liberty of their country, 1861-1865.”

The Garfield Monument

Believe me when I say these are no where near even half of the statues around the D.C. area. There are many I missed.

Photobucket replaced all my photos with blurred out versions and photobucket stamped versions. They are holding my photos hostage until I pay them lots of money. I’m slowly going through all my posts and trying to clean them up and replacing some photos. Such a bother.

A Look at Abraham Lincoln in D.C.

This post will be loaded with photos so don’t say I didn’t warn you.

I’m joining Jenny for Alphabe-Thursday for the Letter L.

I’m gathering all my photos that I took while I was in D.C. in May of Abraham Lincoln. I’ll start with the less obvious views around D.C. and end with the Lincoln Memorial.

The spot where life ended tragically for our 16th President.

I’m adding humorous quotes from here on out from President Lincoln.

From the National Portrait Gallery…

“Whatever you are, be a good one.”

“He can compress the most words into the smallest ideas better than any man I ever met.”

“When I hear a man preach, I like to see him act as if he were fighting bees.”

“Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.”

“When you have got an elephant by the hind leg, and he is trying to run away, its best to let him run.”

“You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time.”

Hope your summer is swimming along. We are enjoying some happy weather here in the Northwest!

Photobucket replaced all my photos with blurred out versions and photobucket stamped versions. They are holding my photos hostage until I pay them lots of money. I’m slowly going through all my posts and trying to clean them up and replacing some photos. Such a bother.

Northern Flicker Red Shafted ~

At least I think this bird is…

I much prefer him in the yard instead of pecking on our chimney or roof.

I spent Tuesday recuperating from all the 4th of July Party fun on Monday. I did not make it out of the house. I watched some Women’s World Cup Soccer. Made an appointment for a mani/pedi later in July which is a gift from my brother’s family. Washed one load of laundry. It was and is another beautiful day in the Northwest. Enjoyed the lovely fragrance coming from the rose bouquet Jody brought to the party.

I hope your Wednesday is more productive than my Tuesday!

Photobucket replaced all my photos with blurred out versions and photobucket stamped versions. They are holding my photos hostage until I pay them lots of money. I’m slowly going through all my posts and trying to clean them up and replacing some photos. Such a bother.