National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C

If you visit the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C. you will see much more than old paintings of American presidents. A temporary exhibit presents American presidents from FDR to Obama in oil paintings, busts, and other works. A permanent exhibit contains the nation's only complete collection of portraits of presidents not found in the White House.

You will also see exhibits of Elvis Presley, exhibits honoring civil rights advocates, others honoring those who brought the performing arts to life, and sports figures and champions. You will also see bronze portraits, exhibits honoring those who have made important contributions in politics, science, and cultural events, exhibits honoring American Origins from 1600-1900, including Harriet Beecher Stowe, Pocahontas, Alexander Hamilton to Henry Clay, and others, and many other interesting exhibits.

The temporary exhibit, From FDR to Obama: Presidents on Time, honoring those who have been on Time magazine, will be at the museum from February 12, 2010 to September 26, 2010. Every president from Warren Harding to Obama, except Hoover, has seen his image on the magazine, and the museum will cover history from FDR to Obama through the covers. There are also traditional oil paintings, and other artwork is present, including a bust of President Nixon.

The National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C. also has the only complete collection of portraits of American presidents in the country, other than at the White House. If you visit you can see the famous "cracked plate" photograph of Abraham Lincoln, the "Lansdowne" portrait of George Washington, by Gilbert Stuart, and sculptures of Jimmy Carter, Richard Nixon, George H.W. Bush, and Lyndon Johnson. Because the busts were created by noted satirist Pat Oliphant, you will no doubt consider them whimsical. Because of their big impact on the country, special attention has been given to Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin Roosevelt. There are video exhibits honoring the presidents from FDR to Bill Clinton.

From January 8, 2010, to August 29, 2010, the museum will mark the 75th anniversary of the birth of Elvis Presley with One Life: Echoes of Elvis. Noting the millions of records Presley sold, the museum has artwork of Elvis by Andy Warhol and various images of "the King of Rock and Roll." Even when the exhibit closes, Elvis will be honored with another exhibit opening October 30, 2010 to January 23, 2011, Elvis at 21, Photographs by Alfred Wertheimer. Included in the current exhibits are prints, lithographs, a ceramic bust, paintings on wood, and others.

The Struggle for Justice, a permanent exhibit, honors Jackie Robinson, Frederick Douglass, Thurgood Marshall and Martin Luther King, Jr., women's rights advocates, Special Olympics founder Eunice Kennedy Shriver, Native American activist Leonard Crow Dog; and others who worked for civil rights. There are paintings, buttons, sculptures, and more than 40 photographs.

Another permanent exhibit at the museum, Twentieth-Century Americans, has exhibits concerning the Vietnam War, the Great Depression, the Civil Rights movement, and the reform movements of the first two decades of the century.

Bravo, a permanent exhibit, honors those who from the end of the 19th century to the present have brought the performing arts to life.

Jo Davidson: Biographer in Bronze, a permanent exhibit,has depictions of FDR, Gertrude Stein, Lincoln Steffans, and others.

Another permanent exhibit, Champions, has videos, portraits, memorabilia, and artifacts that honor great American sports stars.

DEBarbie said on tripadvisor.com the museum is "Smithsonian quality, without the mob scenes. The museum is delightfully peaceful, unlike so many in DC there are not throngs of field trips and you may walk freely without worrying about stepping in a photo-takers frame."

ARL2601, on the same website said, "What I like about this museum is that it's not too overwhelming. Unlike the National Gallery of Art and some of the other staples down on the Mall, you can get through this one in half a day without feeling rushed, or that you missed half of it. I also think portraits are pretty 'accessible' art for those that don't really like art museums."

Admission to the museum is free, although donations are accepted. The museum is open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., except on Christmas, and is at Eighth and F Streets, NW.

Citations:

Exhibitions, no author listed, npg.si.edu

National Portrait Gallery, no author listed, tripadvisor.com