The collection chronicles from the historic event of Rosa Parks being arrested for not giving up her bus seat, to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s assassination in 1968.

The Road to Freedom – Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement – 1954-1968, offers historic mages that capture the non-violent civil rights movement movement through non-violent awareness raising, the events surrounding the 1961 Freedom Riders who protested racial segregation on public transportation, the fire hosing of blacks in Birmingham, Alabama, the famous Bloody Sunday during the Selma-Montgomery March of 1965 and other crucial events as they were captured on film are on display.

A few of the most moving, historical and my personal favorites included:

• Rosa Parks calmly getting booked at the police station after being arrested.
• A burned out public bus after a riot.
• A bloody protestor who was beaten by police.
• Several photos of Bloody Sunday. 
• A series of photos of Black students being the first to enter integrated schools, as protestors taunt them and the National Guard protects them.

This is magnificent collection of historical photographs during one of America’s most violent and disturbing time.

Road to Freedom – Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement – 1954-1968
The Smithsonian International Gallery
1100 Jefferson Drive, SW
Washington, D.C. 20560  (map it)

Dates and Times – Daily through March 9, 2009 – 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Admission – FREE

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Smithsonian – Blue and Orange line, then a 1-block walk or use the DC Circulator.

Parking – Metered street parking is available in the area.

Images – Bloody Sunday, March on Washington – both public domain _________________________________________________

Post from: The DC Traveler

The museum upgraded many of the environmental and physical facilities (mechanical, electrical, plumbing, lighting, fire and security systems, elevators, heating, etc., along with a 600-seat cafe), but will also feature several major upgrades and visitor enhancements, including:

• A new state-of-the-art gallery for the giant Star-Spangled Banner flag that flew over Fort McHenry that inspired Francis Scott Key to write the poem that became The National Anthem.
• 10-foot-high artifact walls on the 1st and 2nd floors displaying 400 of the museum’s 3 million historical objects
• A Visitor Welcome Center
• Hall of Invention and Spark Lab, a hands-on science and invention center

The major exhibits, favorites of visitors, such as America on the Move, The American Presidency and The Price of Freedom: Americans at War, will all be reopening.

Other favorite items will be on display, including:

• Mohammad Ali’s boxing gloves and robe 
• Dorothy’s Ruby Red Shoe and the Scarecrow costume from “The Wizard of Oz”
• Babe Ruth autographed baseball
• President Franklin D. Roosevelt NBC Fireside chat microphone
• Several First Lady’s Inaugural Ball gowns
• R2-D2 and C-3PO from "Return of the Jedi"
• White House copy of President Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, penned by Lincoln himself (on display through January 4, 2009).

National Museum of American History
14th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. (map it)

Dates and Times – Reopening starting November 21, 2008 – 10:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. (until 7:30 p.m. on 11/21/08)

Admission – FREE

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Federal Triangle and Smithsonian, Blue and Orange lines, then a 2-4 block walk or use the DC Circulator.

Parking – Limited metered street parking is available. 

Images – building from personal collection – ©2008, Jon Rochetti, all others courtesy of the NMOAH.   _________________________________________________

Post from: The DC Traveler

The collection on exhibit at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC showcases 21 images, including:

• Stieglitz’s series of ten photos of clouds over Lake George, New York, a collection which has not been shown in its entirety since a 1923. 
• Ansel Adams’ photos of the coastline and surf along San Mateo’s coast, south of San Francisco.
• Robert Adams’ images of the Columbia River emptying into the Pacific in Oregon. 

Oceans, Rivers, and Skies: Ansel Adams, Robert Adams, and Alfred Stieglitz
National Gallery of Art
4th and Constitution Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20565 (map it)

Dates and Times  – Daily, October 12, 2008 through March 15, 2009. Hours – Monday-Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Sundays 11:00 – 6:00.

Admission – FREE.

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Archives – Yellow and Green lines, then a 2-block walk or use the DC Circulator.

Parking – Metered street and paid garage parking is available in the area.

Image – With permission from the National Gallery of Art, Ansel Adams, Surf Sequence 3, San Mateo County Coast, California, 1940, gelatin silver print, 1982, National Gallery of Art, Washington, Gift of Virginia B. Adams. Courtesy of the National Gallery of Art.

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Post from: The DC Traveler

These free public concerts include both classical music by famous composers, such as Beethoven, Bach and Haydn, as well as holiday and live film scores.

One notable concert is on Sunday, November 9^th that includes the screening of the 1914 silent film, In the Land of the Head Hunters, together with a live orchestra to accompany the film.

The fictional documentary film entitled In the Land of the Head Hunters tells the story of the Kwakwaka’wakw people of British Columbia, Canada. Motana, the chief’s son, is in love with Naida, but she has been promised to the evil head-hunting Sorcerer. Motana and his father attempt to rid the region of the head-hunters, killing the Sorcerer, but his true love is eventually captured during an attack on their village, and Motana is left for dead. But he must try to rescue his love from the clutches of the Sorcerer brother.

The film captures the Kwakwaka’wakw art, dances, costumes, architecture and a banned custom — the re-distribution of wealth and property called potlatch, which was outlawed in Canada.  It was also the first full-length film staring only Native Americans and predates the famous, but also mostly staged, Nanook of the North.

Check the museum’s schedule for additional details, Here’s the list for the remained of the year.

• Oct. 12, 2008 – Pianist Gilles Vonsattel plays Bach, Liszt, Schubert and more
• Oct. 19 – Festival Strings Lucerne play Brahms, Mendelssohn, and Sarasate
• Oct. 26 – Vienna Piano Trio play Haydn, Schubert, and Smetana
• Nov. 2 – National Gallery Vocal Arts Ensemble featuring music by 17th century composers
• Nov. 9 – The Coast Orchestra plays live music to the silent film, In the Land of the Head Hunters
• Nov. 16 – Euclid String Quartet plays Ades, Beethoven, and Chernin
• Nov. 23 – The Singers’ Companye perform works bv American composers
• Nov. 30 – Verge Ensemble New play works by American composers
• Dec. 7 – Pianist Till Fellner plays Beethoven Sonata Cycle
• Dec. 14 – New York Opera Society plays a Norwegian Christmas Festival
• Dec. 21 – Alessandra Marc with National Gallery Strings present their Christmas concert
• Dec. 28 – National Gallery Orchestra welcome in 2009 with their New Years concert

National Gallery of Art
West Building Main Floor, West Garden Court
6th Street and Constitution Avenue NW
Washington, DC (map it)
202-842-6941

The museum closes at 6:00 on Sundays. Use the 6th Street and Constitution Avenue, NW entrance, which remains open until 6:30 p.m. There is no entry after 6:30 or late seating.

Dates and Time – Sundays through June 29, 2009, 6:30 p.m. Seating is opened at 6:00, until 6:30 or all seats are taken.

Tickets – Admission is FREE, but first-come, first-seated seating is limited.

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Gallery Place – Chinatown, Red, Green and Yellow lines, then a 2-block walk or use the DC Circulator.

Parking – Metered street and paid garage parking is available in the area.

Images – Flickr – piano 

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Post from: The DC Traveler

This blue painted stainless steel, 31-foot tall sculpture was installed at the corner of Ninth and F Streets in late August, on the grounds of the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

First installed in 1996, just one block from the World Trade Center, in Battery Park in New York City, it survived the September 11th attack with only minor scratches.  A month later, it was moved to another gallery in Nassau County, New York, then to a botanic garden in Coral Gables, Florida. 

The piece is part of a series of four sculptures by Lichtenstein that created sculptures of human figures that look like machines.

Roy Lichtenstein is most widely know for his giant pop art comics Ben-day Dots paintings, such as his most famous piece “Wham”. The National Gallery of Art is the largest collector of Lichtenstein’s work, after he donated over 150 prints to the museum a year before his death.

“Modern Head” by Roy Lichtenstein.
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Ninth and F Streets 
Washington, DC  (map it)

Dates and Times – Viewable 24 hours-a-day. The museum is open daily 11:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Admission – FREE to view the statute or enter the museum.

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Gallery Place – Chinatown, Red, Green and Yellow lines, then a 2-block walk or use the DC Circulator.

Parking – Metered street and paid garage parking is available in the area.

Images – from personal collection; ©2008, Jon Rochetti

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Post from: The DC Traveler

 The ball was held at a large hall at the US Patent Office at 8th and F Streets, NW. Tickets to the event were $10 with the proceeds going to support the Union was effort.

A brass band played music in the foyer, welcoming the 4,000 guests, while upstairs, a string ensemble played popular dance music from the period.  Women wore silk, satin and velvet dresses, while many men were in Union uniforms or formal evening attire.

I found an online copy of the original menu from the event, as well as

an invite that sold at auction and a dress worn to the event by the wife of the Secretary of the Interior. 

Dr. Lawrence E. Keener-Farley, the Dance Master at The Victorian Dance Ensemble, provided me with a few pointers for attending a dance from that era. It’s interesting how fragile women were thought to be (see #1 and 5) and how clumsy men were assumed to be (see #6).

1860s Ball Room Etiquette:

1. Never forget that ladies are to be first cared for, to have the best seats, the places of distinction, and are entitled in all cases to your courteous protection.
2. If you accompany your wife to a dancing party, be careful not to dance with her, except perhaps for the first set.
3. Be very careful how you refuse to dance with a gentleman. A prior engagement will, of course, excuse you but if you plead fatigue, do not dance the set with another.
4. Dance quietly, do not kick and caper about, nor sway your body to and fro, dance only from the hips downwards.
5. Lead a lady as lightly as you would tread a measure with a spirit of gossamer.
6. The fall of a couple is not a frequent occurrence in a ball room, but when it does happen it is almost always the man’s fault. Girls take much more naturally to the graceful movements of the dance, and are, besides, more often taught in childhood than their brothers.
7. Never remain in a ballroom until all of the company have left, or even until the last set. It is ill-bred, and looks as if you are unaccustomed to such pleasures, and so desirous to prolong each one.
8. It is best to carry two pairs of gloves, as in contact with dark dresses, or in handling refreshments, you may soil a pair, and thus will be under the necessity of offering your hand covered in a soiled glove to some partner.

Quoted from various 1860s sources.

Lincoln’s Inaugural Ball
Smithsonian American Art Museum
8th and G Streets – Great Hall, Third Floor
Washington, DC  (map it)

Dates and Times – Saturday, August 16, 2008, performances at Noon, 2:00 and 4:00 p.m.

Tickets – FREE

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Gallery Place – Chinatown, Red, Green and Yellow lines, then a 2-block walk or use the DC Circulator.

Parking – Metered street and paid garage parking is available in the area.

Images – Lincoln gown, Mary Todd Lincoln – public domain, Victorian Dance Ensemble photo courtesy of same.

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Post from: The DC Traveler

The Smithsonian Institution was based on a gift of James Smithson, a British scientist, who left his entire estate to the United States of America in 1827.  His gift of over 100,000 gold sovereigns, or $500,000, (just under $9.5 million in today’s dollars) required the government to establish the Smithsonian Institution, to “increase and diffusion of knowledge."

An act of Congress in 1846 expanded the growth of collection into the world’s largest museum complex (16 museums) with over 140 million objects and the National Zoo in Washington, DC.

The Smithsonian museums include:

• Anacostia Community Museum
• Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
• Arts and Industries Building
• Freer Gallery of Art
• Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
• National Air and Space Museum
• National Museum of African Art
• National Museum of American History
• National Museum of the American Indian
• National Museum of Natural History
• National Portrait Gallery
• National Postal Museum
• S. Dillon Ripley Center
• Smithsonian American Art Museum
• Smithsonian Institution Building
• Smithsonian National Zoological Park (National Zoo)
• The National Gallery of Art (affiliated)

Happy Birthday Smithsonian!!

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Post from: The DC Traveler

About a month before the historic moon landing, I met the three Apollo 10 astronauts, John Young, Thomas  Stafford and Eugene Cernan on their national tour. They had just completed the final rehearsal for the moon landing.  Their mission was to circle the moon’s surface in both the Command Module and the Lunar Landing module (LEM), and conduct photographic surveys for a good landing site for the Apollo 11 mission.

Just two months later, on July 16th, 1969, Michael Collins, Neil. A. Armstrong and Edwin E. “Buzz” Aldrin blasted off from Kennedy Space Center in Apollo 11. Their mission, to be the first humans to safely land and walk on the surface of the moon.

NASA, the agency responsible for the moon project and the space program, was created in 1958 during President Dwight Eisenhower’s administration.

Four short years later, President John Kennedy aimed America toward the new frontier of the moon, when he declared “we choose to go to the moon in this decade”. 

His speech is remembered for the line “we choose to go to the moon”, but the line was proceeded by a bit of a joke.  The speech was delivered to a group of space engineers at Rice University on September 12, 1962.

“But why, some say, the moon? Why choose this as our goal? And they may well ask why climb the highest mountain? Why, 35 years ago, fly the Atlantic? Why does Rice play Texas?

We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too.

It is for these reasons that I regard the decision last year to shift our efforts in space from low to high gear as among the most important decisions that will be made during my incumbency in the office of the Presidency.”

The Apollo 11 mission, was plagued with both minor and mission-threatening glitches, right up until the actual landing.  But to reduce the fear in the eyes of the public, many of the mission’s problems were not detailed to the press corps. President Richard Nixon even had a speech written in the event the mission failed and the astronauts were killed or had to be abandoned on the moon’s surface.

MORE –>

Problems such as major computer malfunctions during the last few minutes of the decent to the lunar surface and a broken electrical relay switch that was needed to trigger the single engine that would blast the astronauts off the moon’s surface, were not reported by the news at that time.

The computer, with similar computing power of a modern day digital watch, malfunctioned, resulting in navigational systems to stop working correctly within the final minute of the lunar landing.  The malfunction forced Neil Armstrong to take manual control of the LEM when he saw that the LEM was seriously off course and heading toward a large crater, not the intended landing site.  He successfully landed on the moon without relying on computer guidance, and with just 15 seconds of fuel remaining.  NASA’s policy, in the event that remaining fuel reached under a 2 minute supply, was to abort the landing attempt.  It illustrates the cool heads, nerves of steel and confidence the astronauts had. Some correctly called it “The Right Stuff“. 

The critical electrical relay switch arm was damaged after the crew was removing their spacesuits after the first 2-hour moon walk. If not corrected, the astronauts would be permanently stranded on the moon.  A solution was found when one of the astronauts used a felt-tipped pen to flip the switch and open the relay needed to ignite the engine.  Luckily, Michael Collins, who circled the moon in the Command Module, was not forced to return to earth alone.

On other fact, the famous first statement from the moon, when mission commander Neil Armstrong stepped on to the moon’s surface, “That’s one small step for man…one giant leap for mankind,” was, in fact, not what he intended to say. Armstrong’s intended line was actually “That’s one small step for a man…one giant leap for mankind.”   Either way, it communicated the impact of the mission on the people of the world.

The landing on the moon was an incredible feat of engineering, science, and human bravery.  Years later, a few NASA engineers and mission specialists, have publicly stated that with the level of technology available at the time, looking backwards, the mission would be considered too dangerous to be attempted today.

NASA released an anniversary video to commemorate the mission 35 years after.  It’s still amazing to watch men walking on the moon.  The sixth and final manned moon landings was completed by Apollo 17 in December 1972.  On an earlier mission, the now famous Apollo 13 lunar landing was aborted and narrowly avoided a tragic ending.

On display at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC, you can see the history of manned space flight, starting with early rockets, including a Goddard Rocket (1926).  This was one of the first rockets that started the history of rocket development that led to the Saturn V, which had enough power to lift the payloads needed to reach the moon.

Also on display is an Apollo Lunar Module, the actual Apollo 11 Command Module that went to the moon, and a Lunar Rover trainer similar to one used on the moon during the Apollo 15, 16 and 17 missions.

Another highlight at the National Air and Space Museum is the display of one of the few lunar rock samples on public display. Other exhibits include earlier era spacecraft, including John Glenn’s Mercury 7 capsule and the Gemini 4 capsule.

National Air and Space Museum
Independence Avenue at 6th Street, SW
Washington, DC 20560 (map it)

Dates and Times – Daily 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Nearest Metro Subway Station – L’Enfant Plaza – Blue, Orange, Green and Yellow lines, and Smithsonian – Blue and Orange lines

Parking – Limited metered street parking is available.

Images – Aldrin and Armstrong on the Moon, Saturn liftoff – NASA,  Goddard rocket, Apollo Lunar Module number 2 and Apollo 11 Command Module – Eric Long/NASM, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution – Copyright Smithsonian Institution, Lunar Rover – National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution – Copyright Smithsonian Institution

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Post from: The DC Traveler

In a new exhibit at the Smithsonian in Washington, DC, get a rare  look at over 100 original pieces of art, including drawings, cartoons and storyboards from different productions.

Along with the collection are movie and television props, photos of Jim and his Muppets characters, as well as three 5-minute videos, including clips form early in his career and some experimental works.

Plus, several of the Muppets, including the loveable Kermit the Frog,  Bert and Ernie, Rowlf and Nutty Bird.

Jim Henson’s Fantastic World
The Smithsonian International Gallery
1100 Jefferson Drive, SW (between the Freer and Smithsonian castle)
Washington, D.C. 20560  (map it)

Dates and Times – Daily, 10:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m., through October 5, 2008

Tickets – FREE

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Smithsonian – Blue and Orange lines, then a 1-block walk or use the DC Circulator.

Parking – metered and free street parking is available in the area.

Images – Kermit, Bert & Ernie

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Post from: The DC Traveler

Around the same time as the word was coined, in the late 1800s, the walls of Paris streets began to be plastered with colorful art nouveau advertising posters.  Since then, the promotional poster has become as mainstream as the 30-second TV spot.

Examples of how these posters have influenced society as part of the collection on exhibit in Ballyhoo! Posters As Portraiture at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC.

The 61 classic posters were created to promote movies, music and musicians, products, sporting events, government campaigns,  and even catch criminals (John Wilkes Booth wanted poster). There’s also a few  presidential campaign posters, including a goofy looking Barry Goldwater for President poster from 1964.

Can you image a presidential campaign poster without a catchy slogan these days?

From P. T. Barnum and Thomas Edison to Apocalypse Now and the Got Milk? campaign, the poster has driven public opinion, product acceptance and the persona of celebrities and politicians.

My personal favorite in the collection, is the movie poster form Trinidad, staring Rita Hayworth and Glenn Ford, which effectively used Rita in color with her costar, (who actually has significantly more screen time) fading into the black and white background.

Ballyhoo! Posters As Portraiture
National Portrait Gallery
Eighth and F Streets, NW,
Washington, DC 20001 (map it)

Hours – Daily 11:30 a.m. – 7:00 p.m., through Feb. 8, 2009

Admission – Free

Nearest Metro Subway Station – Metro Gallery Place-Chinatown – Red, Yellow and Green lines, or use the DC Circulator.

Parking – Metered street and paid garage parking is available in the area.

Images: from personal collection – ©2008, Jon Rochetti

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Post from: The DC Traveler