This past week I decided to drive down to DC to see three shows at the at the National Gallery of Art. I needed to get my act together quickly as I kept putting off the trip and two of the shows where closing soon … Gordon Parks: Camera Portraits from the Corcoran Collection on January 12th and Paris 1874: The Impressionist Moment on January 19th. The third show, The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography runs through April 6th.
I was just getting better from a virus I managed to catch several days earlier, but Thursday was the best day to do it. Note to travelers … you don’t want to be trying to travel to and attempt to get out of DC on a Friday! Anyway, the show that first caught my attention was Paris 1874: The Impressionist Moment. I’m a sucker for impressionist art and I’ve been fortunate to see lot of over the years. I had to go!
I must be living a good clean life because the traffic was uneventful and I found a parking space right in front of the main entrance to West Building! So as you can imagine I was feeling pretty good about myself as I sashayed up to information desk, only to be told there was a seventy five minute wait.
#$%^$#%^&?&^%?
OK, no problem. I decided to hit the two photography exhibits first. Then I would circle back to the main event.
I started with The ’70s Lens: Reimagining Documentary Photography. I wasn’t expecting too much but I was very pleasantly surprised … six rooms of wonderful pictures by photographers I knew well, along with a number of others I was not familiar with. I’ve seen a lot of Seventies photography during the past year and I’ve now come to an earthshattering conclusion … at least for me! While the Seventies was a decade of bad taste in clothing, it was a fertile period of great photography. I know this because I was a participant and I’m reminded of it whenever I catch a glimpse of Match Game 72, 73 and 74 while my wife is watching it during lunch. And for what it’s worth, this was also the time I really got serious about making pictures!!
Each room had its own theme. Documentary, Conceptual, Performance and the Camera, Color, Alternative Landscapes, and Intimate Documentary. I was familiar with the work of Nan Goldin, Lee Friedlander, Roy DeCarava, Gary Winogrand, Diane Arbus, Larry Fink, William Eggleston, William Christenberry, Robert Adams, Lewis Baltz, Frank Gohlke and Bill Owens. But the other’s photographs were great too! A must see!
Next up, Gordon Parks: Camera Portraits from the Corcoran Collection. In comparison, a small and intimate show and I loved it!! Parks is great!!! My favorite picture was one I’ve seen in books many times but never in the flesh … Government Charwoman, Washington, D.C., August 1942 (American Gothic). Seeing that picture made the whole trip worth it!
Finally, on to Paris 1874: The Impressionist Moment! Well, unfortunately the line didn’t seem any shorter than when I first arrived, but I decided to stick it out despite the crowd, and after about an hour or so I made my way through the entrance of the show. In short, I’m glad I hung in there. While packed, it was worth the wait! The show presents 130 works that originally appeared at the legendary 1874 exhibit Paris exhibit considered the birth of modern painting. Many paintings of the most famous impressionists we all know and love such as Cézanne, Monet and Pissarro where there, but many works of impressionists I had not seen before were also included. Stupendous!
This triple header was a real threat … a true trifecta! Of final note: this is the only stop in the US for the Paris 1874: The Impressionist Moment show!! If you live within driving distance and have a chance to get to DC by January 12th, you owe yourself a visit to the National Gallery of Art. Trust me on this one!
Stay well,
Michael