Time Not Wasted.

Took the time today to rest. The daily grind can wait for tomorrow...it will always be there. Basking in the late afternoon sun is not a pleasure that everyday affords.

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Art Gallery

Artist Unknown (to me)

Artist Unknown (to me)

Artist Unknown (to me)

Chuck Close

Artist Unknown (to me)

These were some of the pieces that stood out the most to me on our recent trip to the National Gallery. I have a slight hesitation in posting them because I forgot to take pictures of/make mental notes of the original artists (and I even tried to find them on the National Gallery of Art's website, but most are from the permanent exhibitions, and were not readily listed). I would love to give them credit, if only I knew who they were! If you recognize any of these pieces, please tell me who the artist is and I will update the pictures with their information.

I also took this photo of Ben as he was viewing a sculpture on the ground floor of the East Building. I love museums and that fact that they allow us to see fine works of art in person, but I hate that we have to be so closed off to do so. Every room has security guards that follow you around to make sure that you don't get too close to the art. It's such a shame, because some of the art that is in the gallery is best experienced up close - it is so detailed, or there are hidden messages that can only be seen inches away from the work. Instead, we are required to stand back and fold our arms, closing ourselves off to the true power of what is right in front of us, that we travel to experience "for real."

One of my favorite parts of this gallery is the outdoor sculpture garden. It is more experiential...and this tree sculpture was super awesome...so realistic and artificial at the same time.

There is also an exhibition of paintings of Venice that is fabulous, but photography wasn't allowed in that gallery, so I can't give you a sneak preview. However, the paintings are huge and old and incredibly detailed and just amazing for the time period in which they were painted. If you get a chance to go, we had a great time.