John Russell Pope tour and an upcoming ICAA event

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYsAZ87N4cQoo7xdPNQSW9cR87Ilg7X8_IATI-9ts9u9gphWs3SSFMMCLZAQntNwcjLYPCG-0isU-cdkXvSeV5D_NBtdeUw107DaA0_3Jswt6xhejKCc6hzlk4M9UwaPrtMNXz6gQC0mU/s1600/National+Gallery+of+art+statue.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYsAZ87N4cQoo7xdPNQSW9cR87Ilg7X8_IATI-9ts9u9gphWs3SSFMMCLZAQntNwcjLYPCG-0isU-cdkXvSeV5D_NBtdeUw107DaA0_3Jswt6xhejKCc6hzlk4M9UwaPrtMNXz6gQC0mU/s1600/National+Gallery+of+art+statue.JPG" width="288" /></a></div>I recently had the honor to host a lunch time tour of the John Russell Pope designed <a href="http://www.nga.gov/">National Gallery of Art</a> for the <a href="http://www.classicist-washington.org/">Mid-Atlantic branch of the ICAA</a> of which I sit on the board.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguRtlBtxnzat9iEWTtMvWBLVSx9BNf-NBUAAlKrlUGm1W7QQtIdCdqiCJrfSAEalClZOL51AAC9U_ESAuc103Q1W_joXN4B2N3G3TBQTjPUeLLmxbWOiOyjcRDMVUPjN3C6ymD3qhUaSc/s1600/national+Gallery+of+art.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguRtlBtxnzat9iEWTtMvWBLVSx9BNf-NBUAAlKrlUGm1W7QQtIdCdqiCJrfSAEalClZOL51AAC9U_ESAuc103Q1W_joXN4B2N3G3TBQTjPUeLLmxbWOiOyjcRDMVUPjN3C6ymD3qhUaSc/s1600/national+Gallery+of+art.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Probably my favorite public building in a city of favorites, this classical gem was designed by architect John Russell Pope for Andrew W. Mellon. Mellon (basically and in short) gifted the building and the basis of its collection to the nation. In an odd twist of fate both Mellon and Pope passed away in August,1937 before the Galleries' dedication in 1941.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMuW26lNDkWHWsDjT5-wx9c3tQBe8NJ-vkKsPWoxvXRDb77j3UQPy6CUKYyMz0cIt5B2RY-WMLCz7oU_qnp1DA43VeERfXOyNPlXmCQ68YHbiI-myY3kk3mCE3cYG4DHqK9VKEGWS7QuQ/s1600/National+Gallery+of+art+sign.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMuW26lNDkWHWsDjT5-wx9c3tQBe8NJ-vkKsPWoxvXRDb77j3UQPy6CUKYyMz0cIt5B2RY-WMLCz7oU_qnp1DA43VeERfXOyNPlXmCQ68YHbiI-myY3kk3mCE3cYG4DHqK9VKEGWS7QuQ/s1600/National+Gallery+of+art+sign.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>Clad in Tennessee pink marble the Neoclassical structure harkens the growing trend towards modernism while still looking to the past, as does much of its' collection.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM8VLXHpKJxj5zO1UJ6MEkyxM88g5haEcVmDCVFkV63m3HkBZ9jqExbOCJdpPakvFL8_fi75_KvKu8uaCX2h9wTJmJTQ_V7adeoLFDhxLLTDQNjsvfq7WCBh4pngF3JG1ACwt4FVXmJJc/s1600/National+Gallery+of+Art+side.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM8VLXHpKJxj5zO1UJ6MEkyxM88g5haEcVmDCVFkV63m3HkBZ9jqExbOCJdpPakvFL8_fi75_KvKu8uaCX2h9wTJmJTQ_V7adeoLFDhxLLTDQNjsvfq7WCBh4pngF3JG1ACwt4FVXmJJc/s1600/National+Gallery+of+Art+side.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>Below you can see some early sketches by Pope which show the partee or basic plan as well as the massing of the building.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkfHyzTUF9ykszmGjCm_UhSbA5sUnOCV3sc2aDsibBq7Hj-dKE_ps2BLpwyPcO0u63aQgfMxMBmoAbDdvxn6JKwiMbOfc61UYNL9oqXItQkkOXaLb5Md1Z4aMbwEw4xK8ZeXNacdWxCDM/s1600/National+Gallery+of+Art+floorplan+by+JRP.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkfHyzTUF9ykszmGjCm_UhSbA5sUnOCV3sc2aDsibBq7Hj-dKE_ps2BLpwyPcO0u63aQgfMxMBmoAbDdvxn6JKwiMbOfc61UYNL9oqXItQkkOXaLb5Md1Z4aMbwEw4xK8ZeXNacdWxCDM/s1600/National+Gallery+of+Art+floorplan+by+JRP.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Largely based on Rome's Pantheon with wings housing the galleries, the structure incorporated the latest technology of the time which has held up remarkably well considering the wear and tear the building receives on a daily basis (including a recent earthquake)!<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA0XM80puR-mArdw-7N2sTSX3c29EnT_HkAlsl2nNVU-pb2rHwYbF05f7PCobF1737ZlDZW5_plMu2aV5NNIo8ptHvabWGmFVwZAmU0_JmcO7FjQmK1QTnEGTbq31656XEVTIdV9GKCy0/s1600/National+gallery+of+art+rotunda.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA0XM80puR-mArdw-7N2sTSX3c29EnT_HkAlsl2nNVU-pb2rHwYbF05f7PCobF1737ZlDZW5_plMu2aV5NNIo8ptHvabWGmFVwZAmU0_JmcO7FjQmK1QTnEGTbq31656XEVTIdV9GKCy0/s1600/National+gallery+of+art+rotunda.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>The central rotunda is my favorite space in the museum and possibly the city. The columns surrounding the central fountain are solid marble (quite the engineering feat getting those into place) which visually support a large coffered dome. While appearing to be the same stone as the rest of the interior, the dome is actually composed of plaster with a steel frame.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhUVmtfGa_O1IY6Eh5Hkw4cpIOE75gQsoXtpC0AdFrJpZ9E-mpULSpAIGSNQ1pmH7C9piybJXC5UTvlylS-igX4DV7bzxJllf5By-SQi9CeEZlLmsAYjjGMUUAPSnb-mG2wZnM4yqvmdk/s1600/Plaster+dome.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhUVmtfGa_O1IY6Eh5Hkw4cpIOE75gQsoXtpC0AdFrJpZ9E-mpULSpAIGSNQ1pmH7C9piybJXC5UTvlylS-igX4DV7bzxJllf5By-SQi9CeEZlLmsAYjjGMUUAPSnb-mG2wZnM4yqvmdk/s1600/Plaster+dome.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>Indeed the entire structure is concrete and steel based with a very (modern) veneer of marble. It hides his secret well.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwc4lpySlPfKc0bBbooooBHtQd30kQVX-zpWxTcchQH7K29sHYDqeaXEGHXWy7oNjSYaEbeuaKtLFvy3ePPt5-WTYh1rAsouByu6Uin2NqXJ1VgFTPgaYePmPlMw0y66ynEkdJS76BAOs/s1600/sculpture+courts.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwc4lpySlPfKc0bBbooooBHtQd30kQVX-zpWxTcchQH7K29sHYDqeaXEGHXWy7oNjSYaEbeuaKtLFvy3ePPt5-WTYh1rAsouByu6Uin2NqXJ1VgFTPgaYePmPlMw0y66ynEkdJS76BAOs/s1600/sculpture+courts.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>On either side of the rotunda are 2 skylit sculpture courts. As throughout the museum most spaces on the piano nobile are daylit by large skylights.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGDBBmaIDCWVoGBiXm1rodKCYWns7nDu8J1VKHK5bClzxxTASsbFkiaYWTT7OZHoCy3tK8jfGYPGqEcAK0_HN-qVHEK3_KGitCovJh-co078GM7frHoWFlo2zGQaEeOhmrrNymySnMrMY/s1600/overdoor.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGDBBmaIDCWVoGBiXm1rodKCYWns7nDu8J1VKHK5bClzxxTASsbFkiaYWTT7OZHoCy3tK8jfGYPGqEcAK0_HN-qVHEK3_KGitCovJh-co078GM7frHoWFlo2zGQaEeOhmrrNymySnMrMY/s1600/overdoor.JPG" width="286" /></a></div> The building itself is an encyclopedia on classical detailing.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ6D1vzQv-mO1isIUE18u2uOPLqFn67Jxws9ieKcYcQa-jgVsYg7TZlhrtC59oaT8BG6yuBMQbvu5aLyrBUGyqb7eA8eqc1psG9Kkbx4e78OkdZPMKcKpycUWnBfrgA76lbyVbL9jtv3E/s1600/brass+lantern.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ6D1vzQv-mO1isIUE18u2uOPLqFn67Jxws9ieKcYcQa-jgVsYg7TZlhrtC59oaT8BG6yuBMQbvu5aLyrBUGyqb7eA8eqc1psG9Kkbx4e78OkdZPMKcKpycUWnBfrgA76lbyVbL9jtv3E/s1600/brass+lantern.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>I love this bronze lantern in one of the vestibules -notice the Greek key and architectural motifs.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6UCDpHXOQwDa9vnr6jVVbO2cVmF3w8g6ikVH6vDbFRYtvN1qNn9BgMljyANr5o1GFnlfFPoQQwxNeef3OzJarFosGKP5zuy1bXx9CgXDdYVEn-BrlvTYCwZHbGGCEmxCds5mtVLWjTl0/s1600/stone+casing.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6UCDpHXOQwDa9vnr6jVVbO2cVmF3w8g6ikVH6vDbFRYtvN1qNn9BgMljyANr5o1GFnlfFPoQQwxNeef3OzJarFosGKP5zuy1bXx9CgXDdYVEn-BrlvTYCwZHbGGCEmxCds5mtVLWjTl0/s1600/stone+casing.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>The openings in the galleries themselves are clad in different materials -here in Italian travertine with silk damask walls (dating to the 1980s)<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq1BXk9eGFtbPhEF8y8pQnX_ZzB-nJSJExNADI8H66p_vQQmX55P_Q-J9Y395klqRQFcFefNpidzqLb1AFvLA_ekR3LscsTRjQCIjZ6YKATH8YBG8VfI6nIAEkfe2Can1AZ7uHhW7RBSI/s1600/National+Gallery+of+art+tour.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq1BXk9eGFtbPhEF8y8pQnX_ZzB-nJSJExNADI8H66p_vQQmX55P_Q-J9Y395klqRQFcFefNpidzqLb1AFvLA_ekR3LscsTRjQCIjZ6YKATH8YBG8VfI6nIAEkfe2Can1AZ7uHhW7RBSI/s1600/National+Gallery+of+art+tour.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>Seen above the current chief architect for the museum, Susan Wertheim, talks to the group about the Pantheon influence in front of Panini's painting, <a href="http://www.nga.gov/content/ngaweb/Collection/art-object-page.165.html">Interior of the Pantheon</a>.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic3So-nv30gmxdefdjgXNiBc9ZvauqVOswMExyXwFfjnbJ09hvPhXyw_Re1jhv7ErbHh2MDkKCNXJMTrRlJ7OL5r8KQ1flw4OUL4TZd_9-6DLLGl1hfXVSumSjRfLVthyunvTs_M_JJDg/s1600/column+capital+detail.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic3So-nv30gmxdefdjgXNiBc9ZvauqVOswMExyXwFfjnbJ09hvPhXyw_Re1jhv7ErbHh2MDkKCNXJMTrRlJ7OL5r8KQ1flw4OUL4TZd_9-6DLLGl1hfXVSumSjRfLVthyunvTs_M_JJDg/s1600/column+capital+detail.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>Speaking of classical detailing the ICAA has an upcoming lecture by <a href="http://theartofclassicaldetails.com/author.php">Phillip James Dodd</a> centered on his new book <a href="http://theartofclassicaldetails.com/">The Art of Classical Details</a> on Thursday, May 22nd - a fascinating lecture not to be missed!<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKYMgmaYx_qmgaYR4D4fRp3-SjsO8QWSbio_8tf__sOt8hzEShrM26pbCegsGdv4Pk4-TLtQOuuskEVMG7aBkwicr-bZDAPf3h2Y1d-2AAv9t5vdeALhkPX2IxpQJJNVtJvkIP-qz1WIY/s1600/The+art+of+Classical+Detailing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKYMgmaYx_qmgaYR4D4fRp3-SjsO8QWSbio_8tf__sOt8hzEShrM26pbCegsGdv4Pk4-TLtQOuuskEVMG7aBkwicr-bZDAPf3h2Y1d-2AAv9t5vdeALhkPX2IxpQJJNVtJvkIP-qz1WIY/s1600/The+art+of+Classical+Detailing.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Information and tickets to the lecture can be purchased from the website; look towards the bottom of the events page linked <a href="http://www.classicist-washington.org/chapter_events">HERE</a>. Hope to see you there!

John Russell Pope tour and an upcoming ICAA event

I recently had the honor to host a lunch time tour of the John Russell Pope designed National Gallery of Art for the Mid-Atlantic branch of...

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