Arts & Entertainment
Seeing Stein
Legendary lesbian artist the subject of Portrait Gallery exhibit


Francis Picabia's 'Portrait of Gertrude Stein,' a 1933 work included in the National Portrait Gallery's current 'Seeing Gertrude Stein' exhibit. (Image courtesy the Portrait Gallery)
The National Portrait Gallery’s (8th and F streets) newest exhibit, “Seeing Gertrude Stein: Five Stories” uses paintings, photos, videos and more to visually tell Stein’s life story.
The exhibit, curated by Wanda M. Corn and Tirza True Latimer, begins in the hallway on the second floor with the first story, “Picture Gertrude.”
This part includes several images of Stein and her family, beginning when she was just a little girl, the youngest of five children.
The oddest piece in this area is “Portrait of Gertrude Stein” by Francis Picabia, done in 1933. Around this time, Stein has gotten a very short haircut, sometimes referred to as a Caesar cut, and Picabia portrayed her as “imperial.”
Unlike like other photos and paintings, Picabia fictionalized the background and Stein’s clothing, painting her in a toga like dress, leaving her arms bare. No other images in the collection picture Stein in even short sleeves.
The second story, “Domestic Stein” really explores the relationship between Stein and partner Alice B. Toklas, specially their life at home.
This part of the exhibit includes many photos of the couple’s home and some of their belongings, including two vests, or “waistcoats,” worn by Stein and a few pieces of jewelry. A section of the room is wallpapered with a pattern the couple used in their bedroom.
The third story, “Art of Friendship,” looks at the wide circle of artists Stein befriend throughout her life, including a group of lesser known younger male artists, writers and composers.
A quotation by Stein, painted above a grid of some of these younger artists, reads “We are surrounded by homosexuals, they do all the good things in all the arts.”
One of these younger artists was Sir Francis Cyril Rose, whom Stein thought would be the next Picasso. After her death, Rose created a silk scarf, featuring a neoclassical bust of Stein surrounded by an inaccurate version of her most famous maxim, “rose is a rose is a rose is a rose,” and each corner of the scarf had a different focus.
The fourth story, “Celebrity Stein,” focuses on a six-month tour Stein went on in the U.S. and her activities during the world wars.
In the middle of a room between the fourth and fifth “story,” there’s a single, Buddha-like sculpture of Stein by Jo Davidson. A recording of Stein reading two of her word portraits, “If I Told Him: A Completed Portrait of Picasso” and “An Early Portrait of Henri Matisse,” echoes through the room.
This part of the exhibit serves as a transition from Stein’s life to works inspired by her after her death.
One of the most interesting pieces in the exhibit is part of the fifth story, Legacies, which explores the influence Stein had on American artists such as Andy Warhol, Deborah Kass and more.
“After Picasso” by Devorah Sperber is an interesting take on what is probably the most classic image of Stein. Sperber strung 5,024 spools of thread on chains to create what at first appears to be an abstract image, but when viewed through a clear acrylic sphere, the image is inverted and the “pixels” comes together.
A book by Corn and Latimer, also titled “Seeing Gertrude Stein: Five Stories” accompanies the exhibit and is available for purchase in the museum’s gift shop.
The gallery has also organized special programs and events in conjunction with the exhibit.
Proof Restaurant (775 G St., N.W.) will have a special, four-course menu inspired by Toklas for $59 while the exhibit is open. There will also be two portrait story days with a focus on Stein on Saturday at 4 p.m. and Sunday at 5 p.m. Younger visitors will have the opportunity to listen to a story about Stein as well as create their own piece of art.
On Nov. 4, the Art History Program of American university is holding a lunch, tour and program as part of the second annual Feminist Art History Conference. For more information on this event, visit american.edu/cas/art-history/femconf/index.cfm.
The exhibit opened Oct. 14 and will run through Nov. 3.
Books
A boy-meets-boy, family-mess story with heat
New book offers a stunning, satisfying love story

‘When the Harvest Comes’
By Denne Michele Norris
c.2025, Random House
$28/304 pages
Happy is the bride the sun shines on.
Of all the clichés that exist about weddings, that’s the one that seems to make you smile the most. Just invoking good weather and bright sunshine feels like a cosmic blessing on the newlyweds and their future. It’s a happy omen for bride and groom or, as in the new book “When the Harvest Comes” by Denne Michele Norris, for groom and groom.

Davis Freeman never thought he could love or be loved like this.
He was wildly, wholeheartedly, mind-and-soul smitten with Everett Caldwell, and life was everything that Davis ever wanted. He was a successful symphony musician in New York. They had an apartment they enjoyed and friends they cherished. Now it was their wedding day, a day Davis had planned with the man he adored, the details almost down to the stitches in their attire. He’d even purchased a gorgeous wedding gown that he’d never risk wearing.
He knew that Everett’s family loved him a lot, but Davis didn’t dare tickle the fates with a white dress on their big day. Everett’s dad, just like Davis’s own father, had considerable reservations about his son marrying another man – although Everett’s father seemed to have come to terms with his son’s bisexuality. Davis’s father, whom Davis called the Reverend, never would. Years ago, father and son had a falling-out that destroyed any chance of peace between Davis and his dad; in fact, the door slammed shut to any reconciliation.
But Davis tried not to think about that. Not on his wedding day. Not, unbeknownst to him, as the Reverend was rushing toward the wedding venue, uninvited but not unrepentant. Not when there was an accident and the Reverend was killed, miles away and during the nuptials.
Davis didn’t know that, of course, as he was marrying the love of his life. Neither did Everett, who had familial problems of his own, including homophobic family members who tried (but failed) to pretend otherwise.
Happy is the groom the sun shines on. But when the storm comes, it can be impossible to remain sunny.
What can be said about “When the Harvest Comes?” It’s a romance with a bit of ghost-pepper-like heat that’s not there for the mere sake of titillation. It’s filled with drama, intrigue, hate, characters you want to just slap, and some in bad need of a hug.
In short, this book is quite stunning.
Author Denne Michele Norris offers a love story that’s everything you want in this genre, including partners you genuinely want to get to know, in situations that are real. This is done by putting readers inside the characters’ minds, letting Davis and Everett themselves explain why they acted as they did, mistakes and all. Don’t be surprised if you have to read the last few pages twice to best enjoy how things end. You won’t be sorry.
If you want a complicated, boy-meets-boy, family-mess kind of book with occasional heat, “When the Harvest Comes” is your book. Truly, this novel shines.
The Blade may receive commissions from qualifying purchases made via this post.

The Victory Fund held its National Champagne Brunch at the Ritz-Carlton on Sunday, April 27. Speakers included Tim Gunn, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Gov. Wes Moore (D-Md.), Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.), Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) and Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.).
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

















Music & Concerts
Tom Goss returns with ‘Bear Friends Furever Tour’
Out singer/songwriter to perform at Red Bear Brewing Co.

Singer Tom Goss will bring his “Bear Friends Furever Tour” to D.C. on Sunday, June 8 at 8 p.m. at Red Bear Brewing Co.
Among the songs he will perform will be “Bear Soup,” the fourth installment in his beloved bear song anthology series. Following fan favorites like “Bears,” “Round in All the Right Places,” and “Nerdy Bear,” this high-energy, bass-thumping banger celebrates body positivity, joyful indulgence, and the vibrant spirit of the bear subculture.
For more details, visit Tom Goss’s website.
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