Arts & Entertainment
Kennedy, King and more
20th century icons among region’s museum highlights for summer
Photo of the Kennedy family (Photo by Jacques Lowe; courtesy of the Newseum)
Washington’s many art galleries and museums are in full swing this summer, with a lot of new exhibitions to see before fall.
The Newseum (555 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.) commemorates the 50th anniversary of the assassination of John F. Kennedy all summer through Jan. 5, 2014 with two new exhibits and an original documentary film. “Creating Camelot: The Kennedy Photography of Jacques Lowe,” features intimate and iconic images of the Kennedy family.
“Three Shots Were Fired” is the Newseum’s summer exhibition that examines Kennedy’s assassination through film footage, and also displays items belonging to Lee Harvey Oswald that have never been displayed. “A Thousand Days” is the Newseum-produced film that documents Kennedy’s presidency.
Tickets to the Newseum are $21.95. For more information on the JFK exhibits and other events at the Newseum, visit newseum.org.
A photo entitled ‘Martin Luther King Jr. with Corretta Scott King and their daughter Yolanda on the steps of the Dexter Avenue Baptist church’ (Photo courtesy of the Portrait Gallery)
The Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery (8th and F Streets, N.W.) is currently hosting “One Life: Martin Luther King Jr.,” an exhibition of portraits of MLK to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. The portraits are on display until June of next year.
On Aug. 24th, the Portrait Gallery will host “Family Day” from 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. to commemorate King. There will be music, tours of the MLK exhibition and fun activities the whole family can enjoy.
The gallery has many other summer exhibitions, including the “Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition” through Feb. 2014, and “Mr. TIME: Portraits by Boris Chaliapin” through Jan. 2014.
Admission to the National Portrait Gallery is free. For more information, visit npg.si.edu.
‘Still Life with Guitar and Red Tablecloth’ by Georges Braque (Image courtesy of the Phillips Collection)
The Phillips Collection (1600 21st St., N.W.) has four new exhibitions over the summer, including paintings by Cubist pioneer Georges Braque. The exhibit is titled, “Georges Braque and the Cubist Still Life, 1928-1945,” and will be on display until Sept. 1. It is the first in-depth examination of Braque’s career leading up to and during World War II.
Other temporary exhibitions at the Phillips this summer feature geometric panel paintings by Ellsworth Kelly, ink and acrylic landscapes by Sandra Cinto and Baroque-inspired paintings by Baltimore artist, Bernhard Hildebrandt.
Tickets to the Phillips Collection are $12. For more information on events at the Phillips Collection, visit phillipscollection.org.
The Corcoran Gallery of Art (500 17th St., N.W.) has two fascinating exhibits that recently opened this summer. “Ellen Harvey: The Alien’s Guide to the Ruins of Washington, D.C.” will be on display through Oct. 6. Harvey explores the ruins of a post-apocalyptic D.C. through extraterrestrial eyes, with full-scale mixed-media installations.
“WAR/PHOTOGRAPHY: Images of Armed Conflict and its Aftermath,” will be at the Corcoran until Sept. 29. The exhibit chronicles how photography has informed our understanding of war all over the world. Images from conflicts as early as the Mexican-American War to present-day wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are covered.
Admission to the Corcoran Gallery of Art is $10. For more details on these two exhibits and other events at the gallery, visit corcoran.org.
‘Super Highway’ by Nam June Paik (Photo courtesy of the Smithsonian American Art Museum)
The Smithsonian American Art Museum (8th and F Sts., N.W.) has an impressive collection of works in the summer exhibition, “Nam June Paik: Global Visionary.” The exhibit is on display through Aug. 11, and showcases Paik’s revolutionary use of television screens as a visual arts medium.
Also on display through Jan. 5, 2014 is “A Democracy of Images,” a compilation of photographs from the museum’s permanent collection that document the evolution of American photography from early daguerreotypes to contemporary digital works.
Admission to the Smithsonian American Art Museum is free. For more information, visit americanart.si.edu.
The Smithsonian National Gallery of Art has a wide array of summer exhibits featuring artists from all over the world. Leaving the gallery soon on July 28th is “Edvard Munch: A 150th Anniversary Tribute.” The exhibit, which has been on display since May 19, showcases ominous paintings and prints by the hugely famous Norwegian artist.
“Diaghilev and the Ballets Russes: When Art Danced with Music,” is on display at the National Gallery until Sept. 2. The exhibition features 130 original costumes, set designs, paintings, sculptures, prints, drawings and film clips from what is now regarded as the most innovative dance company of the 20th century.
Admission to the National Gallery is free. For more details on the museum’s other exhibitions and events, visit nga.gov.
The Galleries of Dupont Circle, which dot R Street west of Connecticut Ave., N.W., host joint first Friday openings from 6-8 p.m. each month. The next opening is Aug. 2. For more information, visit dupontcirclearts.blogspot.com.
The 2025 Baltimore Pride Parade was held on Saturday, June 14.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
You’ve done your share of marching.
You’re determined to wring every rainbow-hued thing out of this month. The last of the parties hasn’t arrived yet, neither have the biggest celebrations and you’re primed but – OK, you need a minute. So pull up a chair, take a deep breath, and read these great books on gay history, movies, and more.
You probably don’t need to be told that harassment and discrimination was a daily occurrence for gay people in the past (as now!), but “American Scare: Florida’s Hidden Cold War on Black and Queer Lives” by Robert W. Fieseler (Dutton, $34) tells a story that runs deeper than you may know. Here, you’ll read a historical expose with documented, newly released evidence of a systemic effort to ruin the lives of two groups of people that were perceived as a threat to a legislature full of white men.
Prepared to be shocked, that’s all you need to know.
You’ll also want to read the story inside “The Many Passions of Michael Hardwick: Sex and the Supreme Court in the Age of AIDS” by Martin Padgett (W.W. Norton & Company, $31.99), which sounds like a novel, but it’s not. It’s the story of one man’s fight for a basic right as the AIDS crisis swirls in and out of American gay life and law. Hint: this book isn’t just old history, and it’s not just for gay men.
Maybe you’re ready for some fun and who doesn’t like a movie? You know you do, so you’ll want “Sick and Dirty: Hollywood’s Gay Golden Age and the Making of Modern Queerness” by Michael Koresky (Bloomsbury, $29.99). It’s a great look at the Hays Code and what it allowed audiences to see, but it’s also about the classics that sneaked beneath the code. There are actors, of course, in here, but also directors, writers, and other Hollywood characters you may recognize. Grab the popcorn and settle in.
If you have kids in your life, they’ll want to know more about Pride and you’ll want to look for “Pride: Celebrations & Festivals” by Eric Huang, illustrated by Amy Phelps (Quarto, $14.99), a story of inclusion that ends in a nice fat section of history and explanation, great for kids ages seven-to-fourteen. Also find “Are You a Friend of Dorothy? The True Story of an Imaginary Woman and the Real People She Helped Shape” by Kyle Lukoff, illustrated by Levi Hastings (Simon & Schuster, $19.99), a lively book about a not-often-told secret for kids ages six-to-ten; and “Papa’s Coming Home” by Chasten Buttigieg, illustrated by Dan Taylor (Philomel, $19.99), a sweet family tale for kids ages three-to-five.
Finally, here’s a tween book that you can enjoy, too: “Queer Heroes” by Arabelle Sicardi, illustrated by Sarah Tanat-Jones (Wide Eyed, $14.99), a series of quick-to-read biographies of people you should know about.
Want more Pride books? Then ask your favorite bookseller or librarian for more, because there are so many more things to read. Really, the possibilities are almost endless, so march on in.
Music & Concerts
Indigo Girls coming to Capital One Hall
Stars take center stage alongside Fairfax Symphony
Capital One Center will host “The Indigo Girls with the Fairfax Symphony Orchestra” on Thursday, June 19 and Friday, June 20 at 8 p.m. at Capital One Hall.
The Grammy Award-winning folk and pop stars will take center stage alongside the Fairfax Symphony, conducted by Jason Seber. The concerts feature orchestrations of iconic hits such as “Power of Two,” “Get Out The Map,” “Least Complicated,” “Ghost,” “Kid Fears,” “Galileo,” “Closer to Fine,” and many more.
Tickets are available on Ticketmaster or in person at Capital One Hall the nights of the concerts.
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