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Post by Jim Boylston on Jun 7, 2007 17:10:12 GMT -5
I'm working in DC this week, and was delighted to have some down time today to spend with Allen Wiener. He and I visited the "American Origins" exhibit at the NPG, and I would highly recommend a visit to anyone that will be in the area while it is on display. In addition to finally getting to see the Chester Harding portrait of Crockett (my favorite of the DC portraits), there were scads of George Caitlin's Indian images, including the famous Osceola portrait, Gilbert Stuart's Washington, and lots of portraits by Healey, the probable artist of the Bowie portrait. Gallery after gallery of iconic images from American history. I could have spent all day there. Jim
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Post by TRK on Jun 7, 2007 19:16:44 GMT -5
It's great you got to vist the NPG with Allen.
I spent half a day there in the early '90s with my old friend Al Haarmann, who was *the* authority on the Mexican Army of the Mexican-American War era. Sure do miss that guy.
Did you happen to catch William Garl Brown's group painting of Gen. Zachary Taylor and his staff at Walnut Springs, his camp near Monterrey, Mexico, painted in 1847? That's my favorite NPG painting.
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Post by Jim Boylston on Jun 7, 2007 20:07:51 GMT -5
Yes! Allen will have to refresh my memory, but I think it was hanging above Harding's Crockett portrait! The Crockett picture was placed next to Harding's oil sketch of Daniel Boone. On close examination one could see where Harding had mounted the sketch on another piece of canvas where he painted the rest of the bust after the full length original had been severely damaged. I got a real kick out of seeing these paintings together, since I'd done a lot of research on them (and Harding) for an old "Crockett Chronicle" article. Jim
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Post by Allen Wiener on Jun 7, 2007 21:45:31 GMT -5
Jim,
It was my pleasure to tour the NPG with you as you lent real artistic expertise to what I was seeing, especially that detail about the Boone painting; you made me look closer at these things and see beyond the surface image. I'm like a lot of Washingtonians; this stuff is all around me but I rarely see it unless someone from out of town wants to go. I'm looking forward to visiting again.
It was really nice to see the Harding Crockett since I just wrote the article on that painting and the Healey Bowie portrait in "Alamo Journal." I'm going to go through the pictures I took and post some here under "Images."
Yes - I believe the Taylor painting was right above the Crockett. The whole place is like a trip through American history; so many paintings of Indians and their habitat so long ago; everyone from Poe to Custer to Martin Van Buren. Each picture seemed to bring up a story about some event we'd read about.
AW
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Post by Herb on Jun 8, 2007 10:18:08 GMT -5
Thanks Allen, for posting the pictures.
OK, Jim, why is the Harding portrait your favorite (I'm sure you explained elsewhere, but on some things I'm just dense) ?
When did Crockett set for this? To me it looks like it had to be near the end of his political career.
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Post by Jim Boylston on Jun 8, 2007 10:31:01 GMT -5
He sat in 1834 during his tour of the NE. He likely only sat for an afternoon, and probably never saw the finished portrait as Harding hung it in his gallery for a while, and as far as I know, Crockett never made it back to Boston. I like it stylistically, and think Harding was the best artist (in terms of technical ability) to paint Crockett. Harding is known for his realism, and some of his portraits are quite unflattering. There was one of James Monroe that depicted him literally warts and all, and another of Madison that also showed every facial flaw, both on display at the NPG. This attention to detail leads me to believe that his Crockett likeness is the most accurate. The Chapman portraits are highly romanticized, the Osgood portrait was destroyed before it was photographed, and some of the others just aren't that skillfully rendered. Jim
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Post by Allen Wiener on Jun 8, 2007 12:49:32 GMT -5
Hey Wolf -- you get you one of them new "Alamo Journals" for June 2007; there's an article in there about this by some pretender.
AW
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Post by Herb on Jun 8, 2007 12:55:48 GMT -5
Hey Wolf -- you get you one of them new "Alamo Journals" for June 2007; there's an article in there about this by some pretender. AW Naw, I'm still waiting. Bill must have sent mind via Paris, France instead of Paris, Texas! ;D
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Post by Allen Wiener on Jun 8, 2007 13:07:11 GMT -5
I only got mine yesterday, so hang in there. Mark Lemon's piece is worth waiting for alone.
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