Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture

Thursday December 1st I had the opportunity to see this newest Smithsonian Museum.  It opened this fall and is very popular.  So popular that you have to obtain a timed ticket to enter.  Tickets are free but very difficult to get on short notice.  Our recreation director here at Vantage House snagged some for the 10 am opening time that day.  Lines were long waiting to enter.  Very strict security measures too just as you pass through the doors.

Here are a few photos that feature the architecture and spaces in the building.  It was much too crowded to take photos of the many exhibits.

The museum is in the shadow of the Washington monument.

Inside is full of light.

Escalators take you up or down.  Below the lobby there is a concourse and then three levels below that is where the history exhibits begin.

Going up is another three levels of culture exhibits.

On the concourse you enter a huge elevator to take you down the three levels.

See what I mean about the crowds.

There are soaring spaces.

One of the Tuskegee Airmen planes.

Lots of videos from as far back as they were made.

The grill work is reminiscent of what was made by African-American craftsmen of New Orleans and Charleston.  It covers the outside of the building.

Chuck Berry's Eldorado.

Here's the outside.  Too big for me to get into one frame from where I was standing.

Well worth the trip.

Joining Tom's Tuesday Treasures

Sackler Gallery - Part 2

In Tuesday's post I mentioned that our trip to the Sackler Gallery had been to see the Turquoise Mountain exhibit.  This exhibit focuses on an effort to renew the traditional artisan skills in Afghanistan.  Turquoise Mountain is a charitable organization funded from many sources.

This exhibit was unusual because we were allowed to touch most everything shown.  The only exception was the jewelry.

One community in Kabul that had been devastated by all the wars was Murad Khani.  This is the focus of Turquoise Mountain's efforts to train new artisans in the old skills that were being lost with the wars.

One of the traditional crafts that had been set aside by the Russian occupation was woodworking.  

This sphere has no nails.

 Wooden screens like this one had multiple purposes.  They kept the hot sunlight out of the house, but let breezes through.  Again no nails in the construction of these.

Carved wood decorates restored houses again.

Jewelry making was another resurrected craft.

Woven carpets.  The one below was done in 4 months time.

Wool and cotton are the materials for carpets.

That one carpet had incredibly intricate patterns.

Even the underside was beautiful.  It was the work of multiple craftpersons.

Other examples hung on the walls.

We had an excellent docent to guide us through the exhibit.  He's on the left.

The last craft was pottery.

Isn't this bowl beautiful?

Men throw the bowls and women incise the design before glazing and firing the bowls.

For more information on Turquoise Mountain visit this site.

Sackler Gallery

Another trip with Vantage House.  This time to the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery.

Arthur Sackler donated his collection of Asian art to the Smithsonian Institution with the stipulation that a museum be built.  This one is attached to the Freer Gallery of Art but unlike that gallery that is above ground this one goes down several stories from the initial ground floor.

We came to see the exhibit called Turquoise Mountain.  I'll share that in my next post.

We also spent some time in the exhibit on the Art of the Quran but no photos were allowed in there.

In the center stairwell is this monkey sculpture.

Each section represents the word monkey in a different language.

It based upon the story of a monkey that looked down into a pond and saw the moon.  He got his monkey friends to make a long  chain but when the last one reached the pond and tried to pick up the moon it disappeared.

The English version looks more like monkeys that the word.

Joining Tuesday Treasures

Season Change

We have a shelf outside our apartment door.  Rather than leave the same thing up all the time I've opted to try to change it seasonally.

So yesterday the house blessing that my Mom painted years ago came down in favor of a wreath I made 42 years ago.

The pumpkins and turkey are put away for next year.

The partridge in a pear tree wreath I made the first year of our marriage looks nice there.

I downsized my Christmas decorations considerably when we moved.  I have two bins only now.  I'll be decorating for Christmas this week including the new pencil Christmas tree I bought in October.

Happy Holidays!