JUDITH LEYSTER: MARRIAGE AND FRANS HALS

A few years ago I wrote a blog post about two female painters, successful during their respective times despite overwhelming male dominance.

One of those painters is Judith Leyster (1609-1660). Born in Haarlem, the most important artistic center of Holland in the early part of the seventeenth century, she was a rare female master painter during the Dutch Golden Age. This was the same time as Rembrandt and Vermeer. Leyster was so renowned as a painter that she joined the Haarlem painter's guild as an independent master in 1633, a rarity for a female painter. Her "masters" piece painting that she presented to the Guild is now a top highlight at the National Gallery:

Self-Portrait (1630)

  Another Leyster painting on view...

Young Boy in Profile (1630)

Most of Leyster's dated works are from 1629–1635. In 1636 Judith Leyster married fellow Haarlem-native Jan Miense Molenaer (1610-1668) who was known for his genre paintings or scenes of everyday life. There are no painting by Molenaer in the permanent collection of the National Gallery, but this painting from a private collection was on view:

The Lute Player (1640)

Once married with children, Leyster did not produce any paintings under her own name, but probably continued to work in collaboration with her husband.

Many times Leyster's paintings have been attributed to the most famous Haarlem painter, Frans Hals. Leyster's relationship with Frans Hals is actually unclear; she could have been a fellow painter or his student because their styles are so similar. You can compare this portrait by Hals with Leyster's self-portrait shown above.

Willem Coymans (1645)

Frans Hals was famous for his dazzling brushwork and often used informal poses to enliven his portraits.   

Portrait of a Man (1648-1650)

Adriaen van Ostade (1645/1648)

Portrait of an Elderly Lady (1633)

I will continue my tour of the Dutch collection at the National Gallery in my next blog post.

The National Gallery of Art is located on the National Mall between 3rd and 9th Streets along Constitution Avenue.

• Admission is always FREE.
• Open Monday-Saturday: 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
• Open Sunday: 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.
• Closed on December 25 and January 1. 

All photos in this blog post were taken by me during my visit in September, 2013.

THE WIDENER REMBRANDTS

In the 1870s and 1880s, P. A. B. (Peter Arrell Brown) Widener made a fortune investing in trolley cars and public transportation, beginning in Philadelphia and expanding throughout the country. With his wealth Widener, like other rich men of the late-19th century, became an avid art collector. After his death, Widener's son, Joseph, continued adding to the collection he inherited from his father, improving it by selling less-important paintings and purchasing higher-quality paintings including the Vermeer shown in the last post and over a dozen Rembrandts. In 1939, Joseph Widener, in conversations with Andrew Mellon, agreed to donate his collection as part of a founding gift to create a National Gallery of Art. In 1942, just 18 months after the museum's opening, Widener's paintings joined Andrew Mellon's in the National Gallery of Art.

These were the Widener Rembrandt paintings on view:

The Circumcision (1661). P.A.B. Widener purchased this painting from the 5th Earl Spencer, the family of Diana, Princess of Wales.

Portrait of a Gentleman with a Tall Hat and Gloves (1658/1660) P.A.B. Widener purchased this painting from Prince Felix Yusupov, best known as the assassin of Rasputin.

Portrait of a Lady with an Ostrich-Feather Fan (1658/1660) P.A.B. Widener also purchased this painting from Prince Felix Yusupov, best known as the assassin of Rasputin.

Philemon and Baucis (1658). Purchased by Joseph Widener in 1922.

Portrait of a Man in a Tall Hat (1663). P.A.B. Widener purchased it in 1912.

 

The Mill (1645/1648). Even though the dramatic look of the painting was really caused by years of old varnish, art experts consider this painting to be one of Rembrandt's greatest creations.

Vermeer and Rembrandt make up a significant part of the National Gallery's Dutch collection, but there are dozens more to be seen. I'll continue showing you these paintings in my next post. 

The National Gallery of Art is located on the National Mall between 3rd and 9th Streets along Constitution Avenue.

• Admission is always FREE.
• Open Monday-Saturday: 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
• Open Sunday: 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.
• Closed on December 25 and January 1. 

All photos in this blog post were taken by me during my visit in September, 2013.

VERMEER AT THE NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART

Of course, visiting the National Gallery of Art was at the top of my wishlist when we planned our visit to Washington D.C. The National Gallery of Art was opened in 1941, thanks to the incredible generosity of Pittsburgh financier Andrew Mellon. Andrew Mellon donated his private collection of paintings and sculpture to start the museum, the funds in order to construct the building and a sizable endowment to maintain the museum. He purposely did not name the museum after himself because he wanted other major collectors, such as P. A. B. Widener, Samuel Kress and Chester Dale, to donate their art collections to create the gift to the nation that has became one of the premier art museums in the world. And the best part is admission is FREE to everyone everyday.

The highlight of the visit was seeing the four Vermeers. Considering there are only 37 known works by Vermeer in the world, to see 4 of them on one wall was unbelievable:

Woman Holding a Balance (1664). Part of P. A. B. Widener's gift to the museum.

Girl Holding a Flute (1665/1670). Part of P. A. B. Widener's gift to the museum.

A Lady Writing (1665). A gift from the Havemeyer Family.

The Girl with a Red Hat (1665). Part of Andrew Mellon's founding gift to the museum.

These four paintings are part of the vast Dutch painting collection at the National Gallery of Art. From Rembrandt to Frans Hals to Jan Lievens to Jan Steen, the Dutch collection is one of the finest in the world. I will continue my tour of the museum in my next blog post.

The National Gallery of Art is located on the National Mall between 3rd and 9th Streets along Constitution Avenue.

• Admission is always FREE.
• Open Monday-Saturday: 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
• Open Sunday: 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.
• Closed on December 25 and January 1. 

All photos in this blog post were taken by me during my visit in September, 2013.
 

NEWSEUM

The next stop in our Washington D.C. trip was the Newseum. This museum is one of only two sites that we had to pay an entrance fee. Here is a great tip: visit the Trusted Tours website here. You can purchase tickets here at discounted prices. Tickets for the Newseum are $20.27 here versus $22.95 on their website. Your ticket is good for two consecutive days' entrance.

On display in the front of the museum are the current day's front page headlines from newspapers from each of the 50 states. More than 800 different newspapers transmit their front pages electronically to the Newseum each day.

When you enter the museum you can't help but look up:

There is an actual news helicopter hanging from the 90-foot ceiling.

There is also a replica of a broadcast satellite hanging from the ceiling.

The Newseum has a portion of the actual Berlin Wall: eight 12-foot-high concrete sections of the wall, each weighing about three tons, the largest display of unaltered portions of the original wall outside of Germany. The exhibit tells the story of how news and information helped topple a closed and oppressive society.

A portion of the mangled communications antenna from the World Trade Center...

is displayed in front of headlines from dozens of worldwide newspapers announcing the 9/11 attacks.

In a display case are the camera, bag and personal items of a photographer who died in the 9/11 attacks doing what was his passion...

Some of his photos of that day survived...

Every day journalists and photographers risk their lives to gather the news in dangerous areas of the world. On display is an armor-reinforced truck, riddled with bullet holes, used by photographers and correspondents in Yugoslavia during the 1990s conflict.

The Journalists Memorial is a soaring, two-story glass structure bearing the names of reporters, photographers, editors and broadcasters who have died in the line of work.

On the sixth floor is the outdoor terrace which gives you fantastic views of the city: Looking to the left up Pennsylvania Avenue gives you a spectacular view of the Capitol Building.

The view to your right down Pennsylvania Avenue shows some of the buildings that make up the Federal Triangle including the Federal Trade Commission, National Archives, Department of Justice and the old Post Office's clock tower.

And the view in front shows the National Gallery of Art.

This was my favorite stop of the trip. I will spend the next several blog posts showing my favorite masterpiece paintings that grace the walls of this spectacular museum.

To learn more about the Newseum visit their website here. If you are hungry when you visit the Newseum, head down to the lower level where The Source by Wolfgang Puck served up the best meal we had during our trip.

All photos in this blog post were taken by my husband and me during our visit in September, 2013.