Busts

George S. Pickett, U.S. Army:
Led the futile and bloody assault at Gettysburg
known as Pickett's Charge.

This week, I'm going to feature some photos I took at the National Portrait Gallery last week. Photographing art is often a challenge, but museums provide so many opportunities not only for capturing great art, but also for capturing people interacting with the art. During my recent visit to the NPG, I tried to focus strictly on busts. Here are a couple of examples of my efforts.

In the painting, Harriet Beecher Stowe joined by her contemporary in bust, Susan B. Anthony.
The former, author of Uncle Tom's Cabin. The latter fought for woman's suffrage.

Several busts were in galleries featuring paints of the subjects' contemporaries. I'll feature an interesting and apropos pairing on Wednesday, along with a book recommendation.

Date Night

Continuing my 100 Strangers series, I was originally intent on photographing the frame around the painting of U.S. General Ulysses S. Grant, but then this couple stepped into the gallery and they became part of the composition. I think I like this better than if I'd simply just photographed the painting in its frame, don't you?

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As an aside, I want to call attention to an article in yesterday's Washington Post Travel section about Vienna, Austria. If you are from Vienna or if you've ever lived there (as I have), if you've visited the city on the Blue Danube or have plans to, this is an article worth reading. I'd love to hear what our daily photo bloggers from/in Vienna, the City of Dreams, think of it.

Here is In the Presence of the Past: Vienna's Complicated History is Never Too Far Out of Reach. The article also includes a section on how to get to Vienna, where to stay, what to see, where to eat, and so forth. Any other suggestions for things to see and do in this magical city?

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Tomorrow's D.C. Confidential: Funerary Sculpture

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential, 11/08