Duke Ellington School

Intermission : Ellington Theater

Last Friday found me at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Georgetown. My sister's colleague invited her to attend a Christmas concert by the school's vocal musical students and she, in turn, invited me and a couple of friends.

The Duke Ellington School of the Arts was founded in 1974 and is the only school in the District of Columbia dedicated to an education in the arts. In addition to standard high school curriculum, each student majors in one of eight areas: Theater, Tech Design/Production, Visual Arts, Vocal Music, Dance, Instrumental Music, Literary Media, and Museum Studies.

The photography of student Hank Thomas is breathtaking social commentary.
On the left: Visitors view Thomas' work. On the right: The piece they were so interested in.
Click on the right image to enlarge. The photo is a graphic composition that plays on MasterCard's "Priceless"
advertising campaign. The text on the photo reads: "3-piece suit: $250, Pair of socks: $2, Gold chain: $400,
9mm pistol: $80, Bullet: $0.60, Picking a casket for your son: Priceless."

Photography wasn't allowed during the performance I attended (which was well done and a lot of fun), but there were exhibits in the hallways featuring art and photography by some of the school's students. These are just a couple of pictures of the works on display.

Title and artist unknown : Duke Ellington School

If you get a chance to visit the school or attend a performance, do it. These are talented young men and women, many of whom go on to become professional artists in their own right.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential, 12/08

Educating the Whole Person

Healy Hall--the iconic building on the campus of Georgetown University.
A statue of founder Father John Carroll sits in the plaza.

Founded in 1789, Georgetown University is the oldest private university in Washington, D.C., and the oldest Roman Catholic and Jesuit university in America. The school's origins really date back to 1634 with the establishment of the Province of Maryland by Jesuit settlers from Great Britain. After the American Revolution, Father John Carroll was appointed by Pope Pius VI to lead the Catholic Church in America. He then set about establishing a university, which officially opened for instruction on Dumbarton's Quadrangle on November 22, 1791.

Georgetown is an internationally renowned school that is still run and influenced by the Jesuits. The school has four undergraduate and four graduate programs with strong emphasis in law, business, medicine, and international relations. The school has its main campus at 37th and O Streets NW, its law campus on New Jersey Avenue NW near Union Station, and an all-girls school--Georgetown Visitation--near the main campus. Healy Hall, the main, iconic building on campus is named for university president Patrick Francis Healy and is a designated National Historic Landmark.

The back of Healy Hall: (L) Blending new architecture in with the old.
(R) Detail of a rain spout (gargoyle?) on Healy Hall.
(Click on images to enlarge.)

Among Georgetown's alumni are King Abdullah of Jordan; former U.S. President Bill Clinton, E.U. President José Manuel Barroso; Felipe de Borbon, Crown Prince of Spain; and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, President of the Philippines; as well as presidents of Panama, Ecuador, El Salvador, and Bosnia. Twenty U.S. state and commonwealth governors have graduated from Georgetown, including Luis Muñoz Marín the first democratically elected Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Numerous Cabinet members, U.S. ambassadors, judges, members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, business leaders, and military officers are graduates of Georgetown. The world of arts, media, and entertainment is also peppered with Georgetown grads. To see a full list, visit this Wikipedia link.

Cemetery on the grounds of the university:
the final resting place of the school's Jesuit community.

Georgetown is a powerhouse in several sports, including basketball, rowing, sailing, rugby, lacrosse, and track and field. The Hoyas lead the Big East Conference with seven championships and more than 20 appearances in the NCAA Tournament. Here's one final, notable fact: Georgetown graduates participate as volunteers in Peace Corps more than any other private university in the U.S.

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

Two Things Challenge: Window / Shop

Window: Jagermeister-in-the-Sun
(Wisconsin Avenue and N Streets NW)

This week's Two Things Challenge was Window / Shop and it was quite a lot of fun! I took photos in Penn Quarter, on 14th Street, in Columbia Heights, and in Georgetown. (PSA Alert:* Note to the wise: If you want to see Georgetown without fighting all the insane crowds and pub crawlers, go early in the morning before traffic gets too heavy and all the businesses open. It's a great way to see the oldest part of Washington without all the headache. /PSA)

Shop: The Vitamin Shoppe in Columbia Heights
(14th Street and Park Road NW)

I got some good pictures of windows, shops, and window shoppers! And again, a PSA: for some of the best window shopping in Washington, Georgetown tops them all! There are some unique stores on 14th Street with great window displays--like Pulp, Go, Mama! Go!, and Home Rule. There's certainly plenty of big box shopping in Columbia Heights--like Target, Giant, Staples, The Children's Store, and so forth. Penn Quarter has expansive windows for stores like Urban Outfitters, Aveda, Bed, Bath & Beyond, and similar national brands. But the best and most unique window shopping is in Georgetown where the shops aren't brand name and they've been around for decades.

Window shopper at City Sports in the Penn Quarter
(7th and H Streets NW)

To see a couple more pictures of the unique wares I found in windows in Georgetown, visit Standing Room Only.


* PSA = Public Service Announcement

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

Two Things Challenge: Over / Under

Key Bridge over the Potomac River

This week's Two Things Challenge was Over / Under. I chose as my subject Key Bridge. Located at the northern end of Georgetown, Key Bridge was built between 1917 and 1923 by the Army Corps of Engineers and connects the District of Columbia on the northern side with the Commonwealth of Virginia on the southern side. Named for Francis Scott Key, author of "The Star-Spangled Banner", it is one of five bridges that cross the Potomac into the District from Virginia and vice versa.

Standing under Key Bridge, looking up

In addition, to the north of Key Bridge is Chain Bridge. South of Key Bridge is Roosevelt Bridge, Memorial Bridge, and the 14th Street Bridge. According to Wikipedia, when Key Bridge is congested, as it often is, some people refer to it as the "Car Strangled Spanner." I think that's a great name for it, but it hasn't really caught on. Shame really. A lot of people who work in D.C., but live in Virginia, walk home along this beautiful bridge. Unlike other bridges in the U.S., which are a magnet for the suicidal, this one is relatively lacking in notoriety. Occasionally someone will take a dive off of it, but thankfully it's quite rare.

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

Private / Public

Colorful kayaks for rent at Jack's Boathouse on the Potomac

Along the banks of the Potomac River at the foot of Georgetown are several boating clubs and rental outfitters. Some, like the Potomac Boat Club, are private. Others, like Jack's Boathouse, rent kayaks and canoes to the public. Several universities in the area have rowing teams and their crews have boathouses on the river, including Georgetown, George Washington University, and American University.

The members-only Potomac Boat Club next door to Jack's Boathouse.

Other clubs and crews include Capital Rowing Club, DC Strokes, Thompson's Boat Center, Georgetown Day H.S., Georgetown Visitation, Gonzaga College H.S., Sidwell Friends, and Woodrow Wilson H.S., to name just a few.

Jack's Boathouse next to Key Bridge

If you don't want to row, you can sit on Jack's dock and enjoy
the view of the river, Key Bridge, Roosevelt Island, and Virginia on the
opposite bank of the Potomac.

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

Two Things Challenge: Up / Down

Up : The Exorcist Steps are not a light climb

This week's Two Things Challenge was Up / Down. I chose as my subject "The Exorcist Steps" in Georgetown. This steep flight of stairs was featured in a scene in the 1973 film The Exorcist, based on the novel by William Blatty. The steps are located at the end of M Street and the beginning of Canal Road where both branch off onto the Whitehurst Freeway. This spooky staircase is adjacent to an old car barn from the days when D.C. had a street car system.

Down: About halfway up, this is the view from the Exorcist Steps.
In the background: Whitehurst Freeway, Key Bridge, and Crystal City.

Climbing the steps will result in two things: First, you can say "Feel the burn!" as your calves and lungs scream for mercy, and second, when you arrive at the top, you'll find yourself at Prospect and 36th Streets NW. Hook a left, walk a couple more blocks, and you'll find yourself at Georgetown University. I'll be featuring pictures of that storied, Jesuit school in a few days.

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

Dumbarton House

Dumbarton House: Home of America's First Register of the U.S. Treasury

If you're interested in historic homes in the D.C. area, Dumbarton House should be on your list of must-sees. Located at 2715 Q Street NW in Georgetown, the home is a wonderful example of Federal architecture and decorating in the city. Originally owned by Joseph Nourse (pronounced Nurse), this historic home is now the headquarters for the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America. The home was built around 1800 and, according the NSCDA's website, is "one of few brick homes of its style still in existence in Georgetown."

Joseph Nourse, who was the first Register of the U.S. Treasury (today's equivalent of the Treasurer of the United States), lived in the home with his family from 1804 - 1813. While he lived there, it was called Cedar Hill. It features all the classic characteristics of a Federal style home right down to the furnishings, which are often present in duplicates and set so as to mirror one another. In the entry hall, the home features an Argand Chandelier that Mr. Nourse paid $10 for in 1804. The wood floor is covered with a piece of canvas that was painted seven times on both sides producing a look we would call linoleum today and was crafted to look like black and white squares of cultured marble tile.

One of the unusual features of the home are the rounded bays at the back of the home on both sides. This wasn't typically a component in Federal architecture, but was included as a means of providing more natural light to the rooms on the back of the house. In 1814, Charles Carroll bought the home and renamed it Belle Vue. It was here that Dolly Madison, First Lady and wife of President James Madison, having saved precious documents and a portrait of Washington, first stopped as she fled advancing British troops who burned the White House and the city.

The home is open to the public for tours. The cost is $5/person--relatively cheap compared to other historic homes--and is near Dumbarton Oaks, Oak Hill Cemetery, and within walking distance of Georgetown's waterfront. Unfortunately, photography is not allowed in the home, so all I have are exterior shots. The home features a lovely garden and side patio which can be rented for special events. Dumbarton House is Metro accessible. (Click on images to enlarge.)

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential, 4/08

Oak Hill

Corcoran Mausoleum:
Burial site of William W. Corcoran, co-founder of Oak Hill Cemetery

Located on the eastern edge of Georgetown and bordering Rock Creek Parkway is one of Washington's finest examples of 19th Century Romantic garden-style cemeteries. (To see larger photos, click on the images to enlarge.)

Oak Hill Cemetery: a natural, not-formal English garden setting

Oak Hill Cemetery, created in 1849 by an act of Congress and plotted on land donated by William W. Corcoran, is "a natural and not formal English garden accepting and blending with nature rather than being a geometrical imposition on nature."

Among the notables buried here: the aforementioned William W. Corcoran, banker and founder of the former Riggs Bank and namesake of the Corcoran Gallery of Art; John Marbury, son of William Marbury of the landmark Supreme Court case Marbury v. Madison; Edwin Stanton, President Lincoln's Secretary of War; William Wallace Lincoln, son of President Lincoln (later removed to Illinois to be buried with his father after his assassination); Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederacy (later removed in 1893 and buried in Richmond, Virginia, the capital of the Confederacy); architect Adolph Cluss and poet John Joyce, as well as numerous Revolutionary War and Civil War notables.

The Renwick Chapel: an example of English Gothic architecture.
Its garden is the site of the graves of the Achesons and Grahams.

In the 20th Century, some of the noteworthy names interred here include Dean Acheson, Secretary of State in the Truman Administration; and Katharine Graham, publisher and chief executive of The Washington Post. Acheson and his wife and their daughters, and Mrs. Graham and her husband, Philip, are buried in the garden of the Renwick Chapel. The Chapel is a beautiful "representation of the finest English specimens of old Gothic chapels."

As with all old cemeteries, there are interesting grave markers and mausoleums throughout Oak Hill. The lanes are narrow, so driving your car through the cemetery is discouraged. If you want a good hike in a 19th century English garden replete with the dearly departed, this is a lovely spot for a vigorous stroll.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential, 4/08

Two Things Challenge: Foot / Loose

The feet that hold up a Gothic cathedral: Piers

Foot (noun): the lower or lowest part of something standing or perceived as standing vertically; the base or bottom.

The architectural feature that makes the soaring arches and open spaces of Gothic cathedrals possible are the buttresses and piers. In the case of the latter, these are the feet of the cathedral and are the load-bearing columns. This picture shows several piers within National Cathedral.

Loose roots around an old tree in Georgetown

Loose (adjective): not strict or exact.

I chose exposed tree roots as my interpretation for loose. I happened upon these a couple of weeks ago when I was out shooting pictures in Georgetown, D.C.'s oldest and toniest neighborhood. I'm always intrigued when nature behaves in a manner contrary to what we were taught in primary school. According to my kindergarten teacher, roots grow below the ground and under the tree. Obviously, this tree had other ideas and chose not to stick as strictly to the rules of botany.

There you have it. My two things for this week...

Okay, truth be told: I've been laid up in bed with the flu for the last several days, so I haven't been out shooting off my camera. I had a couple of ideas for this week's challenge, but instead I've had to cull from my archives and use what I've got. This is what I've got. Or, as my sister would say, "Just making up sh*t as you go along, huh?" Yeah. Pretty much.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential, 1/08

Happy Mistake

Evening clouds overhead, Foxhall Road

Getting out of the city and into Virginia on a Friday after 4:00 p.m. is always a problem. Unless you have two or more people in your car, you can't use I-66 until after 6:00 p.m. because of HOV restrictions. Rock Creek Parkway is one-way northbound from Connecticut Avenue southward until almost 7:00 p.m. This leaves you with traveling through the city to I-395, or taking Virginia's Route 50 or Route 29, or heading up to the Beltway and going around the long way. None of these are desirable, especially if you want to keep your sanity and be a pleasant person by the time you arrive at your parents for dinner.

I took Military Road to Nebraska Avenue to Foxhall Road to Canal Road to Chain Bridge Road to Route 123 to I-495 to I-66. It took about twice as long as it normally takes to get to my parents, but the important point is, I kept moving and wasn't doing the lurching stop-and-go, stop-and-go that I'd have encountered otherwise.

How does this relate to today's picture, you ask? I was on Foxhall Road and looked out my window to see a beautiful bank of clouds in the waning sunlight. I grabbed my camera and snapped this picture, which I then only slightly enhanced in Apple iPhoto. I forgot that I had my camera set on ISO 80, but the result is, for me, a happy mistake. (And I have five more happy mistakes I'll post over the next while.)

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential, 1/08

Foggy Bottom

Today was gorgeous. Moderate temperatures, blue skies, puffy white clouds, a gentle breeze. I decided to get out of the office during lunch and drove down to Thompson's Boat House on the Potomac to take this picture of Foggy Bottom. Granted, it isn't at all reflective of the reason for its moniker, but it's lovely nonetheless.

In the spring and fall, particularly, the fog settles in this bend of the river at the foot of Georgetown, thus giving the locale its name--Foggy Bottom. Perhaps I'll take and post a picture one day that actually shows it with its namesake fog.

Just a few comments about what you're seeing in this picture. The bridge straight ahead is Key Bridge and connects Virginia with the southwestern boundary of Georgetown. At one time, aqueduct bridges spanned the Potomac. This one replaced a bridge further up the river. The spires you see to the right of the bridge are Georgetown University, the oldest Catholic university in the United States. Just to the east of it in the foreground is the Washington Harbor Center. The center boasts flood gates that can be raised to protect the property when the river level breaches the wall that line this bend in the river. Kayaking is a popular repast on this stretch of the river and when the weather is particularly lovely, as it was this weekend, traffic can be quite steady. On July 4, kayakers and boaters alike paddle and motor down to an area just below the Lincoln Memorial and all across the Tidal Basin to watch the fireworks.

Photocopy right: D.C. Confidential (Janet M. Kincaid, 07/07)

On Approach

My intention yesterday evening was to take a photo of Foggy Bottom in Georgetown and post it here for my friend Aitch Em in the Ewe Kay, but alas, the photos did not turn that well. I'm going to try again on Wednesday, when I have the day off and I can be up bright and early for picture taking. In the meantime, though, I give you this plane on approach to National Airport. All planes approaching DCA must fly along a path that follows the flow of the Potomac River which means if a flight approaches from the north flying south, you're in a series of turns and banks that you otherwise don't experience in other approaches anywhere else in the country. This is an airliner as it banks over Roosevelt Island, just south of Foggy Bottom and across from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

Photo copyright: D.C. Confidential (Janet M. Kincaid, 07/07)