Happy Hallowmas.

[November 1st is All Saints' Day -- and is also known by some as Hallowmas, facts I spent most of my life not knowing.]

Today I went with a friend, formerly just another blogger (The Complaint Department) and now a very good in-person buddy, to the National Gallery of Art in DC. We thoroughly toured an Andrew Wyeth exhibit, and also saw a few other odds and ends. (And, truthfully, we had a long lunch in the Gallery restaurant and then a long visit at the gift store so it was a balance between art and consumption.)



Wind from the Sea, 1947.

We parked in front of the Capitol, which is undergoing repairs. [insert lame joke about Congress and repairs here]

 

The Rotunda in the National Gallery of Art.

 

Many people know of Wyeth's famous painting Christina's World. It's not my favorite Wyeth, not by a long shot, but maybe that's because it's almost become a joke painting -- so many take-offs and parodies over the years. The works we saw today contained no humans but many windows and curtains. All were stunning.

 

After I got home and did some googling on Wyeth I was reminded of Helga, a secret German model he had for many years who posed nude for him. He was married, she was married, and neither spouse knew of the painting sessions. I'll have to do some more reading to find out what else occurred, if anything, during those long hours of posing and painting. And there's my gossipy art lesson for the day.