Newseum opens today

The Newseum is now open. Admission is free today, but starting tomorrow, $20. The price seems steep, especially with the Smithsonian's free admission, but it is worth it

I thought I would round up some articles about the museum, some pro, some con. I reviewed it last week after attending a preview.

Cityguide : Newseum - The Post
News under glass - The Wash. Times
Get Me Rewrite: A New Monument to Press Freedom - The Times
Massive Newseum opens window on journalism - USA Today
News museum to open in Washington - BBC
To Do: Skip Newseum Opening - Slate
Newseum's an attic packed with storied stuff - The Boston Globe

Newseum, museum, dc, Washington, media

Labels: Arts and Culture, BeltwayLand, History, Media, The District

SHARE: Facebook | Del.icio.us | Digg | Technorati | Blinklist | Furl | Newsvine | Reddit it!

posted by WFY @ 12:49 PM | |

Post a Comment

The New Newseum

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Since I am a "special friend" of the Newseum, I was able to get free preview tickets to the new museum. Erica, Fritz, dl004d (another media stuides major -- I'm not alone!) and Grand Marnier came along as well. Back when the Newseum was in the Rosslyn neighborhood of Arlington, Va., I went to original Newseum, which closed in late 2001/early 2002, several times over the years. In fact, when I worked in Rosslyn I parked in a garage at the old Newseum.

The beginning starts of our visit was a little awkward.. Newseum guides recommended we start on the lower level, past the Berlin Wall and into the "holding center" to wait for the next showing of the 4D movie. Thankfully, it wasn't as bad as it sounds. Several panels of the wall and a death tower are on display. The wall is not much more than a giant Jersey barrier with graffiti on one side, the barbed wire is all missing.

After moving on into the holding center, 4D glasses (stylish!) are given out and a video about "getting it right" is played. The 4D movie about the power of the media in America is quite good, both for the technology and the message. It is also unintentionally funny in the beginning.

From there, we took the elevator to the sixth floor. They have an outdoor observation area that details the history of Pennsylvania Ave. and provides excellent views. The view of the Capitol building would be absolutely perfect, but for the fact there are maple leaf flags all over the adjacent building, an embassy, across the corner. It is a harsh reminder of Canadian domination on American life. The sixth floor also includes digital versions of today's newspapers.

Moving down to the fifth floor we checked out the history gallery. Newspapers in clear display drawers are heavily featured as well as other artifacts from news gathering. This area is significantly bigger than the previous Newseum -- you could spend all day right there. One disappointment though - the FORD TO CITY: DROP DEAD Daily News was not featured. How can you skip that if you are having a gallery of famous newspaper fronts? I skipped the books gallery - next time I'll check it out. I recall there being an exhibit about Edward R. Murrow on that floor as well.

The fourth floor features a 9/11 exhibit with a TV antenna from the World Trade Center, a time line of events and newspaper front pages. Photography is prohibited, which was fine with me. Having felt my office building shake when the Pentagon was attacked, I don't need to have reminders of that day. Also on the fourth floor was an exhibit on the First Amendment, which was quite interesting. We were reminded that burping is not covered by the First Amendment.

The third floor featured the Journalists Memorial and (if I recall correctly) the bombed out remains of Arizona Republic reporter Don Bolles Datsun. He was killed in the 1970s while investigating mafia. World news is also explored on this floor. I found the color-coded Press Freedom map of most interest.

Since being "On TV" was not of any interest to me, the third floor was skipped. You can do a newscast there with assorted backdrops. It did not seem very well organized.

The second floor is the Hall of News with a large screen featuring still photographs of major news events and a ticker that uses mixed-case letters instead of all capitals, which pleased dl004d. A satellite and news helicopter hang at this level.

Interactivity is a big part of the Newseum experience. There are touchscreen monitors all over the place. There is a downside to this though, the touch screens provide many opportunities to see bad news like the Challenger explosion or several different assassinations. It gets to be a bit much.

Despite spending over four hours in the Newseum, we really just skimmed it. It would probably take several days to see everything there. Also, we stopped by "The Food Section" a cafeteria with Wolfgang Puck food. The prices were high, but the quality was fairly good. On that level there is the first satellite news truck as well as a small exhibit on comics.

Overall, all were quite pleased with the new Newseum. I am sure I will go back sometime, but at $20 admission, it will probably be a while. Even at that price though, the Newseum is a good value if you can devote a day to spending in it.

[flickr : Newseum sneak preview/slideshow]

Newseum, museum, dc, Washington, media

Labels: Arts and Culture, BeltwayLand, History, Media, Photography, The District

SHARE: Facebook | Del.icio.us | Digg | Technorati | Blinklist | Furl | Newsvine | Reddit it!

posted by WFY @ 12:27 PM | |

I'm as serious as a 5 on 3 powerplay. Watch this video and see what I'm talking about.

# posted by  WFY : Thursday, April 17, 2008 2:40:00 PM  

The Awakening's move

A Head Start for National Harbor - The Post
District Treasure Goes to Pr. George's Development
More about the move of The Awakening moving to National Harbor with some details about that project. There is also a video:



PREVIOUSLY:

[flickr : The Awakening set/slideshow]

From 02.19.2008: The Awakening
From 02.14.2008: Awakening moving next week
From 10.18.2007: Grounds for Sculpture

The Awakening, sculpture, J. Seward Johnson, dc, Hains Point, East Potomac Park, National Harbor

Labels: Arts and Culture, BeltwayLand, Maryland, The District

SHARE: Facebook | Del.icio.us | Digg | Technorati | Blinklist | Furl | Newsvine | Reddit it!

posted by WFY @ 12:25 PM | |

The Awakening

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- On the final full day of its tenure at Hains Point, East Potomac Park, I visited The Awakening, a famous sculpture by J. Seward Johnson. After over 27 years in this location, the sculpture is being moved to the National Harbor development in Prince George's County, Md.

Hains Point won't be the same without The Awakening. I visited or pedaled by it many times. It will be very odd, if not unsettling, to see that part of Hains Point empty the next time I bike through there. At least it isn't going far, though I wonder if we'll have to pay to park at National Harbor to see it when it is installed there.

[flickr : The Awakening set/slideshow]

PREVIOUSLY:
Awakening moving next week
Grounds for Sculpture

The Awakening, sculpture, J. Seward Johnson, dc, Hains Point, East Potomac Park, National Harbor

Labels: Arts and Culture, BeltwayLand, Photography, The District

SHARE: Facebook | Del.icio.us | Digg | Technorati | Blinklist | Furl | Newsvine | Reddit it!

posted by WFY @ 9:29 PM | |

Awakening moving next week

D.C. Giant to Be Unearthed Next Week for New Digs - The Post
After residing in East Potomac Park since 1980, "The Awakening" will be dug up and moved to National Harbor starting next Wednesday. The J. Seward Johnson sculpture was owned by the Sculpture Foundation and loaned to the National Park Service until it was sold last year to the developer building National Harbor in P.G. County.

I'm really going to miss seeing "The Awakening" when I bicycle around Hains Point. I will have to stop by this weekend and get some final photographs of it.

H/T: WTOP

UPDATE 02.20.2007:

The Awakening -- I stopped by Hains Point yesterday to take photographs before the move to National Harbor.

[flickr : The Awakening set/slideshow]
The Awakening, sculpture, East Potomac Park, Hains Point, D.C.

Labels: Arts and Culture, BeltwayLand, Maryland, The District

SHARE: Facebook | Del.icio.us | Digg | Technorati | Blinklist | Furl | Newsvine | Reddit it!

posted by WFY @ 6:18 AM | |

Star Wars exhibit reaches Philly this weekend

Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination, a traveling exhibit, is setting up shop in Franklin Institute in Philadelphia this weekend. Two years ago, during our Jaunary 2006 trip to Boston, we saw it at the Museum of Science. My brief review of the exhibit:

...has lots of models and costumes from the entire saga. The "science" of Star Wars galaxy is explained and compared with contemporary science from this galaxy. In some ways, we are not far off from things in the Star Wars universe, but sadly lightsaber technology remains elusive. Also, the Millennium Falcon is worth doing too. Sadly, we were not allowed to take any photos inside the Falcon.

The Inky preview is critical of the "science" part of the exhibit which is a reasonable assessment, but not many people are there for the science anyway.

Both Erica and I really enjoyed the exhibit, more so than the one the Smithsonian had in the late 1990s. Since Philly is less than three hours up I-95 from D.C. so you can make a day-trip out of the visit. If you want to make a weekend out of it gophila.com has a package.

I recommend buying tickets in advance though to avoid the lines, particularly for the Falcon simulator which is a separate admission.

The exhibit runs until May 2009.

[flickr : my photos tagged with starwars/slideshow]

Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination, Frankin Institute, Philadelphia

Labels: Arts and Culture, Movies, Northeast Corridor, Pennsylvania, Photography, Star Wars, Travel

SHARE: Facebook | Del.icio.us | Digg | Technorati | Blinklist | Furl | Newsvine | Reddit it!

posted by WFY @ 6:00 AM | |

City Lights

SAN FRANCISCO -- For years had this desire to buy Marshall McLuhan's "The Medium is the Massage" off the shelf. I don't know why, but it strikes me as a more fun way to find it than ordering it. I was hoping I would be able to walk into City Lights and pull that off, but alas they didn't have one. They did have a McLuhan's "Understanding Media" which I picked up. I also picked up a copy of Howl by Allen Ginsberg and a themed bumper sticker.

Oddly enough, I'm not a big fan of the Beats. Howl, which was first published by City Lights in 1955-56, is amazing poetry though.

The City Lights staff was rather cheerful too.

City Lights Bookstore, SF, San Francisco

Labels: Arts and Culture, History, San Francisco

SHARE: Facebook | Del.icio.us | Digg | Technorati | Blinklist | Furl | Newsvine | Reddit it!

posted by WFY @ 12:08 PM | |

Golden Gate Park

SAN FRANCISCO -- On the final day of the trip, we jumped on the MUNI and headed in the direction of Golden Gate Park which is actually several miles south of the Golden Gate. After a short walk through the park, we entered the Conservatory of Flowers which was he first of its kind when it opened in 1879. We enjoyed our time there, spending about an hour. Adult admission was $5 each.

[flickr : my photos tagged with conservatoryofflowers/slideshow]

We then headed in the direction of the Japanese Tea Garden. Along the way we saw this statue of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza (he's on Quixote's left) looking up at Miguel Cervantes.



I have two others as well.

When we arrived at the Tea Garden, the sun had come out. We wandered around for about an hour taking many photographs of the garden. I'm partial to Japanese gardens and this one was quite beautiful. We also sat down and had tea which came to $8.67 for the two of us. Admission to the Tea Garden was $4 each.

I learned from the Web site that the fortune cookie was invented by Makoto Hagiwara, one of the original landscape designers of the Tea Garden.

[flickr : my photos tagged with japaneseteagarden/slideshow]

We concluded our trip to the park following the Tea Garden. David picked us up and we headed out to Ocean Beach.

[Check out all of my Golden Gate Park photos on flickr : my photos tagged with goldengatepark/slideshow]

Golden Gate Park, SF, SanFrancisco, California

Recent exhibits

Over the last few weeks, Erica and I saw a couple of exhibits at D.C. museums.

Edward Hopper - National Gallery of Art. Other than Nighthawks, I was familiar with Hopper's work. Three recurring themes come to mind when thinking back on the exhibition; "empty" New York, New England in sun and shadow and isolated people, particularly women in their bedrooms looking out the window. I enjoyed his paintings.

Be advised that on weekends, the exhibit is quite crowded; expect to wait in line. We skipped the movie narrated by Steve Martin. The exhibit runs until January 21, 2008. Despite Jim Moran's efforts to charge admission to the Smithsonian, the exhibit is free.

Annie Leibovitz: A Photographer's Life, 1990-2005 -- Corcoran Gallery of Art
Leibovitz takes excellent portraits of famous people. Sometimes they even have their clothes on. I think I was most impressed by her Saravejo photographs though. There are also a few landscape photographs which segue into...

Ansel Adams -- Corcoran Gallery of Art
Adams probably did more for the cause of National Parks than anyone since Theodore Roosevelt. His Yosemite photos are stunning in sharp, black and white. However, my favorite photo was of a New Mexican town as the moon climbed into the sky.

The Adams exhibit runs until January 27, 2008. The Leibovitz exhibit goes until January 13, 2008. Admission for both exhibits is $14. We took advantage of the later closing time (9 p.m.) on Thursdays and avoided the crowds.

Labels: Arts and Culture, BeltwayLand, The District

SHARE: Facebook | Del.icio.us | Digg | Technorati | Blinklist | Furl | Newsvine | Reddit it!

posted by WFY @ 12:38 PM | |

We'll have to make sure we see that exhibit before the end of the year when it closes.

# posted by  WFY : Wednesday, December 12, 2007 2:04:00 PM  

NSO Pops: The Music of John Williams

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A co-worker tipped me off that the National Symphony Orchestra Pops were doing a Williams show, so we snatched up a few of the last tickets for the first of three performances. Last evening, Erica and I got fancied up and headed to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for NSO Pops: The Music of John Williams.

Like many people, Williams' work, especially Star Wars was the "gateway drug" to classical music. I have seen a few performances over the years that included Williams' pieces, but never a performance that was exclusively Williams.

Conductor Erich Kunzel began the performance with a brief introduction followed by one of Williams' Olympic fanfares. After that, Kunzel shared with the audience the beginnings of the Williams-Steven Spielberg collaboration and playfully taunted a pair of late arrivals in the front row. I thought brass overpowered the strings a bit during the main Jaws theme, though.

Moving on, Kunzel introduced the "Bicycle Chase" from E.T., The Extra-Terrestrial and the marvelous "Main Theme" from Close Encounters of the Third Kind. The sound of the Tyrannosaurus Rex preceded the performance of the "Main Themes" from Jurassic Park which was followed by "Harry's Wondrous World" from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, a pleasant enough piece, but not one of my favorites. Then, without introduction, the unmistakable first notes of "Main Theme" from Superman were played at I got chills. The Pops were really rolling now with all of the bombast of the brass that makes Superman one of the best Williams themes. I will confess I was slightly disappointed that the prelude was excluded though as it builds up wonderfully to the main march. I was pleased that the piece was performed without introduction, as it needs none.

Kunzel slowed things down with the "Main Theme" from Schindler's List, a theme featuring a violin solo. The first half of the program ended with the upbeat "Raiders March" from Raiders of the Lost Ark.

The second portion of the evening was dedicated strictly to Williams work with the Star Wars saga. Kunzel joked that George Lucas had gotten us all confused by starting off with the fourth episode, so he would start from the beginning. "Flag Parade" from Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace began the second half, followed by Anakin's Theme and all of its dark foreshadowing. The highlight of the Episode I score followed with Duel of the Fates, accompanied by a choir of about a dozen people and two performers with light sabers in front of the stage. While the light saber duel was a little amusing and well done, I couldn't help but be a little disappointed with its inclusion. The duel was distracting and suggested that the music doesn't stand on its own; a notion that I disagree with strongly.

"Across the Stars" from Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones was next in the program, followed by the intense "Battle of the Heroes" from Star Wars Episode III: The Revenge of the Sith. Again, performers with light sabers entered the front of the stage for a climatic duel. The piece was performed quite well, as were all the Star Wars pieces. On the whole, the Pops alignment was best suited to the Star Wars music.

The Pops moved into the original trilogy with the "Princess Leia's Theme" from Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Some unnecessary sound effects preceded "The Imperial March" from Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back which was appropriately menacing. Performers costumed in storm trooper, tie-fighter and imperial officer uniforms marched to a review by Darth Vader, who naturally force-choked an officer near the end. By the way, I recommend that any Vader characterizations include a performer who is taller than six feet.

The mood lightened with the Yoda's Theme and then "Parade of the Ewoks" from Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. Thankfully, no performers came out for either of these themes. The performance closed with the Star Wars theme, played awfully fast, almost Academy Awards telecast fast. For an encore Kunzel returned and offered that you couldn't do a Star Wars performance without a visit to the saloon, prompting the Cantina music. Though it was enjoyable, the Pops really didn't have the right instruments to really nail that jazzy tune. The costumed performers also came out and attempted to dance to the music. It looked exactly like you would expect it to.

While I did have reservations about the costumed performers, I still thoroughly enjoyed the evening, as did Erica. The Pops sounded great and Kunzel picked strong selections for them to play. There may still be tickets to performances NSO Pops: The Music of John Williams tonight and tomorrow night which I cannot help but recommend.

Labels: Arts and Culture, BeltwayLand, Movies, Music, Star Wars, The District

SHARE: Facebook | Del.icio.us | Digg | Technorati | Blinklist | Furl | Newsvine | Reddit it!

posted by WFY @ 7:23 AM | |

Spamalot returning to D.C.: Don't bother

About a year and a half ago, my wife and I attended a performance of Spamalot, the Eric Idle musical based on the movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail, at the National Theatre. It returns to Washington in December, but take my advice and don't bother seeing it.

I fairly had high expectations for Spamalot, I figured it would make me laugh until I hurt or bore me to sleep -- nothing in between. Neither of those things happened, it was decidedly in the middle. Instead of being atrocious or hysterical, it was merely amusing. The jokes and pacing were clearly written for an audience that was unaccustomed to Python, so the sheer absurdity is lost.

For the uninitiated, the story has King Arthur recruiting knights to join his roundtable and go find the holy grail. Along the way there are incidents and accidents that result in singing and silliness. There are plenty of nods to Broadway, seemingly a requirement for any stage comedy, and a rousing performance of "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" which was actually from the movie Life of Brian. Otherwise, the show is just mildly entertaining.

Instead of dropping $40 or more a ticket, my recommendation is to go and rent Monty Python and the Holy Grail and the even better Life of Brian if you are looking for a Python fix.

Spamalot, Monty Python, Eric Idle

Labels: Arts and Culture, BeltwayLand, The District

SHARE: Facebook | Del.icio.us | Digg | Technorati | Blinklist | Furl | Newsvine | Reddit it!

posted by WFY @ 12:04 PM | |

Grounds for Sculpture

HAMILTON, N.J. -- Several years ago, an aunt told us about Grounds for Sculpture, a large sculpture garden on the site of the New Jersey State Fairgrounds near Trenton that J. Seward Johnson (who sculpted The Awakening) developed. We had hoped to go there last spring, but buying a house took precedence. Since we knew we would be in Jersey this month, we made plans to finally visit it.
[flickr set: Grounds for Sculpture]

Both Erica and I were pleased with the experience. The grounds have over 200 sculptures representing several different media and styles. Of note are several of Johnson's Beyond the Frame series of sculptures interpreted from famous paintings, notably Manet's Luncheon on the Grass (Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe). Other sculptures are less literal and more abstract. There are also peacocks walking around.

I wish we had more time to spend there then we did as the visit could take most of the day, particularly if eating at either of the restaurants on the premises. We didn't do that this time, but we are inclined to go back another time. When we do, I'm also going to make sure that I have enough memory for my camera because I got very low.

Getting to the Grounds is pretty easy and about three hours from Washington. Take I-95 north to I-295 north in Delaware. Follow I-295 north about 70 miles to exit 65B, Sloan Ave. Follow the signs for Grounds for Sculpture or better yet, follow the sculptures along the side of the roads, a nice touch. Admission is $10 for adults.

Grounds For Sculpture, J. Seward Johnson, NJ

Labels: Arts and Culture, New Jersey, Northeast Corridor, Photography, Travel

SHARE: