I love going to Washington DC. The first time I went was as a child of about 10 years on a family vacation. I fell in love with the history, the museums, everything about it and I think that was the start my love of history and the reason I majored in history in college. (Yes, history, not art.)
Yesterday, my cousin Linda, who is visiting from Georgia, and I spent the day at the National Gallery. There are so many wonderful exhibits there now that we couldn’t see it all.
However, we did get to see the Gauguin: Maker of Myths exhibit. It was the last day and terribly crowded but worth it. You can see more here. We also saw the Small French Paintings exhibit which is a permanent exhibit that I’ve seen many times but I love it and always enjoy it so. 
This Boudin is an example of the beautiful paintings in that collection and you can read more that collection here.
But the most amazing thing we saw was the Chester Dale collection. What a stunning collection of art. And what an interesting couple they were. Well worth a trip to the NGA. Go if you haven’t already. The Dale’s left a generous endowment as well as a tremendous collection of work from impressionism to modern art to the NGA. This huge collection is a must see. Read more about it here.
Any day spent viewing art with a good friend is a perfect day. And when the art includes dogs ….
well, need I say more!
(This is Toulouse–Lautrec’s Fleche)
(Renoir’s dog)
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Going with my artist friends and students from The Southerlands to the National Gallery of Art today to see the Picasso drawings. Take a look at more here. Since it’s opening in 1941, the National Gallery of Art has been a treasury of art and culture for the American people. Started with paintings donated by Andrew Mellon then followed by other collectors donations the NGA collection offers something for everyone. 
The Studio 