Freer Gallery of Art

The Freer Gallery is a good collection of East Asian art. It's not all great; I wasn't deeply impressed by some of the pottery. (I had visions of people digging up American forks and claiming them as art, five hundred years from now.) But there are a few really beautiful specimens, and that's not the main focus of the gallery. I was deeply moved by the long Japanese folding screens in one room of the gallery. They're the parallel-development form of tapestries or murals, and many of the screens are both exquisite and dramatic. When we visited, a large part of the Whistler collection was in a room closed for renovation; it was a shame, because I got a glimpse through the barrier of a very neat set of paintings. The Peacock Room, however, was open, and this must be seen to be believed. There's a cute story, which I won't ruin here, but the long and short of it is that Whistler ended up moving a privately commissioned room into its permanent location at the Gallery here. While you're on the Mall and looking for pretty things, stop by the Freer Gallery. It's worth it. more

The Freer Gallery's combination of Asian and American art provides a little something for everyone. Its collection of 19th- and early 20th-century American art includes the world's largest group of works by James McNeill Whistler, as well as several of Abbott Henderson Thayer's. John Singer Sargent's mastery of the interplay of light and shadow is apparent in the especially fine 'Breakfast in the Loggia.' The Freer's magnificent collection of Asian art is displayed in rooms dedicated to specific areas. The Islamic arts display includes calligraphy, ceramics and fabulous examples of enameled glass. more