Water Wise
Ends September 15
The Anacostia River, which flows 8.5 miles from Bladensburg, Maryland, through some of the poorest wards of Washington, D.C., was so abused and neglected for so long it was called the “Forgotten River.” But now it’s undergoing a multiyear, multibillion-dollar restoration. To show how riverfront development has influenced urban life, for good and ill, the Anacostia Community Museum has organized “Reclaiming the Edge: Urban Waterways and Civic Engagement,” an exhibition of artwork and research highlighting watershed moments in other cities from London to Louisville.
Fresh Faces
Ends October 27
Together for the first time: Amerigo Vespucci, Samuel Adams, Mary Pickford, Chuck Berry and the poet Ed Dorn (above: in a portrait by R.B. Kitaj, 1966). They’re among the 34 subjects in the exhibition “Recent Acquisitions” at the National Portrait Gallery. “We are always looking for portraits made from direct encounters between the artists and the subjects,” says curator Brandon Fortune, “because one always finds a lot of energy there.”
In Bloom
January 26-April 21
Orchids grow in almost any setting save glaciers, but they thrive in the warmer climes of Latin America—where they’re used not just as ornaments, but also to flavor tortillas and make glue. Book a tropical getaway to “Orchids of Latin America,” at the Natural History Museum, to discover how the flowers figure in regional traditions and to take in the decidedly unwintry sight of some 600 orchids from the Smithsonian Gardens.
Play and Work
Permanent
In many Native American communities, the trappings of youth—toy animals, musical instruments, special clothing (above: a Seminole boy’s shirt, c. 1925) are playthings with a purpose. “As We Grow: Traditions, Toys, Games,” at the American Indian Museum, shows how some 70 tribal communities use these amusements to give children a sense of what is expected of grown-ups.
Tour of Duty
January 12, 2013-January 24, 2014
In 1776, George Washington received the first Congressional Gold Medal. In 2010, it was bestowed on the 19,000 Japanese-Americans who served in World War II with the 100th Infantry Battalion, the 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the Military Intelligence Service. The Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service will take that medal to New Orleans, Honolulu, L.A., San Francisco, Portland, Chicago and Houston before it’s displayed at the American History Museum.
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Comments (1)
Re: Smithsonian Spotlight - Resetting the Table - February 2013 It seems that some over at the American History Museum have 'Drunk the Kool-Aid' most likely made with GMO sugarbeet or corn syrup sweetener. "The United States has never had safer, more nutritious, varied, or convenient food..." It would be interesting to know if the Monsanto, Archer Daniels Midland, et al cabal sponsor this "permanent" exhibit. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began tracking illness from foodborne outbreak starting in the 1970s. This last year the government estimated that of the roughly one in six Americans that are overcome by such illness 130,000 find a hospital visit necessary and of those 3,000 die. The Pew Charitable Trust recently released a report based on data from the Food and Drug Administration that points out that at least four-fifths of all antibiotics used in the US were sold for use in meat and poultry production. When the animals used for food require such intervention due to the harmful conditions found in CAFOs in order to get them to the abattoir, then neither the animals nor the production system are healthy. Food production in the US by our GMO/ herbicide/ pesticide/ industrialized system is also unhealthy and unsustainable in that for every pound of food consumed six pounds of soil are lost. The food may be "convenient" in that it is boxed, canned, or Spam-ed, but it is processed to the point that only a mass spectrometer would find it healthful. The assertion that it is "nutritious" is counter to the evidence. Seventy percent of Americans are overweight; one-third are obese. If the food were highly mineralized our bodies would not be telling us that we are hungry. We are starving to death in the midst of plenty - plenty of junk calories. Don Miller Ramona, California
Posted by Don Miller on February 9,2013 | 05:18 PM