From The Collection

View of the museum from outside showing the Neoclassical building from one corner. The building is a tan-colored stone with an arched doorway, long vertical windows, and detailed molding around the roof.
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Artist Spotlight: Georgia Mills Jessup—Right as Rain

Posted: February 17, 2011
Category: From The Collection
In her 1967 painting, Rainy Night, Downtown, part of the NMWA collection and on view on the third floor, Jessup celebrates the urban landscape on a rainy evening.
Heavy black lines along with circles and ovals rendered in hot hues of orange and yellow evoke urban architecture and the glare of streetlights in an abstract painting. Two shadowy figures occupy the lower right, and legible signs include “Translux,” “St. H NW,” and “Casino.”

From the Vault: Blanche Grambs Mines for Inspiration in the New Deal Era

Posted: November 12, 2010
Category: From The Collection
Drawing inspiration from the social and economic conditions of the Great Depression, American illustrator and printmaker Blanche Grambs incorporated the struggles of the New Deal era into her work. Grambs...
Etching of a coal mine with several carts transporting coal going up to a piece of machinery.

Decoding 19th-Century American Portraiture: Isaac and Susan Avery

Posted: January 12, 2010
Category: From The Collection
Learn more about painter Sarah Miriam Peale, whose pendant portraits of Isaac and Susan Avery (1821) are featured in the NMWA collection.

Artist Spotlight: Elisabetta Sirani

Posted: December 23, 2009
Category: From The Collection
Learn more about Italian artist Elisabetta Sirani (1638-1665), whose work Virgin and Child (1663) is featured in the NMWA collection.
A young, light-skinned, brunette woman gazes down lovingly at the plump baby she holds on her lap. She wears a loose, tan turban, vivid blue cloak, and red dress with white sleeves. The light-skinned child returns her gaze, leaning back to crown the woman with a circlet of roses.

Artist Spotlight: Lynda Benglis

Posted: November 6, 2009
Category: From The Collection
Among NMWA's new acquisitions this year is a sculpture by the innovative Lynda Benglis. Often billed as a feminist artist, Benglis is media oriented, as she works in anything from...
A close-up of a silver, metal sculpture that appears to be tied in a giant knot with crisp folds in the metal sheets.

What’s in a frame?

Posted: July 20, 2009
Category: From The Collection
Why do people visit art museums? That’s easy: to see art. But all too often when strolling through our favorite galleries, we forget to take notice of those unsung objects...
Close up shot of a gallery wall installed salon style, with many small paintings hung closely together.

Welcome!

Posted: July 6, 2009
Category: From The Collection
Susan Fisher Sterling announces the museum's new blog that will will feature insiders’ perspectives from NMWA curators, educators, preparators, and other staff.
In a painted self-portrait, the artist stands in a stage-like space framed by white curtains. Beneath black hair woven with red yarn and flowers, heavy brows accent her dark-eyed gaze. Clad in a fringed, honey-toned shawl; long, pink skirt; and gold jewelry, she holds a bouquet and a handwritten letter.