Yearly Archives: 2011

Sports Fix, The Daily Feed
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Nationals add three in Amateur Draft

Photo courtesy of
‘The team’
courtesy of ‘fishhawk’

While the Nationals toiled in San Francisco (a game they would lose 5-4 in 13 innings), the front office staff and general manager Mike Rizzo were busy in the war rooms at Nationals Park working out who they would take in the MLB Entry Draft yesterday.

The Nationals have enjoyed the first pick in each of the last two drafts, putting them in the position to take Bryce Harper and Stephen Strasburg, two of the strongest draft picks that the sport has had to offer in a generation. The Nationals added 3B Anthony Rendon with the sixth pick in the draft after three years at Rice University where he hit .371 with 46 doubles, 52 homers and just under 200 RBI in 187 games. Rendon, whose 21st birthday was yesterday, is 6′, 190lbs and was considered to be a plus defender at third, though was quick to tell reporters he’d be happy to play anywhere, so long as it meant playing.
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Entertainment, People, Special Events, The Features, We Love Arts
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DC Street Art Scene: G40 Summit is Just the Beginning

When I first introduced myself as the newest We Love DC arts writer to Lauren Gentile, Director at Irvine Contemporary art gallery on 14th Street, she warned me that I would struggle to find works that would meet my “street art” beat. At the time, I was researching the P Street Shepard Fairey mural, and she was quick to point out that neither he, nor any of the other artists represented in that tiny gem of an alleyway, were DC-based.

This was true, of course; but as it turns out, maybe not for long.

The DC blogosphere has been buzzing lately over “vitaminwater uncapped LIVE’s” month-long takeover of 1213-1217 14th Street. In a last hoorah before its scheduled demolishment later this year, the multi-story building has played host to a “cultural extravaganza” of musical performances, fashion shows, and Art Whino gallery’s second annual G40 Summit.

Playfully (or something like that) named after the G20 Summit that unites political heavyweights, the exhibit unites leaders in “New Brow”—contemporary underground art that draws from graffiti and skater culture—with thousands of pieces from New York, California, DC and around the world on display. While DC is no stranger to galleries and art shows, the truly unique nature of underground art literally exploded onto the street last Saturday, when Art Whino hosted its “Artapalooza” live painting session in the parking lot adjacent to the venue.

Open to the public, Art Whino Executive Director Shane Pomajambo offered curious visitors old disc covers, paints, and Sharpies (and screws, to attach the ‘canvasses’ to the side of the building) to create their own street art. Continue reading →

Special Events, We Love Arts
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June Happenings at SAAM

Photo courtesy Smithsonian American Art Museum

Looking for some great things to do over the summer while the tourists flood in? There are several great programs (free!) being hosted by the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) in Penn Quarter this month. Take some time to check them out!

Opening Night of the IV BrazilDocs Documentary Film Week: Santiago
June 9, 7 p.m.
The Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery host the opening-night film, “Santiago,” of the IV BrazilDocs Documentary Film Week, sponsored by the Cultural Section of the Brazilian Embassy in Washington, DC. In 1992, João Moreira Salles, one of Brazil’s foremost documentary filmmakers, began shooting a film about Santiago, the butler in his childhood home, who had lived a rich and vivid life. Through the film’s personal narrative, Salles addresses the elements of memory and identity that are crucial to the documentary genre.

The House I Live In
June 11, 4 p.m.
A theatrical presentation by Catherine Ladnier chronicles life in America from New Year’s Eve in 1939 through the end of World War II. Music underscores dramatic readings of letters written by servicemen and their loved ones, which recount the lingering effects of the Great Depression, America’s involvement in World War II, life on the home front, the bravery of soldiers, and gratitude for peace. In conjunction with “To Make a World: George Ault and 1940s America.”

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Featured Photo
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Featured Photo


‘US Capitol Dome’
courtesy of ‘ep_jhu’

Photography is such a versatile art form. Not only is there a wealth of subjects and topics to shoot, but the way the image is exposed, manipulated, or processed can give an otherwise plain image an amazing life. And then there is the color to play around with: do you choose realistic color or extra saturated? Or even black and white? The options for expression are endless.

Take ep_jhu’s shot of the Capitol Building. On a pure composition level, this shot has been taken a million times. But by changing the coloring to black and white, and maximizing the contrast, this is suddenly a shot worth taking the time to see. It is now eye catchingly stark and looks more like a computer generated rendering than a photograph.

To end this post on an interactive note: Anyone know what direction ep_jhu was standing, in relation to the Capitol, to get this shot?

History, The Daily Feed
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Smithsonian Snapshot: Parachute Wedding Dress

The parachute wedding dress (120mm ektachrome); photo courtesy Smithsonian Institution

This week, in honor of the 67th anniversary of the D-Day landings AND the onset of wedding season, the Smithsonian Snapshot brings you an interesting artifact that ties both World War II and weddings that is currently not on display. This wedding dress was made from a nylon parachute that saved Maj. Claude Hensinger during the Pacific campaign.

In August 1944, Hensinger, a B-29 pilot and his crew were returning from a bombing raid over Yowata, Japan, when their engine caught fire. The crew was forced to bail out. Suffering from only minor injuries, Hensinger used the parachute as a pillow and blanket as he waited to be rescued. He kept the parachute that had saved his life. He later proposed to his girlfriend Ruth in 1947, offering her the material for a gown.

Ruth wanted to create a dress similar to one in the movie Gone with the Wind. She hired a local seamstress, Hilda Buck, to make the bodice and veil. Ruth made the skirt herself; she pulled up the strings on the parachute so that the dress would be shorter in the front and have a train in the back. The couple married July 19, 1947. The dress was also worn by the their daughter and by their son’s bride before being gifted to the Smithsonian.

Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: Bootycandy

Photo by Stan Barouh

Bootycandy playwright Robert O’Hara breaks it down in a vignette in the middle of the show entitled, “Conference”. The skit presents a moderator questioning the four “playwrights” that wrote the previously presented vignettes in the show. The moderator cross-examines each author, trying to pigeon hole his or her work into his stereotype. The illustration is a  meta-point in the play that a statement that this piece provokes more than placates:

Moderator (to Playwright): What would you like the audience to take-away after seeing this show?

Playwright 1: I would like them to choke.

Moderator: Choke?

Playwright 2: After you choke and struggle, what goes down your throat isn’t easy- you know that it’s there.

O’Hara acknowledges that what you are witnessing may not be comfortable at times. Woolly Mammoth Theatre’s Bootycandy is like an Atomic Warhead Candy turned inside out.  The series of 10 short plays start out sweet, funny, and entertaining but the show will have moments that will make you pucker as a complex portrait of the author is created through exploration of various issues including sex, family, and homo-phobia.

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Food and Drink, Special Events, The Features, We Love Drinks
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Drinks Special: SAVOR

SAVOR 2011. Photo courtesy of the Brewers Association. Photo credit: Eddie Arrossi.

Greetings from the morning treadmill, where I get to recover from the decadence that was this weekend’s “SAVOR – American Craft Beer & Food Experience” event. With 144 different brews from 72 craft breweries, the extravaganza put smiles on 2,000 very happy visitors to the spaciously inviting National Building Museum in downtown Washington, DC on June 3 & 4, 2011.

Each of the star-spangled craft brews – from pilsner to stout, singles to quads – were paired with a delectable selection of culinary creations to complement each work of liquid art.  The food pairings on Friday night were succulent enough to almost steal the show (strangely, Saturday’s food wasn’t as well done and disappeared early), but undoubtedly the stars of the night shined brightly in their gently swirled tasting glasses.

Some guests performed some advance research, like Brian from Washington.  In addition to a checklist of his previous favorites, he came prepared with a list of must try selections, especially a host of India Pale Ales. “I checked a few local blogs and went to a few of the brewer sites,” he said.  Amanda from Ballston also visited some of the brewery web sites when she bought her ticket, “but it was a long time ago, and the actual beers weren’t known then, so it was like a surprise tonight.”  My bet is that most guests were like Shawn from Bethesda, who was “just here for a great time!”

Fortunately, for the first time, this year’s 4th annual event added a second night to create even more first impressions.  Unfortunately, the over 1,700 gallons of brews on display could only be sampled with an advance purchase ticket – offered months ago. No wonder the event sold out in less than a day!  Before heading out the door, I signed up for the mailing list to be notified of advance sales for next year’s event.  I’d suggest the same for you.

Some of my observations (with some actual quotes heard around the venue):
“This pilsner tastes nothing like Miller Lite, Toto.”
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News, The Daily Feed
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Harry Thomas referred to the US Attorney

Photo courtesy of
‘Councilman Harry Thomas and BNCA President Caroline Petti’
courtesy of ‘tbridge’

The District’s Attorney General Irv Nathan revealed a report this morning that alleges significant malfeasance on the part of sitting Ward 5 councilmember Harry “Tommy” Thomas Jr.  The report alleges that Councilman Thomas “converted” $300,000 in taxpayer funds to funds for personal use, and the complaint has been subject to a civil suit for more than $1M in damages, the legal limit for the statutes.

In addition, the AG referred the matter to the office of the US Attorney for investigation, which would add criminal prosecution to the civil action.  Councilman Thomas has announced a 3pm Press Conference on the steps of the Wilson Building. Details forthcoming.

A recall of Thomas, just elected in November, would require 10% of the registered voters in Ward 5, or approximately 6,100 valid signatures.

The Daily Feed
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The Winning Ticket: Glee Live! 2011

Photo courtesy of
‘glee live! at the Honda Center in Anaheim’
courtesy of ‘Loren Javier’

If you’re a Gleek in DC then you know the live show is coming to the Verizon Center THIS Thursday. Thanks to our friends at Chevrolet, we have a couple tickets to giveaway to our fine readers this week!

All we need from you for your chance to win is a name and valid e-mail address in the comments section of this post.

Here are the rules …

Comments will be closed at 4 p.m. on Tuesday and a winner will be randomly selected at that time. The winner will be notified by e-mail. The winner must respond to our e-mail by 10 p.m. on Tuesday night or they will forfeit their tickets and we will pick another winner.

Good luck to everybody!

Entertainment, Essential DC, Food and Drink, Life in the Capital, Music, Night Life, Special Events, The Daily Feed, The District
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Saturday Memorial Concert for Adam Hosinski and Rory Weichbrod

On October 9th, 2010, Adam Hosinski and Rory Weichbrod, were crossing Rockville Pike in North Bethesda, when they were struck and killed by a driver who was later arrested on DUI charges and convicted of manslaughter.

This Saturday, from 2-7pm, friends and family will gather at The Bullpen, across from Nationals Stadium, to celebrate the lives of these two men, with a memorial concert and fundraiser for two charities (The Special Olympics and Operation Once in a Lifetime) the two were closely involved with. The event was conceived and planned by several of Adam and Rory’s closest friends, specifically the band members of Midnight Spin, close childhood friends and classmates of Hosinski and Weichbrod. According to the victims’ close friend, Kevin Boyle, “The concert is a memorial, a charity fund raiser, and most of all a celebration of the lives of two of the best guys I was lucky enough to have as a part of my life.”

The weather for tomorrow will provide the perfect day to head over to The Bullpen for tons of fun, live music, cornhole, a fast pitch baseball machine, food and drink, but most importantly to remember two DCers taken far too soon.

The event will not require a cover charge.

Food and Drink, The Daily Feed
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Friday Happy Hour: 3 Stars Syndicate

With all the excitement about the recent launch of DC Brau you could be forgiven for missing the slightly-quieter drop of a second DC based beer company, Three Stars Brewing – but, if so, it is high time you found out.

Debuting with their Syndicate saison, brewed in collaboration with Evolution in Delaware, the seasonally-appropriate style is infused with red, white, and black peppercorns to create a spicy, floral, summer beer. It is quaffable and tasty, without being overbearing. (If you have tried the Green Peppercorn Tripel from Baltimore’s Brewer’s Art, this is a far lighter, more subtle pepper quality.)

If pressed, I would pick 3 Stars’ Syndicate over the DC Brau Public Ale – but they really are very different styles, so the comparison means little. The principal things they share are natures well-suited to drinking on the warm patios of their home city as the season carries on and a hint of more great things to come from both local breweries.

Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts
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We Love Arts: BOBRAUSCHENBERGAMERICA

(L-R) Michael Dove, Chelsey Christensen, Maboud Ebrahimzadeh, and Cliff Williams in Forum Theatre’s Bobrauschenbergamerica (photo Melissa Blackall)

Chelsey Christensen, friend and new head of Marketing/PR for Forum Theatre, wanted me to make sure that I disclose that the performance I attended last night of Bobrauschenbergamerica was the opening night preview.

What she didn’t tell me was that she was also in the cast of the show.

Last night I walked into the Round House Theatre in Silver Spring and experienced quite the scene: a three-man woodwind/brass marching band practicing in one corner, a man dressed as a hobo clutching a small megaphone in another. A small crowd patiently waited for the house to open but there was something off. Among the normal looking audience members were individuals dressed in a style that was a blend of 50’s southern and gypsy. Chelsey spotted me and ran over and gave me a big hug. She wore a pinkish tie-dyed dress and offered me candy. She introduced herself as Phil’s girl and I just stared with a blank expression on my face until I realized she was a IN the show.

I walked to the concession stand, stepping out of the way of a roller-skating child with rainbow-striped socks. A cast member who called herself Susan struck up a conversation with me as I bought a bottle of water.

“You’re just in time for the party- have you eaten dinner yet,” she asked.

I replied that I had already ate but I will warn you that if you do attend this show hungry- you might be able to snag some free snacks but I’ll get to that later.

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The Daily Feed
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Food Tweet of the Week: Senart’s

S 005

Senart’s Oyster & Chop House is officially one month (and a week) old. So far the verdict is: huge success – just try getting a seat at the bar during happy hour.

But on Twitter, where you can follow the restaurant at @SenartsDC, it sadly only has 15 followers and has only tweeted 6 times! I guess this goes to show that a restaurant really can do well sans Twitter these days.

Their tweets, though few, are neighborhood-ish, informative, and fun. I wonder what they could do if they Tweeted more.

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The Daily Feed
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Hot Ticket: This Will Destroy You @ Rock and Roll Hotel, 6/5/11

This Will Destroy You - Tunnel Blanket
Just to get this out of the way – yes, they live up to their name. THIS WILL DESTROY YOU is one of the loudest bands I’ve seen live – the kind of loudness where you might go deaf if you don’t wear earplugs. I caught them last year at DC9, expecting a pleasant set of their older, gentler post-rock material, with the typical soft-loud dynamic I love. Instead, what I remember best was their last track, a ten-minute blast of droning noise, where each sound caused so much tension that every changing note was a huge relief. I never really knew the feeling of stillness until the concert ended and my bones finally stopped vibrating.

The optimism of their first album “Young Mountain” has largely disappeared. Since that show last year, This Will Destroy You have moved into more experimental, darker, noisier soundscapes. Maybe they wanted to differentiate themselves as much as possible from their fellow Texan post-rockers Explosions in the Sky? If so, mission accomplished. They really hate being labeled post-rock, and prefer the term “doomgaze” now. Scared yet?

So yeah, they’re coming to destroy the Rock and Roll Hotel this Sunday . If you’re looking for a band that stretches instrumental rock into evil territory, or looking for something heavy without quite being metal, make sure you catch this show.

This Will Destroy You
w/ Nighty Nite, John LaMonica
Rock and Roll Hotel
$12 adv/$14 doors
Sunday, June 5th

History, The District
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A Look at Saint Elizabeths West Campus


‘Saint Elizabeths – Central Building – 05-21-11’
courtesy of ‘mosley.brian’

About two weeks ago, I got the chance to go on a DC Preservation League tour of Saint Elizabeths West Campus. It was the second time I’d been able to go on the tour, the first time being in December of 2008. I was looking forward to seeing how things had changed in two and a half years.

But first, a note on this post: it’s going to be fairly bare bones on information. That’s because there is literally 150+ years of history in this location! Sorting through it all and writing a truly thorough post would be the length of a small book. There is a huge amount of research on the property because of the Department of Homeland Security moving onto the historic West Campus, and a lot of effort is being made to preserve as much as possible. I encourage you to dig deeper by reading the GSA’s website on the redevelopment, along with a short but detailed history of St. Es, and their extremely detailed Historic Landscape Survey. Also, we’ve talked about St. Es before, and it is worth rereading Tiffany’s article. And, of course, there’s Wikipedia.

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The Daily Feed
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The Post Live and Focus Features bring us Beginners

Photo courtesy of
‘Ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats’
courtesy of ‘atomicjeep’

Tuesday night, The Washington Post’s Live program and Focus Features are hosting a screening of the new Mike Mills-directed movie Beginners, starring Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer and Mélanie Laurent, at West End Cinema.  We’ve got two tickets to the screening, which will also include a post-movie discussion with Georgetown Professor Deborah Tannen.

PostLive

For your chance to win these tickets simply leave a comment on this post using a valid email address between 9am and 4pm today. One entry per email address, please.  Click through for a few more rules and to enter.

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