The Daguerre Monument - Smithsonian Institution National Portrait Gallery in the Background

This sculpture is located on the grounds of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait Gallery.

A plaque near the monument provides following information:

The Daguerre Monument

The French artist Louis Jacques Mandé Daguerre (1787-1851) became interested in the 1820s in trying to capture images photographically. In August 1839 his “Daguerreotype” technique–fixing an image on a light-sensitive, polished silver plate–was announced to the public. This was the first photographic process to be used widely in Europe and the United States.

In 1890 the Professional Photographers of America donated this monument to Daguerre, by the American sculptor Jonathan Scott Hartley, to the American people. The bronze figure was cast by the Henry-Bonnard Bronze Company of New York. Placed in the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum Building (now known as the Arts and Industries Building) to celebrate the first half-century of photography, the monument was displayed on the Mall from 1897 to 1969.

The rededication of the Daguerre Monument in 1989 was sponsored by the Professional Photographers of America in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of photography.

The inscription on the monument reads:

Photography, the electric telegraph, and the steam engine are the three great discoveries of the age. No five centuries in human progress can show such strides as these.

The Daguerre Monument is located on the grounds of the National Portrait Gallery near the southeast corner of the building. The National Portrait Gallery is located at 801 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20004. Click Here for Google Map showing the location of the Daguerre Monument.

Closest Metro Station: The Gallery Place-Chinatown Metro Station on the Red Line is nearest to the Portrait Gallery.

Modern Head Sculpture by Roy Lichtenstein

This sculpture is located on the grounds of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait Gallery. But on September 11, 2001 it was located in New York City only one block from the World Trade Center when terrorists flew one commercial airliner into each of the World Trade Center’s towers.

This sculpture survived the attacks of 9/11, and soon after that it was moved.

Modern Head - Smithsonian Informational Sign

A plaque on the fence by the sculpture provides information about it. The text is set out below.

Roy Lichtenstein
born New York City 1923-died New York City 1997

Modern Head
conceived 1974
fabricated 1989-1990 by Lippincott Inc., edition I/I
painted stainless steel

Gift of Jeffrey H. Loria in loving memory of his sister, Harriet Loria Popowitz.

Roy Lichtenstein began creating his Modern Head series in the late 1960s with the idea that man can be made to look like a machine and the image manufactured by an industrial source. This concept pervaded the artist’s work throughout his career. In Modern Head he referenced the flat planes, precision, and abstract geometric forms associated with the 1930s art deco architecture and design.

Modern Head was installed in 1996 in Battery Park City, one block from the World Trade Center, by the Public Art Fund of New York City (top photo). The sculpture survived the destruction of 9/11 with only surface scratches and became a memo board for the FBI during its ensuing investigations (bottom photo). Note the white ash on the base and the windows blown out of the building in the background of the photograph taken by insurance agent Michael Fischman on September 21st. The sculpture was removed on November 9, 2001, for its protection.

Modern Head is located on the grounds of the National Portrait Gallery near the southwest corner of the building. The National Portrait Gallery is located at 801 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20004. Click Here for Google Map showing the location of the Modern Head Sculpture by Roy Lichtenstein.

Closest Metro Station: The Gallery Place-Chinatown Metro Station on the Red Line is nearest to the Portrait Gallery.

Smithsonian Institution's National Portrait Gallery, 801 F Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20004

The Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait Gallery focuses on people who have had an impact on the culture and history of the United States. In addition to politicians and presidents there are portraits of entertainers, sports figures, political activists, champions and scoundrels.

The National Portrait Gallery always has several galleries filled with new exhibits. In addition to these new exhibits, there are many galleries that house the museum’s permanent exhibits. Permanent exhibits include:

• America’s Presidents
• American Origins, 1600-1900
• Bravo! (performing arts including stage and circus)
• Champions (sports figures)
• Jo Davidson – Biographer in Bronze
• The Struggle for Justice
• Twentieth Century Americans

America’s Presidents Exhibit

The America’s Presidents exhibit is a complete collection of portraits of the presidents. The exhibit includes the Lansdowne portrait of George Washington by Gilbert Stuart and the cracked plate photograph of Abraham Lincoln. George Washington (1st president), Andrew Jackson (7th president), Abraham Lincoln (16th president), Theodore Roosevelt (26th president) and Franklin Delano Roosevelt (32nd president) all had great impact on the history of the United States and receive greater coverage in this exhibit.

American Origins, 1600-1900

The American Origins exhibit consists of seventeen galleries and small spaces. Included are portraits of Queen Elizabeth I of England, Pocahontas, Powhatan (chief of the Algonquian federation of Indians in Virginia), E Tow Oh Koam (Iroquois leader), Ho Nee Yeath Taw No Row (Mohawk leader), Phillis Wheatley (slave turned successful writer), Olaudah Equiano (slave turned abolitionist), Anne Catharine Hoof Green (managed the Maryland Gazette that covered events leading to the American Revolution), Samuel Seabury (a religious leader favoring reconciliation with Great Britain in 1774), Thomas Jefferson, Richard Henry Lee (delegate to the Second Continental Congress), Horatio Gates (a British soldier later appointed as a brigadier general in the Continental army), Marquis de Lafayette, Thayendanegea – Joseph Brant (a chief who encouraged Iroquois to fight against the Americans) and hundreds more.

Jo Davidson – Biographer in Bronze

This exhibit includes 14 sculptures including John Martin (artist, painter), Lincoln Steffens (journalist with an interest in political corruption, muckraker, political philosopher with some enthusiasm for Communism), Gertrude Stein (an American writer who lived in Paris) and Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

The Struggle for Justice

This exhibit focuses on people who worked for establishing civil rights for disenfranchised or marginalized groups. Included are portraits of Lucretia Mott (women’s rights), Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton (women’s rights), Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, Andrew Carnegie, W.E.B. Du Bois, Carrie Chapman Catt, George Washington Carver, Thurgood Marshall, Earl Warren, Rosa Parks and many others.

Click National Portrait Gallery Website to visit the website of the Smithsonian Institution National Portrait Gallery.

The National Portrait Gallery is located at 801 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20004. Click Here for Google Map showing the location of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Portrait Gallery.

Closest Metro Station: The Gallery Place-Chinatown Metro Station on the Red Line is nearest to the Portrait Gallery.

Chinatown Arch on H Street NW at 7th Street NW

Washington DC’s Chinatown consists of a relatively small number of restaurants and other businesses. But it does have an attractive, large and ornate arch located next to the 7th and H Streets NW exit from the Gallery Place-Chinatown Metro Station.

In recent years Chinatown and the surrounding area has experienced significant revitalization. It is now a busy area with an active nightlife with many restaurants and plenty of opportunities for shopping and entertainment.

The arch is located on H Street NW just east of 7th Street NW. Click Here for Google Map showing the location of the Chinatown Arch.

Closest Metro Station: The Gallery Place-Chinatown Metro Station on the Red, Yellow and Green Lines is nearest to the Chinatown Arch.