2024 vacation in Vancouver, Canada.
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2024 vacation in Vancouver, Canada.
The richly adorned doorway leading to the Thomas Jefferson Library exhibit in the Library of Congress is a celebration of knowledge, classicism, and American Enlightenment ideals. Above the mahogany doors hangs a banner featuring Jefferson’s unmistakable signature and a row of his cherished books—an invitation into a curated collection that seeded the nation’s greatest library. Framed by gray-veined Tennessee marble columns with Corinthian capitals, the entrance is flanked by warm, neoclassical murals and glowing golden inscriptions that exalt the life of the mind.
A prominent quote inscribed in gilded text reads, “Man is one world and hath another to attend him,” a poetic assertion of inner life, lifted from George Herbert. Just above this phrase, a serene female figure sits within a circular medallion, painted in soft Impressionistic strokes. Draped in flowing white garments, she gazes contemplatively, symbolizing wisdom or perhaps the muse of learning. Decorative laurel wreaths and stone garlands frame the painting, underscoring the classical themes of honor and enlightenment.
The ceiling above the doorway is a vibrant tapestry of color and allegory. Gothic arches host heraldic shields, cherubs holding symbolic objects, and allegorical scenes representing various domains of knowledge and civilization. In the central arch, a female figure gestures toward a flaming torch, surrounded by the Latin word Nivelle, referencing a battlefield or possibly invoking a higher spiritual plane. Other cartouches and embellishments echo Jefferson’s era and interests, from agriculture to Enlightenment philosophy.
The entire visual composition is a harmonious blend of Beaux-Arts architecture and Renaissance-inspired decoration, emphasizing the intellectual legacy that Jefferson’s collection provided. The nearby banner advertising The Two Georges exhibition cleverly parallels this legacy, contrasting the Founding Father’s vision with more contemporary cultural reckonings.
This space is not merely transitional—it’s theatrical. It prepares the visitor to step from marble-clad grandeur into a world of leather-bound ideas. Every design decision within this frame reminds us that knowledge, history, and beauty are bound together in America’s greatest library.
Inside the Thomas Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress, grandeur meets symbolism beneath a breathtaking ceiling. Captured from the mezzanine level, this upward-facing photograph showcases the elaborately detailed ceiling panels crowned by vibrant stained glass skylights—each one a kaleidoscope of cerulean blue and pale jade arranged in rosette-like mandalas. The light filtering through these skylights casts a soft, sacred glow over the classical architecture below, emphasizing the building’s dual function as both a temple of knowledge and a celebration of human achievement.
Just beneath the ceiling’s edge, a frieze of painted lunettes and spandrels anchors the visual drama. These golden-toned murals, with themes ranging from music and literature to invention and history, are housed within Romanesque arches trimmed with coffered detailing and Greek key patterns. The symbolism here is dense: winged victories guard crests on either side, surrounded by stars on fields of green—evoking celestial guidance and intellectual triumph. Between the arches are intricate grillwork screens, offering a delicate counterpoint to the weighty columns below.
The stately Corinthian columns—polished in creamy Tennessee marble—support a series of stacked arcades, each arch inscribed with the names of great thinkers and creators such as Michelangelo, Scott, and Plato. Their inclusion suggests a lineage of wisdom the Library of Congress seeks to preserve and honor. Warm light bounces off the orange, red, and emerald murals that adorn the spandrels, helping to bridge the distance between historical legacy and living institution.
This image not only reveals the intricate craftsmanship of the building’s Beaux-Arts interior, designed by Paul J. Pelz and John L. Smithmeyer, but also captures a philosophical ideal: that beauty, intellect, and cultural memory can coexist in architecture. The Library of Congress isn’t merely a repository of books; it’s a monument to the enduring value of human creativity and knowledge, every inch a celebration of learning made sacred through design.
A mural with a crane towering above by the new SkyTrain station.
A large colorful full-wall mural by Alicia McCarthy painted on the side of a land-marked, Beaux-Arts era, flatiron building in the Mid-Market Street district, downtown San Francisco, California. The Proper Hotel opened in September 2017. This boutique hotel occupies a historic building perched at Seventh and Market Streets.
Alicia McCarthy (1969- ) is an American painter. She is a member of San Francisco's Mission School art movement. Her work is considered to have Naïve or Folk character, and often uses unconventional media like house-paint, graphite, or other found materials.
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Today 2025/04/29 is Willie Nelson's 92nd birthday!
I thought it was time for another panorama of the new downtown mural. This time I wanted to capture a larger surrounding environment.
Sunday morning walk around Austin, TX.
Filtering through my collection of photos that I took during the pandemic and had not edited / posted.
Sunday morning walk around Austin, TX.
I guess the California fires have displaced poor pink Barbie. She has moved her café to the lush coast of Interstate 35 and Sixth Street.
Sunday morning walk around Austin, TX.
