– With the Election Day a week away and fears of voting machines failing, channel your “Pre-Election Anxiety Disorder” by visiting some election-inspired exhibits at the National Museum of American History. “Vote! The Machinery of Democracy” examines the evolution of voting techniques and includes the ill-fated butterfly ballot from the 2000 Florida presidential election. Stop by their permanent exhibit “The American Presidency: A Glorious Burden” to pay homage to our fearless leaders of the executive branch. Artifacts on display include Thomas Jefferson’s desk, Abraham Lincoln’s top hat and Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s microphone.
– Meanwhile, DCist is sure that campaign staffers heading to the Bush-Cheney ’04 headquarters in Courthouse just love driving past the windows of the Museum of Modern ARF on Clarendon Boulevard on their way to work. John Aaron’s “Bush League: The Past Four Years,” a della Robbia-style porcelain wall sculpture/critique of the Bush administration faces out onto the street. The sculpture includes portraits of the president, Vice President Cheney, Attorney General John Ashcroft and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.
It took Aaron more than 1,400 hours to complete the piece. This isn’t the first time art at the gallery has agitated Republicans.
– This week is your last chance to see “Susanne Kessler: Patterns of Life — Collages and Wire Installation at the Goethe-Institut. Kessler’s “temporary art,” site-specific installations constructed from steel, convey both strength and fragility. In this image, the artist is with “The Trap.” While there, catch part of the film series devoted to Artur Brauner.
– Two contemporary New York artists are featured in current area exhibitions. David FeBland: Promise Land, on view at the Fraser Gallery Bethesda comes in the wake of the artist’s solo debut in Europe. FeBland has been described as “the leading edge of the new urban realists.” In contrast, Caio Fonseca paints in a rhythmic, abstracted style. His recent paintings can be seen at the Corcoran.
(Cyndi Spain contributed to this post.)
