TEN DC PLACES SAGA 8:

FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT'S POPE-LEIGHEY HOUSE AND WOODLAWN PLANTATION
Virginia Surburbs.

Mr. Wright wrestled with the solution of the modest suburban home with his 'Usonian Houses'. This 1939 home is an excellent example that was saved from highway construction in the suburbs of Northern Virginia.

click to see: Pope-Leighy House.

It was moved onto Woodlawn Plantation's acreage. The 1805 Custis House there is also very interesting.

Next, a Home for Animals.

FAVORITE DELAWARE BEACHES RESTAURANTS SAGA 2:

NAGE
Rehoboth

Nage has by far the most inventive and fabulous food of any restaurant in the area.

I first discovered Nage when they started in Rehoboth Beach in 1990±. Now they're outside the Beach and on Highway One in Rehoboth. But, nonetheless, they haven't lost their quality.

It's a very "bistro" type of place—well decorated; very cozy.

A genuine treat!

Next, a Different Beach Town.

WRISTWATCHES SAGA 3:

WRISTWATCHES

I discovered a brand on the Internet. It's by a French architect who turned into a famous watchmaker: Alan Siberstein. They are all hand-crafted. He does a design series of very a limited number: 100 to 350.

Maybe THAT'S why I love them so much!

click to see site: Alan Silberstein Watches

My Collection Of Three:

My Everyday wristwatch (a reproduction).

A dresser one (also a reproduction).

The Pièce de Résistance (authentic -6.5 carats).

A Crowd Pleaser!

TEN DC PLACES SAGA 7:

WOODROW WILSON HOUSE:

DC's only presidential museum. The home is as it was, showing how the Wilsons lived.

click to see: Woodrow Wilson House.

click to see: Part Two.

Too stricken in body and spirit to remain for the inauguration of his successor, Woodrow Wilson left the capitol and motored to his new residence in the Kalorama section of Washington, D.C. on March 4, 1921. To his surprise, several hundred people were waiting to watch him enter the house where he would spend the last three years of his life.

Each year, thousands still visit the final home of the twenty-eighth President. The house remains for us today as it was when he lived here, a place for insightful reflection on his career as educator, social reformer, and world statesman. 

Next, a House for House sake.

ARTWORK SAGA:

STAINED  GLASS
Oakland, CA
1974

The first piece of artwork I'd like to explore is a fabulous 38" x38" stained glass.

I was visiting the Oakland Museum in 1974 and toured the Art Glass Exhibit. I saw the stained glass piece in the ‘for sale’ portion of the show. Well, I fell in love with it instantly. It was on the lowest row of several stained glass creations. Well, I plopped down and sat on the floor mesmerized.

Alas, it was Sunday and the office was not open. I talked the guard into taking a check to be turned in the next morning. I called first thing Monday morning. It had been bought! Phooey! However, they called me two days later and said the first buyer had backed out! It was shipped in the biggest crate you can imagine.

The actual piece appears in “Glass Art Magazine” April, 1974, page 42: A. R. Lewis. ‘#60’.

The glass changes color according to the angle viewed or the time of day!

At night the image reverses and it becomes blue and mirrored!

It has hung in my house proudly ever since.

TIDBITES SAGA:

TUSCAN GRILL
Rehoboth Beach, Delaware

It's in the old cultured pearl space on Wilmington Avenue and it's been redecorated—okay. 

It's your typical Italian type ordinary restaurant. Mary Ann, Ted and I had dinner there. Mary Ann had a steak salad, Ted had eggplant Parmesan, and I had lemon veal. All were satisfactory to good.

It reminds me of an Olive Garden, albeit not quite as good. I don't particularly like chain restaurants but in this case Olive Garden surpasses.

This is not a "destination" type place but it's okay for a quick, inexpensive Italian dinner—assuming you can abide "touristy" type places.


   ---Don Voth, your friendly reviewer.

TEN DC PLACES SAGA 6:

THE KREEGER MUSEUM:

Also designed by Philip Johnson. Former home of owner of GEICO, the private museum houses 19th and 20th Century art ranging from Monet, Picasso and Renoir to Stella. Little known but a real treat.

The Kreeger Museum (1967) is a modern building that has a timeless quality. American architect Philip Johnson, with Richard Foster, accomplished this by making obvious references to the past and combining those with a modernist vocabulary.

Johnson and Foster were challenged to create a structure that could serve as a residence, a museum and a recital hall. The modern building that they designed not only fulfills these functions, but with a classical style. To achieve this, Johnson and Foster blended modern features with historic quotes. For example, the domes of the structure allude to Byzantine monuments like the Hagia Sophia. 

As you move through the building, you will notice transitions from small to large spaces. This was inspired by Egyptian tombs. The use of the module, the 22 foot cube that is the basis of the building, dates back to Roman architecture. (The Great Hall, for example, is three modules long.) The result of these historical references is a structure that seems timeless.

Next, an Interesting House.