Washington Exhibition Round-Up, Spring 2006

Cezanne at NGA: stupendous range of works from the middle period, so you see his anticipation of Expressionism and even Cubism. You have to admire Cezanne. It is hard to love him. Also, so many works are on loan, so the framing is terribly uneven: some are beautifully framed; others are taken straight from Mumsy's wall and feature Michael's Craft Store pink and green mats with goopy filigree molding.

Hokusai at the Freer: the animals have tons of personality, while his human figures are flat and seem to predict the generic Japanamation/manga look; also, their installation was very self-consciously glitzy - a little too "Bloomingdale's circa 1979" for my taste

Dada at the NGA East Wing: a tough and unpleasant show, but an important movement that - I now see - set the tone for so many late twentieth century art world shenanigans: the chic nihilism; the "indy-art-world" sensibility, refusal to self-define, artist as stager-of-events rather than maker-of-objects.

And the Winner Is. . .

Grant Wood at the Renwick! Prior to this show, almost everything I knew about Grant Wood and American Gothic I learned from The Rocky Horror Picture Show [read "didn't know much"]. This show is gorgeous and shows a master regionalist/realist with a sly sense of humor who, although he lived in the country and taught middle school (!), inhabited a big world and absorbed influences of the School of Paris, Milton Avery, the American Muralist Movement, and even American decorative arts. It is really a must-see for anyone in D.C.