Lee Friedlander

I took a trip to the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C. after finding out that the National Gallery of Art DID NOT have anything on exhibit having to do with photography.  I was disappointed at first but once I made the 4 block walk, I was stunned by what I had walked into.  The first floor was holding an exhibit on portraits taken by Ryan McGinley, Katy Grannan, and Martin Schoeller, and a few other photographers.  At first I was caught by surprise at the works by McGinley and Schoeller, but realized I had to stay focused and search for other works to write on.  After walking through most of the gallery, I ran into a series of works entitled "The American Monument" by Lee Friedlander.  At first I didn't really understand what I was looking at.  It just seemed like he had just taken photos of random street scenes.  I wasn't impressed but as soon as I read what the series was about, I was able to understand what his motive was.  His intentions were to capture different monuments of American history through out the country.  Some were pretty obvious.  Just a straight shot and nothing really amazing about in my opinion.  But then there were some images that seemed more like a "hide and seek" game.  It turned into a set of photos of the city taken in the 1970's with the monument immersed in the image as if you weren't meant to actually pay any attention to it.  The series, for me, completely turned itself over.  The images began to capture more than just the monuments, but also the era that they were taken in.  Your eye began to take in the old cars and clothing styles that were once considered a high point in that time, but are now a thing of the past.  Regardless of distractions, Friedlander was able to stay on track and continue the goal that he was trying to reach with the monuments.  I've said before that I a fan of black and white photography, but even more so of black and white photography from the past... way back.  I am not sure if everyone would actually enjoy this series, but I can guarantee that they would enjoy the rest of the gallery and what it has to offer.  One big plus about the gallery was the Presidential portrait gallery.  If you want a surreal experience back in time, then this gallery will do it.