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Available in the museum bookstore Justin Kaplan is the type of writer of whom one wonders, “What will he do next?”  His projects are intriguing and his biographical narratives are something of a playground for the National Portrait Gallery collection; it is no surprise that he has a lot of fans among the NPG staffers.  His works include the Pulitzer Prize winning Mr. Clemens and Mark Twain and Walt Whitman: A Life , which won the National Book award. NPG historian David Ward said of... Read Full Story

The journey to justice is often complex and arduous. After the prolonged internment of Japanese Americans during the Second World War, more than forty years passed before the United States government apologized for the internment of more than 120,000 citizens. Fred Korematsu, a young welder living in Oakland, California, was one of many Japanese Americans caught in what the United States government considered to be a security measure necessary after the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941... Read Full Story

He killed thousands of birds and cruelly experimented on many animals, including catfish, a bald eagle, and his very own hunting dog. With friends, he buried a rat in a pot, its tail protruding from the dirt, and gave the complete ensemble to another friend, claiming it was a rare flower. He served jail time for bankruptcy and knifed a man in Kentucky over ownership of a steamboat. Today, his drawings and paintings of American wildlife are respected worldwide, and his name is synonymous... Read Full Story

  While walking through the halls of the National Portrait Gallery you will find countless examples of people in the collection who came from humble beginnings, but through perseverance and determination built very successful lives. For example, did you know that Cary Grant (above) was homeless as an adolescent and performed for circuses before finally making it big as an actor? These sorts of rags-to-riches stories are the foundation of the American Dream.   Come test your knowledge on... Read Full Story

Q: What is your job title and what do you do at the National Portrait Gallery? A: I am the registrar for exhibitions and loans. I deal mostly with artwork coming into the Portrait Gallery for special exhibitions or inclusion in permanent exhibitions, as well as work we lend to other museums. The Registrar’s Office works very closely with the Conservation and Design & Production departments to ensure the artwork is maintained safely and securely. When NPG borrows or lends artwork, with... Read Full Story

Food pioneer Alice Waters and top DC chefs all in one place -- Friday, January 20 at NPG . The National Portrait Gallery will celebrate its newest acquisition with a reception featuring renowned chef Alice Waters and some of the Washington region’s most acclaimed masters of the kitchen. NPG will install the portrait of Alice Waters on Friday, January 20, and as a part of the evening, the gallery will host a conversation between Waters and José Andrés in the McEvoy Auditorium at 6:00 p.m... Read Full Story

What Abraham Lincoln could never know, as 1861 closed its curtains, was what the second act of the Civil War would bring. The characters and the scenery would change rapidly in the coming year. The two generals whose signatures would conclude the war at Appomattox—Ulysses Grant and Robert E. Lee—would each make substantial contributions to their respective causes in 1862. In the first six weeks of the new year, Grant (above) would begin his ascent up the ladder of command by vanquishing the... Read Full Story

This time of year, visitors to the National Portrait Gallery often ask our docents, “Where is your portrait of Santa?” Although the question might sound like a simple one, the answer is actually complex. First, Santa is truly a universal individual, and as much as we would like to place his picture among the noble Americans on display at the National Portrait Gallery, we simply cannot. “It would be super to have a picture of Santa in the collection, and we’ve tried for many years to get one... Read Full Story

Q: Where are you attending college, and what are you studying? A: I am a senior art history major at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. Q: Why did you want to intern at NPG? A: The National Portrait Gallery has a certain charisma that distinguishes it from other museums. As an art history major, I’d taken a variety of classes in different areas of study, but the one that had resonated with me most focused on nineteenth-century American art. When I first applied... Read Full Story

The following is from President Franklin Roosevelt’s speech to the Congress of the United States, December 8, 1941. . . . Yesterday, December 7th, 1941—a date which will live in infamy— the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan. The United States was at peace with that nation and, at the solicitation of Japan, was still in conversation with its government and its emperor looking toward the maintenance of peace in... Read Full Story