World War II Era Images at the National Portrait Gallery, A Guided Tour

The National Portrait Gallery in Washington DC has a large collection of artwork with images of Americans from the Colonial era to the 21st century and on this tour we’ll focus on the portraits from the World War II era.

Dec. 7, 1941 (84 years ago) was as President Roosevelt said in his speech “a date which will live in infamy”. We'll be looking at portraits of Americans who were reacting to and influencing events during World War II. The war started in Europe in the summer of 1939 and the Japanese had been fighting in China since 1937. Many Americans were reluctant to get involved in another war, since many felt that the sacrifices made in the “Great War”, World War I, had not led to the promised "world safe for democracy." The country and the world had also struggled with a disastrous economic collapse. The attack on Pearl Harbor and events that followed changed our nation and the world in profound ways.

On this tour we’ll be looking at portraits of Americans from the WWII era including military, political and social leaders, scientists, actors, journalists and others in the museum's permanent collection. Part of the tour will look at presidential portraits where we will discuss the two presidents who served as commander-in-chief of the US military during WWII as well as the eight men who served in some capacity in the military during that war, before they became president.

This tour will be mostly focused on the biographies and history of the WWII era, although I will talk about a few of the artists and the wider context of their work.

We’ll meet in the Kogod Courtyard at the National Portrait Gallery (the Smithsonian American Art Museum is also in the same building) - I'll be wearing a red baseball cap (with a white curly "W") and be carrying a tan-colored shoulder bag. I’ll do an introduction including a short overview of WWII era events.

Metro will be working on the Green, Orange and Silver lines this weekend, so plan accordingly if coming by rail.

Also, the DowntownDC Holiday Market is operating on F Street between 7th and 9th, which is the street on the south side of the museum building, from 11am to 8pm, so you might want to build in some extra time to visit.

This is an in person tour and will not be broadcast online.

This program is led by Harry Phillips, who has been leading tours of Arlington National Cemetery and other locations in the Washington DC area since 2015.
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Meeting Point: I'll be near the center of the Kogod Courtyard at the National Portrait Gallery (the building also houses the Smithsonian American Art Museum). I'll be wearing a red baseball cap with a white curly "W" and carrying a tan shoulder bag.

If you are running late look for us at the meeting place where I will be doing the introduction. Our next stop will be the third floor on the south side of the building that has the galleries with the 20th century portraits.

Disclaimer: Participants are fully responsible for their own safety and not the event organizer: Washington, DC History & Culture.

There is no upfront cost to the tour, but I will accept gratuities at the conclusion.
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I look forward to seeing you!