The Castle, a garden and Hokusai

 

Pen&ink and watercolor on A5 Hahnemühle watercolor sketchbook

This building known as the Castle is in one of my previous sketches, at the distance. It’s the Smithsonian Castle Information Center. We went there to see it up close and ended up in the back garden, Enid A. Haupt Garden, which is a small but wonderful garden with lots of species of plants and serene corners to rest from the sun, crowds and the heat, we had again 90°F (32°C). I chose a table in this quiet heaven and sketch part of the garden and part of the castle, in the shade of course. I had a wonderful experience there, despite the heat, a rest well deserved.

From the garden, just a minute walk away, we enjoyed the last two hours of the Freer Gallery of Art, The National Museum of Asian Art. It’s a small museum, I really enjoyed the exhibition “Hokusai: Mad about painting”, Katshusika Hokusai is a Japanese artist who created Great Wave (one of the original prints is in the Art Institute of Chicago). This museum is home of  the largest collection of Hokusai paintings, sketches and drawings. And it’s free! Here’s an image you might find familiar.

Breaking Waves.