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Halloween (1978) Directed by John Carpenter

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It’s the millennium. Motives are incidental.

Scream (1996) dir. Wes Craven

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*ominous bong bubbling from the dark at 2am* 

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The Witch (2015) dir. Robert Eggers

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Little left over Nugs of Blue Dream ✨

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Hellbound: Hellraiser II Directed by Tony Randel (1988)

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Scream (1996) dir. Wes Craven

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The Robert and Arlene Kogod Courtyard, Old Patent Office Building, Washington, DC

My favorite museum space in DC so far is by far the building occupied by the National Portrait Gallery (NPG) and the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM). Sorry for the acronyms, but you know how I am about acronyms around here! Technically NPG is called the Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art and Portraiture, but no one actually calls it that.

These two museums share the Old Patent Office Building which is a stellar example of Greek Revival style (someone explain to me how it isn’t just Neoclassical, I never said I was an architecture expert). It was built in 1836/1837. The two museums have been sharing the building since 1968, though there was serious renovation in the early 2000s.

In particular I’d like to focus on the Robert and Arlene Kogod Courtyard (first picture), which is a gathering place for the public in between the two museums. The courtyard is a common meetup point in DC, especially considering the museum is free and Chinatown is a hot destination. The courtyard was designed by Foster + Partners and opened in 2008. I know what you’re thinking, “Porch Rates” this ain’t outdoor seating. To which I’d say, debatable. The space has living plants, a roof that lets in a ton of natural light, I don’t know seems close enough. Having been in the space several times it definitely feels like being outside!

All in all the space is truly stunning, even when there are many people in the courtyard it still feels very tranquil and its a welcome oasis in the middle of one of the busier areas of DC. The darker colored rectangles on the floor are unique low lying water features and the rooftop canopy is stellar at any time of day, in fact Phillip Kenicott from the Washington Post said in 2007: “It is, however, worth seeing the canopy at different times throughout the day. The glass roof is an undulating form, supported by eight slender columns. When the sun is out, it casts a lattice of shadows on the walls of the old building. When it’s cloudy, the sky seems farther away, chilly and remote. When the sun is setting, the double-glazed glass filters the light and colors into a watery, otherworldly presence.”

(Personal note: I have love hate relationship with waxing poetic about buildings like the above.)

More places need areas like this courtyard. In the built environment nature and a building can co-exist into truly public spaces (i.e they should be free to enter and use). The Smithsonian also wisely allows hosted events in the space at night and the space can be heavily transformed.

All photos have been taken from Smithsonian websites, all credit to them.

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THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW dir. Jim Sharman

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31 Characters For October

Day 8 - Pennywise The Dancing Clown from Stephen King’s IT - (1990)

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The Descent (2005) dir. Neil Marshall