National Portrait Gallery Washington, D.C.

While in Washington, D.C. recently, I enjoyed a visit to the National Portrait Gallery. The museum houses its vast and diverse portrait collection in the city's Old Patent Office Building, which was built from 1836 to 1867. I was struck by the preservation of the building's Greek Revival architecture and the tranquility of the enclosed Kogod Courtyard. John Singer Sargent's remarkable 1903 portrait of General Leonard Wood was on view in the East Gallery. My favorite gallery was that of America's Presidents, which included Anders Zorn's 1899 portrait of Grover Cleveland and my mentor Everett Raymond Kinstler's 1987 portrait of Gerald Ford.