Friday, June 22, 2012

White House, Green Room, and Laura Bush

The White House Green Room, 2009.
Photo:  WhiteHouse.gov.
The recent unveiling of the official White House portrait of First Lady Laura Bush brought to mind the Green Room, used as the setting for painting and significant because of Mrs. Bush's efforts to refurbish the room in 2007.
The Official White House Portrait of First Lady Laura Bush, 2012.
Painted by John Howard Sanden.
Image:  White House Historical Association.
After seeing the portrait of President George W. Bush completed in 2011, Mrs. Bush chose the same artist, John Howard Sanden.  Born in Austin, Texas, in 1935, the artist now lives in Connecticut and maintains a Carnegie Hall studio.  The portraits were commissioned by the White House Historical Association as a gift of the George B. Hartog, Jr., White House Acquisition Trust.  The Devoted Classicist is always interested in the settings for portraits, and President Bush's is particularly interesting from a political viewpoint, but this essay will discuss Laura Bush's because of the decorative arts focus.  In addition to a well-chosen dress, a number of the features of the White House Green Room are shown in the carefully considered composition.
Portrait of Benjamin Franklin.
Image:  WhiteHouse.gov.
The portrait of Benjamin Franklin over the mantle was painted by David Martin in 1767.  The Scholar's Notes from the White House Historical Association offers that the portrait was commissioned by Robert Alexander of the firm William Alexander & Sons, Edinburgh.  The ribboned document is one of Alexander's deeds, the books and pamphlets suggest the evidence to support a wise man's decision, and the bust of Isaac Newton represents the English Voice of Reason.  Sometimes called the 'thumb portrait', the position of the hand with the thumb pressed against the chin expresses the pressure of concentrated thought.  The portrait was a gift of Mr. and Mrs. Walter H. Annenberg to contribute to Jacqueline Kennedy's plea for art for the White House.  (One of the richest individuals in the U.S. at the time, he was a big financial supporter of Richard Nixon and was appointed as ambassador to Britain by Ronald Reagan).
Green Room Mantle Clock.
Photo:  WhiteHouse.gov.
Although not visible in the portrait, there is an ormolu clock on the mantle with a figure of George Washington and an eagle.  Acquired in 1961, it dates from circa 1806 and is attributed to Jean-Baptiste Dubuc.  Washington is depicted in full dress uniform with a scroll of laws in his right hand and his left hand against his sword.  The eagle represents the Great Seal of the United States and holds a bundle of 13 arrows in its left talon, referring to the thirteen original states.  The enamel dial is inscribed with the well-known quotation from Washington's funeral oration by Major-General Henry Lee, "Washington, First in War, First in Peace, First in the Hearts of his Countrymen".
Green Room Easy Chair, 2007.
Image:  Washington Post.
The new rug in a neo-classical pattern and the reupholstery of the easy chairs at the fireplace in a brighter coral silk damask are part of First Lady Laura Bush's contributions to the room.  The pattern of the rug is based on an early 19th century French Savonnerie rug but with intensified colors and other adjustments made as it was woven especially for the room.  The Federal period chairs were added to the room in 1971-2, but were previously in a more subtle salmon color fabric. 
The Green Room, 2001.
Official White House Photo by Moreen Ishikawa.
This earlier view shows the First Lady Laura Bush, right, entertaining the wife of the President of Mexico, Mrs. Vicente Fox.
The Bust of Benjamin Franklin.
Photo:  WhiteHouse.gov
The Sevres bust of Benjamin Franklin dates from 1810.
Duncan Phyfe Work Table.
Photo:  WhiteHouse.gov
This magnificent work table, one of a pair and shown in the open position, is attributed to Duncan Phyfe and dates from circa 1810.
The Green Room during the Presidency of George W. Bush.
Photo:  Architectural Digest.
The curtains are also new, in a similar but simplied version of the design from the Nixon redecoration in the early 1970s.  The new fabric and the finish of the valances are also more vibrant than previously. The watered silk wall covering was also replaced with a slightly brighter green in a larger scale weave.
Silver Tea Urn on Display in the Green Room.
Photo:  WhiteHouse.gov
Although this writer is not particularly fond of the full time display of the Sheffield silver hot water urn (alternately described as a tea or coffee urn) in the Green Room, he is is apparently in the minority.  Many appreciate it for the symbol of hospitality it provides as the room is used for receptions.  It was owned by John and Abigail Adams, the first occupants of the White House in 1800.  Some think the neo-classical vase-shaped urn may have been acquired when Adams was American minister to England, 1785-88, as it dates from that period.  The front is engraved with "JAA".  It had remained in the family until sold in 1946.  The urn was given to the White House in 1964 by Mr. and Mrs. Mark Bortman and Jane Bortman Larus.  (According to Lady Bird Johnson's published diary, Mr. Bortman was a friend of President Johnson and made several other donations to the White House as well).
"Lighter Relieving a Steamboat Aground" by George Caleb Bingham.
Image from the White House Historical Association.
George Caleb Bingham's 1847 painting, "Lighter Relieving a Steamboat Aground" has often been seen as being representative of a political statement as the artist ran for the Missouri House of Representatives in 1846 and was elected;  however, the results were contested and he was forced out of office.
"The Builders" by Jacob Lawrence is displayed in the Green Room.
Image from the White House Historical Association.
"The Builders" is a 1947 painting by Jacob Lawrence, one of the newest works of art in the permanent White House collection.  It was acquired at auction in 2007 for $2.5 million by the White House Acquisition Trust.
President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush.
Photo:  Architectural Digest.
The Green Room refurbishment was undertaken during the summer of 2007 by First Lady Laura Bush, advised by the Committee for the Preservation of the White House, Fort Worth decorator Ken Blasingame, and White House curator William Allman.  The next posting of The Devoted Classicist blog will present a history of the Green Room decoration with focus on the accomplishments of First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, who set the standard by which all White House decoration is judged, and First Lady Pat Nixon, whose scheme is still the basis of decoration in the Green Room today.

20 comments:

  1. A room I'd like to see, this Green Room. The new damask is beautiful and more fitting I think than the hotel lobby-like stuff of the previous incarnation. As to the urn, I agree with you.

    Looking forward to your next essay very much!

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    1. As I will get into in the forthcoming essays, the Nixon refurbishment replaced the Kennedy wallcovering fabric with the same. The Truman fabric was a bluish green, what I would call Bottle Green; it was a popular color of the time, however. Thank you for commenting.

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  2. Thank you so much, this was very interesting and informative. I loved seeing the photos and your commentary on the artwork in the Green Room. I am curious and wonder if you would explain why you are not fond of seeing the silver hot water urn used as a decoration in the room. Again, thank you. I enjoy your blog and read it often.

    Francie

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    1. Francie, there are no set rules, but I like to see a little variation in a room according to the occasion. So my personal preference would be to bring the silver out only when it is to be used. (I also do not like to see a dining table perpetually set as if it is to be photographed for 'Architectural Digest', but that is another story). But because of the museum aspect of the White House and the historical importance of the silver urn, I can understand the reasoning behind the decision to keep it on display. I appreciate your readership and thank you for commenting.

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  3. I am the edge of my seat. I agree with every word so far. ...the DC is ever so tactful.....it will be interesting; I notice that the DC also always tells the truth of his opinions......or holds them fast.

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  4. Penelope, I like to point things out, sometimes with more subtlety than other times, to invite a conversation or inspire thought. Thank you for commenting.

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  5. Of the three parlors, the Green Room, with its prim mahogany furniture, virginal white upholstery, even the narrow, upright form of that hot-water urn, always seemed to me to be the "good" room, the most straight-laced & proper of the the three, not given, like her racier twin sister down the hall, to bold colors & voluptuous curves. If the Red Room exuded the warmth & sexy allure of Jacqueline Kennedy, the Green Room embodied Pat Nixon's quiet reserve. The two rooms were held in perfect aesthetic balance.

    Not anymore. I have no problem with brilliant color contrasts, and no one did red-&-green better than Dorothy Draper, but come on, the White House isn't the Greenbrier. While the Green Room's former rug might not have been all that exciting, it was handsome & discreet, while the new rug's strident, casino-like colors overwhelm everything else in the room. Adding this cartoonish piece while simultaneously eliminating Edward Vason Jones' curtain tassels in the interest of 'simplification' is a classic case of straining out the gnat & gulping down the camel.

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    1. Bart, thank you for commenting. I could not agree more. Some decorators, and I direct this to them more than the First Ladies for the most part, appear to feel compelled to making changes just for the sake of leaving their mark on the White House rather than study what has worked - and what has not - in the past. The forthcoming posts will show previous schemes so The Devoted Readers can form their own opinions.

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  6. TDC and Simply Grand Bart are right to point out the big mistake of the new carpet.
    Entirely out of key with the everything else in that room, the eye is drawn to it
    in quite the wrong way. Change for the sake of change? More like a costly error.

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    1. Toby, I like a "snap" as much as anyone, but I am not convinced the floor was the place to do it. I have not seen this scheme in person, but I think I would find the rug uncharacteristically bright. Thank you for commenting.

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  7. Am completely in agreement with Simply Grand. The carpet is a garish horror, and the Greenbriar colors too extreme. I am glad the Bushes are no longer in the White House, for many reasons, and the redecoration of this room is yet another arrow to add to that quiver. But, to give them credit, at least they did not subject the room to the astonishingly untalented Kacki Hockersmith (SP?) that the Clintons unfortunately brought in. I will be interested to see the Michael Smith interiors of the Obamas, when they are (finally) revealed. Reggie

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    1. Reggie, thank you for commenting. The Clintons refurbished several State Rooms, but not the Green Room, as will be revealed in the fourth essay of this series. As for the Obama decoration of the White House with Michael Smith (which does not include the Green Room), I have had a sneak preview, but that's a whole other subject.

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  8. Okay everybody, so we don't like the room...but you have to admit Mrs. Bush's dress is sensational!

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    1. The Press Release described the dress as being Midnight Blue but did not mention the designer; in the transcript from the unveiling, I didn't see that anyone asked. It reminds me of Scassi -- but I should not even comment on women's fashions!

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  10. A bit late to the party am I, chiming in on a conversation nearly two years old, but I wanted to speak up to defend the apparently almost universally disliked Bush-era rug and color choices. It seems to me that this scheme has a more authentically Federal feel than any of the previous decorative attempts in this room. The Federal period was not an era of the greatest subtlety of color, and an Aubusson or Axminster carpet of the early 19th century was likely to be as bright as the rug placed in the room by Mrs. Bush. I also feel the bright pop of red in upholstery and the curtain pelmets brings a vivacity to the room that is quite appropriate to its use as a space for entertaining groups of dressed-up visitors. This is, after all, a public space, not a private house where a quieter scheme might be called for. A further note is that I find the bright red accents really make the red silks in the Franklin portrait "sing".

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    1. William B, it is never too late to comment. We all welcome a well-presented opinion as part of the discussion. You are welcome and it is hoped that you will continue to share your observations.

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