A Political Parlor
In 2016, I was painting the parlor of the 1894 Cross House. Hillary Clinton had been nominated for president by The Democratic Party. And at one point, as my hand was up in the air painting the ceiling, a thought struck me: When this room was was built women didn’t even have the right to vote.
That was 1894. But, 122-years later, women had not only had the right to vote since 1919, but a woman had been nominated for president by a major political party for the first time. And that candidate? She ended up receiving more votes than any White man in history. This would have been unthinkable in 1894.
As I stood on the scaffolding with this realization, I had another thought: I want this milestone memorialized in this Victorian-era room:
Hillary, in a 1993 portrait by Annie Leibovitz. This is the SW corner.
It thrilled me that the finished parlor was able to do two things:
- Be respectful of the era in which it was built
- Be respectful that time had passed, and new social and political norms, once unthinkable, had come into being.
Thus, the parlor was not frozen to a single moment but rather reflected…the passage time.
I love this. So, I decided that Hillary needed a, ahh, complement:
In 2014, the White House was lighted in rainbow colors to celebrate the creation of marriage equality. This is the NW corner.
This was also unthinkable in 1894. Indeed, homosexuality was something that could land one in jail. In 1957, the year I was born, homosexuality was considered a mental disorder.
The NE corner has remained bare however as the plan was to install a flat-screen TV on the wall. However, it seems unlikely that I will ever do this so I have been pondering what to hang on the wall. Then it became obvious:
Pete Buttigieg. Another Annie Leibovitz portrait.
A gay man running credibly for president? Pass the smelling salts! For this, too, would have been unthinkable in 1894. Unthinkable!
I love love love my parlor. When one first walks in, the initial impression is that it reflects the era in which it was built. This impression soon fades as inspecting the various elements reveals quite another story.
Time passes. Social norms evolve and change. And, while I adore my Victorian-era house, I am deeply grateful that I am not living in such a restrictive era.
NOTE: The portraits in the parlor were all printed here.
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Right on!
Yes!
A couple more and you’ll have an Annie Leibovitz gallery. It’s a lovely room, and yes, it reflects the past and present very nicely indeed.
Thank you, Arkay.
I have an Obama family portrait that I’m seeking the perfect frame for.
That will hang in the SE corner. It’s not large.
Perfect!
An absolutely perfect addition.
Isn’t Pete in one of the beautiful frames you fell in love with a while back and hung on the wall empty? Perhaps another example of: if you clear a space for it , it will come?(Caveat of :if you build it,they will come)
Yes, Linda. Pete is in one of the “new” frames.
Well done. A room with a view…a view of hope for a better future for everyone.
A room with a view of hope…..beautiful sentiment!
I am so thankful for our freedoms and freedom to choose….
By the way, the amendment giving women the right to vote was 1920…
Hi, Sandra!
The right of women to vote was passed by Congress on June 4, 1919, and ratified on August 18, 1920.
So, I chose the first date. Initially, I wrote 1919/20, but I thought this looked confusing!
Dearest Ross:-)
The amendment giving women the right to vote was ratified in 1920 & that is meaningful as it became law. The 1919 date was stupendous because the amendment passed. I like that it’s 100 years since it became law.
Sandra, you are so right. My aunt (1920-2016) lived long enough to be able to cast a vote for Hillary in the Democratic primary, but passed away a few weeks before the presidential election. Her daughter-in-law (a real prude) expressed her dismay that Aunt Lorene would vote for a woman, and my sweet little aunt replied “I am much more concerned with what’s between the president’s ears than what’s between their legs”. Cousin Linda nearly fainted at that, while I was literally rolling on the floor!
What a hoot & feisty little old lady! 96 & what a long wonderful life! Such a funny story.
LOVE your way to acknowledge how far we have come (and realize that you know we have a lot further to go!).
Intelligent dedication of the parlor to the times. We have come a long way.
Love the portrait of Pete. The black and white photo and vintage frame marry the old with the new so well!
It is nicely symbolic.
I love it! The room looks amazing! The portrait of Barack will complete it!! 🙂
Oooh, the Buttigieg portrait is a stunner! Perfect frame & place for it, as well. 💜 I’m also glad the electronic media will be elsewhere. Media certainly has it’s place but, isn’t a parlor where people relate to and, “get to know” each other? Art can help people bring the important conversations into greater focus & this entire room has become a warm, lively place to relate! ☺
My niggling itch … the Hillary photo seems unnecessarily boxed into a series of squares. I mean, it’s fine but, a strong photo can handle an equally strong frame, yes? The other, time-honored frames work beautifully with the room and deftly enhance their subjects. Personally, I think the Hillary photo would benefit from one of the handsome frames, as well. That said, I love them all! It will be exciting to see the Obama family take their place in this lovely room. 💜
Now that I’ve looked again, I agree with Kim. Any Annie Leibovitz photo needs a frame that sets off the photo. In this case, the frame does not do the photo justice.
Arkay, the images only partially reveal the parlor.
In person, the simple white frame picks up the white center table. As one moves through the room, the white shelving in the library is apparent. And the area rug has white.
In person, all these elements come together in a way not possible via a static image.
Also, the parlor was carefully choreographed. If I replace the Hillary frame with something akin to the Pete frame, the center table will look out-of-place. If I replace the table with a Victorian-era table, the area rug will look out-of-place. And so on.
So, while I agree that Hillary would likely look better in a different frame, the room likely would not.
Annie Leibovitz does excellent portraits. I don’t think I have ever seen one she did that didn’t look spectacular
This room makes my heart so happy. Ross, thank you for the work you do, and for sharing it with us. I love the concept of having the room reflect the passage of time. My significant other and I are restoring our depression-era minimal traditional home in the Pacific Northwest, and this gives me some good ideas. Thank you!
Very nice to meet you, Tara, and good luck on your home!
Your parlor is welcoming in all the right ways. I’m so happy to have seen this room in person, and I look forward to a day when it’s safe again to visit to see the photos of Pete Buttigieg and the Obama family.
I was SO a Mayor Pete fan — maybe next time….