August 16, 2018

In 2018, the National Portrait Gallery at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its founding in 1968. The National Portrait Gallery exhibits likenesses of people who have contributed significantly to the history, development, and culture of the United States. As part of its 50th anniversary program, the museum updated and relaunched its celebrated collection of presidential portraits in late 2017. The collection kicked off 2018 with the February unveiling of its two newest works: portraits of former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama.

The National Portrait Gallery unveiled its new painting of President Barack Obama on Feb. 12, 2018. Credit: Barack Obama (2018), oil on canvas by Kehinde Wiley; Smithsonian Institution

The National Portrait Gallery has the only complete collection of U.S. presidential portraits outside the White House. The gallery’s revamped collection, called “America’s Presidents,” differs from the White House’s, offering alternate versions of portraits and presenting them in a much grander style. It is not all just paintings, either. Bas-reliefs, busts, coins, death masks, hand casts, photographs, sketches, videos, and newspaper articles accompany the portraits, offering multiple and sometimes tactile bridges between art, history, and reality. The presidential exhibition’s thorough modernization includes improved lighting, new labels and wall texts, and the addition of interactive touch screens allowing visitors to explore the context of each president’s time in office.

Gilbert Stuart’s full-length portrait of George Washington welcomes visitors to the America’s Presidents exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery. Credit: George Washington (Lansdowne portrait) (1796), oil on canvas by Gilbert Stuart; Smithsonian Institution

America’s Presidents showcases the first 44 presidents, starting with Gilbert Stuart’s full-length “Lansdowne” portrait of George Washington. Recently restored for the exhibition’s relaunch, Washington’s portrait stands tall at the entrance, beckoning people within. Stuart’s famous unfinished “Atheneum” portraits of Washington and his wife, the first First Lady Martha Custis Washington, flank the Lansdowne painting to each side. 

This portrait of Abraham Lincoln shows him as he looked in 1860. Credit: Abraham Lincoln (1887), oil on canvas by George Peter Alexander Healy; Smithsonian Institution

Inside, visitors experience a walking timeline of U.S. history, passing from president to president as if they were there to shake your hand and personally tell you the glories and trials of their administrations. The exhibition is divided into chronological sections: 1789-1827: Building the Presidency; 1828-1860: Democracy and Expansion; 1861-1900: The Crisis of the Union; 1901-1932: Social Reform; 1933-1989: Negotiating World Peace; and 1990-2017: Contemporary Presidency.

This unique portrait of Franklin Delano Roosevelt is part of the “1933-1989: Negotiating World Peace” section of the America’s Presidents exhibition. Credit: Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1945), oil on canvas by Douglas Chandor; Smithsonian Institution

Not every president gets equal time, however. Six presidents are given extra attention because of their significant impact on the office: George Washington, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Ronald Reagan.

This portrait is one of three of President Ronald Reagan included in America’s Presidents. Credit: Ronald Reagan (1991), oil on canvas by Everett Raymond Kinstler; Smithsonian Institution

March 7, 2016

Yesterday, March 6, former U.S. First Lady Nancy Davis Reagan died at her home in Los Angeles. Reagan had shared the White House with her husband, President Ronald Reagan, from 1981 to 1989. She was 94 years old.

Nancy Reagan
Credit: Library of Congress

Mrs. Reagan was born Anne Frances Robbins in 1921. Nicknamed Nancy, she grew up in New York City and Chicago. Her mother’s second husband, Loyal Davis, adopted Nancy and her last name changed from Robbins to Davis.

Nancy Davis graduated from Smith College in 1943, where she majored in drama. She became an actress in Hollywood, where she appeared in 11 motion pictures from 1949 to 1958. Her major films include East Side, West Side (1949), Night into Morning (1951), Donovan’s Brain (1953), and Hellcats of the Navy (1957).

Nancy Davis met actor Ronald Reagan in 1951, and they married the following year. They had two children, Patricia Ann, in 1952; and Ronald Prescott, in 1958. Ronald Reagan became active in conservative politics in the 1950’s. He served as the Republican governor of California before being elected president in 1980. As first lady, Nancy Reagan was a force behind the scenes in the White House. Her husband listened to her and most often followed her advice—from firing staff members she felt to be incompetent to apologizing on national television for his role in the Iran-contra scandal of the 1980′s. Mrs. Reagan spoke out against the use of illegal drugs, especially by young people. The slogan of the effort, “Just Say No,” became nationally known. After Ronald Reagan’s presidency ended in 1989, the Reagans moved to their ranch near Santa Barbara, California. Nancy Reagan continued her efforts to reduce drug abuse in the United States.

In 1994, Ronald Reagan revealed that he was suffering from the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease. The disease causes an increasing loss of memory and other mental processes. Mrs. Reagan became known as a supporter of research on embryonic stem cells to find a treatment or cure for the disease. Ronald Reagan died of pneumonia complicated by Alzheimer’s disease in 2004.

Other World Book articles

• President of the United States  (Back in time articles) 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988.    
• Ronald Reagan: 1911-2004 (a Special report)