Tulip Days in DC Shine a Light on Shared US, Netherlands Values
Spring, to the Dutch, means tulips in full bloom, and April brought a blast of color to the Sheridan-Kalorama neighborhood. More than 10,000 of the perennial flowers decorated the residence of the ambassador of The Netherlands.
Guests, including 40 contest winners, were invited to take in the blooms, including one named after U.S. First Lady Jill Biden, and to hold some serious discussions during Tulip Days, from April 10-12. Freedom, sustainability, and innovation were the topics.
“These are the values that bind us together,” Dutch Ambassador Birgitta Tazelaar told visitors on April 11. “We are spending these three days discussing these values.”
The Netherlands has already given over €2.63 billion ($2.8 billion) in military support to Ukraine, with another €2 billion set aside for 2024, according to the Dutch government’s website. The country of 17.7 million—roughly twice the population of New York City—has also provided funds for humanitarian aid, reconstruction, and victims of war; provided Ukraine with medicine and relief goods and supported investigations of human rights and international humanitarian law violations.
Pierre Bonnard Exhibit at Phillips Collection Adds to France’s Big Year
Bonnard’s Worlds doesn’t take the typical route of a retrospective. Instead of a chronological exploration of Pierre Bonnard’s work, the journey is taken by setting and place. Paintings made decades apart but inspired by the same locale hang side by side.
“This is an artist who is steeped in communicating through art his intangible thoughts and feelings,” Phillips chief curator Elsa Smithgall told The Washington Diplomat. “It just became a kind of organizing idea to say: What if we look at Bonnard’s work through that lens and start with the exterior world, beautiful sundrenched landscapes and luscious gardens and views on the terrace, and gradually make our way into those quieter moments, the domestic spaces of his homes?”
It’s a big year for France, the country of Bonnard’s birth, life, and death. Impressionism celebrates its 150th anniversary. The 80th anniversary of D-Day is approaching. And of course, the Olympics await. The Phillips Collection makes a welcome addition to the list with this look at Bonnard and the way his paintbrush feasted on France. This marks the first major retrospective of Bonnard’s work at the museum in two decades. The exhibition delivers a compelling argument in favor of the talent of the often-overlooked member of the post-impressionist group of French painters known as the Nabis.
Panama Takes the Cake in the Embassy Chef Challenge
After sampling an array of culinary delights prepared by embassy chefs representing more than 20 nations from Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe, and Latin America, and presented in sumptuous Union Station (made even more sumptuous by the absence of its usual horde of harried commuters) judges awarded Panamanian Embassy Chef Jovana Urriola the top prize in the Judge’s Choice category. Her winning dish at the March 7 event was Panamanian style Afro Caribbean chicken tamale dumplings.
*For more articles on diplomatic events and news, visit The Washington Diplomat
