Once upon a time, it was fashionable for Washingtonians to bash the French. After France decided not to support U.S. military decisions in Iraq – sacre bleu! Congress petulantly changed its menus from French fries to “freedom” fries, patriotic Americans shattered expensive bottles of French wine in the street and time-wasting jokers nationwide Googled the phrase “French military victories” only to have Google politely ask, “Did you mean French military defeats?”
Apparently, D.C. has gotten over it. March is the second month of the citywide Paris on the Potomac festival, which celebrates the District’s ties to French culture and art until Memorial Day. The festival features more than 80 exhibits, events, performances and special menus at numerous restaurants, clubs and museums around town. It was sponsored in part by Cultural Tourism D.C., which coordinated the assemblage of the events.
“We put the package together by meeting with museums and looking for commonalities,” said Rebecca Pawlowski, media relations manager for Cultural Tourism D.C. “We noticed this year that a lot of museums had French exhibits coming up, so it was a natural combination.”
“We are a liason between the museums, the restaurants and hotels,” said Pawlowski. “We communicated with them to help come up with things on their menu to highlight and what to promote.”
What to do
Ever since Pierre L’Enfant mapped out the streets of the city in 1791, Washington, D.C. has benefited from an influence that is distinctly French. Many of the events associated with Paris on the Potomac are designed to explore the city from a new European perspective. For example, the organization Bike the Sites offers a three-hour guided bicycle tour of the sweeping plazas and boulevards of L’Enfant’s plan. The U.S. Capitol Historical Society hosts a weekly lecture exploring L’Enfant’s vision and examining French-inspired architecture throughout the city.
History, too, is examined in exhibits at museums such as the International Spy Museum, which explains the network of spies throughout Europe for the French crown in “Spies at Court.” The Decatur House Museum, located across from the White House in Lafayette Square, portrays the relationships between the White House and many famous international residents of the house in “First Neighbors: Decatur House Residents and the Presidents.” The Carlyle House Historic Park in Alexandria pays homage to the building’s significance in the French and Indian War.
An area of expertise for which the French may be best known, however, is cuisine. Washingtonians are fortunate enough to have a taste of France in the numerous menu offerings that Paris on the Potomac brings to the city. Many local restaurants have added special French meals to their menus, such as the Ritz-Carlton, which offers a “Springtime in France” Sunday menu that allows patrons to experience food from a different region of the country each week (March 20 to May 15). Both Dish Restaurant on 25th Street and the restaurant 1789 on 36th Street offer escargot for the very bravest of epicures.
However, the biggest feature of Paris on the Potomac is the arts. Three major art museums will feature artwork by French artists: the National gallery, The Phillips Collection and the National Museum of Women in the Arts. Even GW’s own Luther Brady Art Gallery, which is located on the second floor of the School of Media and Public Affairs, has joined the festival with selections from the University’s permanent collection.
Highlighted exhibits include the National Museum of Women in the Arts’ “Berthe Morisot: An Impressionist and her Circle,” The Phillips Collection’s “Modigliani: Behind the Myth,” and several offerings at the National Gallery, such as the museum’s French paintings in the permanent collection, photographer Andre Kertesz, and the recently-opened “Toulouse-Lautrec and Montmarte.” The exhibit features 250 works by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and some of his contemporaries, including famous posters and paintings of the Moulin Rouge. The exhibit drew a record crowd for its March 20 opening.
“More than 9,000 visitors saw the exhibition ‘Toulouse-Lautrec and Montmartre’ on opening day,” said Deborah Ziska, The National Gallery’s chief of press. The opening was the museum’s largest first-day attendance in 15 years.
So, does Paris on the Potomac mark the official end of the age of freedom fries and French bashing? Oui oui – though restaurants on the Hill aren’t likely to add frog legs to their menus any time soon, 9,000 visitors can’t be wrong.
A full schedule of events can be found at www.parisonthepotomac.org.
