Washington's Headquarters and Storm King Art Center

Chain & Boom 

We visited today Washington's Headquarters and home. First we took a tour in the museum. We learned about battle tactics American soldiers used to prevent British ships moving upstream in the Hudson River. The 'chevaux-de-frise' for example, are large log boxes filled with wooden timbers with iron points that were placed right beneath waters to keep British ships from  moving upstream in the Hudson River. This tactic was invented in 1777 and these long wooden points were usually about 30 feet long. The 'chain & boom' was another tactic used were large heavy logs joined by chains were placed into waters horizontally. They were used along the Hudson River up to West Point. The purpose of these large chained logs was to absorb the shock of British vessels attempting to ram and

Painting of Washington (this portrait is also seen on the $1 bill!)

break the chain. This, instead, would cause damage to the vessel itself and prevent them from passing.
We later saw a large George Washington portrait in the next room. It looked brand new. The conservators who helped restore it did a really great job, you can't really tell that it has been damaged before. This portrait was painted by Cornelius Hinckley after George Washington's death. He wanted to integrate elements into the portrait that symbolized Washington's life, such as the American flag on the chair which was represented Washington's belief in establishing an American republic.On August 1782, Washington established the first military medal. It was called the Badge of Military Merit and was made of purple silk or cloth. He appointed it to three men in his cabinet and this granted them privileged normally reserved to officers.  I never knew that the Purple Heart derived from the early Military Merit.
Then we went into George Washington's home. This place was so dark that it was making me really sleepy and I did not like that. I could barely keep my eyes open. And I did not get as much information on the house because I was having a hard time understanding out tour guide. It's like she would sometimes talk fast

Room in Washington's headquarters

and slur her words or talk really low, but I don't know. There was just something about her tone that I couldn't understand when she spoke.. The house seemed really small and it's hard to imagine how so many people lived in that tight space. I did not really like the home...there was nothing there that interested me or caught my attention... maybe because I could not understand our tour guide or the house itself did not seem all that great.

Small 3 Heads, Six Arms

After our tour, we went to Storm King Art Center. Now this place was really fun and interesting. I loved it. I like abstract art because no one can tell you how you should look at it, it's open to your imagination and interpretation and it is neither right nor wrong (and I'm starting to think I like abstract art more than paintings). One of my favourite pieces was the wedges on the land. I like how the artist was creative in incorporating nature with art to make an piece that tells a story about the environment. We often miss how beautiful and relaxing nature can be because we are so busy with our fast-paced city lives. I wish they would add more pieces to this Art Center, I felt like there was too many extra space on the land and they should add more sculptures there. But I really liked the artwork of Zhang Huan, especially is piece 'Small 3 Heads, Six Arms.' It was a sculpture made of copper, it had a Buddhist head with two human heads, and six arms. the inspiration came from seeing a bronze figure
with a damaged arm he bought at a Tibetan shop. I really liked the artwork called "sea change." It was made by a fisherman who was inspired in mimicking the gentle changes and currents in water on the sea he fished at. I thought this was a really good piece. I would definitely come back to this place again.

Another favourite piece: “Peace No. 2,” 2001.