Holiday Book Festival!—Architecture and Places

1610 H Street Northwest,Washington DC 20006

30 November, 2021

Description

Meet the authors during the White House Historical Association's Holiday Book Festival! The White House Historical Association will be hosting a week long lunchtime Holiday Book Festival with different authors featured each day! Signing Daily: Marcia Anderson and Kristen Mason authors of The Official White House Ornament: Collected Stories of A Holiday Tradition. Enter a raffle to win an original drawing by artist John Hutton! Featured Authors for Tuesday, November 30: Stewart D. McLaurin will be signing James Hoban: Designing and Builder of the White House. Thomas Luebke will be signing Palace of State: The Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Matthew R. Costello will be signing The Property of the Nation: George Washington's Tomb, Mount Vernon, and the Memory of the First President. Issued annually by the White House Historical Association, Official White House Christmas Ornaments are hung on millions of Christmas trees each December. But the ornament program did not begin as a series. When the Angel Gabriel ornament was issued by the Association in 1981, it was an immediate success and the phenomenon began. Today the ornaments are a popular collector’s item and a long-standing and beloved tradition. This book includes the collected stories behind the design of each of the forty-one ornaments issued from 1981 to 2021. The forty-first ornament, made for 2021, honors President Lyndon B. Johnson. With this anthology, the world’s most knowledgeable scholars on James Hoban introduce us to him, presenting the story of his life, influences, and work. The essays are followed by an illustrated catalog of nearly 100 images of historic Dublin, Irish Country Houses, the White House, and sites known to James Hoban in America. This is the second book in a series on the design and construction of the White House published but the White House Historical Association. The Dwight D. Eisenhower Executive Office Building is an iconic monument with a prominent place within the history of the United States government. This illustrated history details the building's rich architecture and historical legacy, walking the reader through its inception to the building's current condition of the culturally rich rooms found throughout the Executive Office. Featuring beautifully rendered architectural plans, historic images, and rich contemporary photography, Palace of State creates a comprehensive study of this celebrated nineteenth-century landmark that continues to serve its role as an enduring setting for matters of state. In this book, historian Dr. Matthew R. Costello traces the story of Washington’s tomb, whose history and popularity reflect the building of a memory of America’s first president—of, by, and for the American people. George Washington was an affluent slave owner who believed that republicanism and social hierarchy were vital to the young country’s survival. And yet, he remains largely free of the “elitist” label affixed to his contemporaries, as Washington evolved in public memory during the nineteenth century into a man of the common people, the father of democracy. This memory, we learn in The Property of the Nation, was a deliberately constructed image, shaped and reshaped over time, generally in service of one cause or another. The White House Historical Association published its first book, The White House: An Historic Guide, in 1962. It was the wish of First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy that such a book be written, and she participated actively in the editing. For nearly sixty years, the Association has continued to produce award-winning books on a wide range of subjects related to the history of the President’s House, from its architecture, gardens, fine and decorative arts to the presidents and first ladies who lived there over the years. Our list includes titles that will appeal to history buffs and art lovers, connoisseurs and curious amateurs, scholars and tourists, adults and children. All proceeds from the sale of the Association’s books and products are used to fund the acquisition of historic furnishings and artwork for the permanent White House Collection, assist in the preservation of public rooms, and further its educational mission. The White House Historical Association is a nonprofit nonpartisan organization, chartered on November 3, 1961, to enhance the understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment of the historic White House. Income from the sale of the Association's books and guides is used as well to acquire historical furnishings and memorabilia for the White House.