Description

Dad visited Washington, D.C. once in 1979 with my brother and again with me, in 2008. Both times, he toured the many monuments, always carrying his easel and paints.

One of his most striking works from those trips is this one, a spring watercolor of the Peace Monument at the northwest entrance of the United States Capitol complex.

The Peace Monument, made of white marble and sculpted by Franklin Simmons in 1878, commemorates the naval deaths at sea during the American Civil War. While Dad wasn't aware of the detailed history before him (we briefly discussed it upon arriving), he understood its significance just by its serene beauty, and most especially with the U.S. Capitol in the background.

Dad was a proud American, and we were a proud Hungarian-American family, emigrating to the United States in 1956 after escaping Communist Hungary. We knew the value of freedom and deeply appreciated what America gave us.

As an expressionist, Dad had a way of making colors dance on the paper, reflecting his feelings more than the actual scene. In this work, he used bold strokes and bright hues to bring out the monument's grace mixed with his American pride. His choice of colors—rich blues, deep greens, and flashes of red—captures not just the scene before him, but even more-so his own Americanism.

His art never was just about what he saw but also how he felt, and, I feel, that’s what makes it so special.

Today, as I look at his breadth of work, I feel a connection to Dad and the way he viewed life—full of color, emotion, and deep respect for the stories of humanity.

On this day in 2008, Dad saw and painted the Capitol Peace. ❤️

Through My Father's Eyes