The President’s House was a major feature of Pierre Charles L'Enfant's 1791 plan for the city of Washington. He envisioned a vast palace for the nation’s leader, a building five times the size of the residence that would eventually be planned and constructed under the watchful eye of President George Washington. Since then, the White House has been burned, reconstructed, renovated, designed, and redesigned, and it remains the home of the presidents of the United States.

In this series, four noted specialists explore aspects of every corner of the famous building at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, where every decision, no matter how seemingly insignificant, has political ramifications. Participants at each program receive a copy of the speaker’s corresponding large-format, illustrated book published by the White House Historical Association.

FEATURED TOPIC

Art

Art collections typically have an underlying common theme that unifies the works. What might be the central message behind the collection of 500 paintings, sculptures, and drawings that are part of the household collections of the White House? Bill Kloss, author of Art in the White House: A Nation’s Pride, discusses in detail a number of works of art and their historical and artistic significance.

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