The National Gallery of Portraiture

Today a bunch of us went over to Chinatown and visited the Smithsonian National Gallery of Portraiture. The gallery itself was pretty cool with a whole section dedicated to former American Presidents. There are also portraits of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young. There’s even the notorious portrait of Stephen Colbert right outside the restrooms.

(Soap Box moment: It was pretty sad to see a huge portrait of George Washington on one wall and Colbert’s on the other wall and to see the huge line to get a picture taken with Colbert’s portrait and people just rushing past George Washington’s. Our obsession with pop culture is understandable, but a little sad.)

But I had trouble enjoying the gallery because I spent the entire time with one thought on my mind.

Portraiture is not a word.

Now before all you readers get in a huff and start posting comments about how I’m mistaken and portraiture is in fact a word, let me say this: of course I know it’s actually a word (I know that because when I type it into Microsoft Word, it doesn’t underline it with a red squiggly line). The point I’m trying to make is that in the English language there are too many words that someone has decided should be words.

Who was that, by the way? Who in history got to have the coolest job ever and make up words?

Anyway, I’m just saying that when you use the word portraiture, you sound ridiculous, and I just expected more from the Smithsonian Institute.

Of course there was also the strange statue of a cowboy on a blue horse out front. That was a little bizarre.