Have you seen this?  the Smithsonian’s monthly ‘Focus’ newsletter collects interesting goings-on from around the Institution about collections, events, research, online features and fun factoids.

  Smithsonian Focus September 2007.htm

This month, I discovered that the Smithsonian owns the collection of (often) specially-commissioned Time magazine covers, now numbering over 2,000 works of art.  Did you also know that the Portrait Gallery has a collection of ‘hedcuts’ – those iconic portraits from the front page of the Wall Street Journal?  Both collections have awesome websites – Cover Art, The Time Collection and Picturing Business in America. 

Regardless of their scale, the portraits here are poignant, inspirational, sometimes humorous -basically, the essence of great portraiture. (and of the Portrait Gallery itself!)

To sign up for Smithsonian Focus, click here.  and enjoy!