January 25th, 2012 Issue

Pablo Picasso was a master draftsman. Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione paved the road to Impressionism. And at last, we have our French galleries back, offering a renewed showcase for the Chester Dale Collection. And it's all at the National Gallery of Art.

Ari Shapiro, White House Correspondent for National Public Radio, moonlights as a singer in the band, Pink Martini, and last year made the local scene at Bethesda's Strathmore. But the story's a little wilder than that.

Annie Leibovitz was a 21-year-old student when her portrait of John Lennon ran on the cover of Rolling Stone in 1971. Now, for the first time in her career, she works beyond the pop culture lens with an exhibit at the American Art Museum.

Kay Jackson is a local artist whose paintings have garnered national and international acclaim. Her current exhibition at Addison/Ripley Fine art, running through March 3, continues her decades-long pursuit and calls upon the near extinct artistic tradition of gilding to help communicate her vision.

How do you tell your new partner that you have a disorder? Why do the holidays seem to reignite the passion among old flames? With a professional eye for our personal challenges, Stacy Murphy weighs in.

The GOP primary race remains a wacky brew, although one with fewer fixins. This week, four remain, and the man at the top is not Mitt Romney.