The fifty-foot long mural by Naomi Savage in the Great Hall of  the Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library is quite stunning. It features five panels of deeply etched magnesium plates, each ten feet across and eight feet high. Her photographic engravings depict LBJ with Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, and lastly by himself as President of the United States.

I was thrilled to learn that Savage was the niece of famed photographer Man Ray.  He encouraged her to try anything – there was nothing you were told not to do, except spill the chemicals. She pioneered the use of photographic engravings for which she is best known, and had her first exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art in 1952. She came up with the idea after combining painting with photography. The actual metal photographic plate itself is the art, described as a kind of topographic photograph with forms in three dimensions and with a variety of metallic surfaces and tones. 

As you exit the galleries of the library  into the Great Hall, the glow of the murals slowly capture your attention. At first glance you’re not sure what you’re seeing. Then you’re drawn in by the texture, yet simultaneously  forced to step back to take in the grandness of the piece . With so much amazing texture, it’s very difficult not to walk up to the mural and run your hands over it… it begs to be touched. Yes, I behaved myself.  But I did take a selfie in front of it to give it a sense of scale… ok, who am I kidding. I’m just a totally nerdy narcissist. The next time you’re in Austin, Texas, be sure and check out the LBJ Presidential Library.