The Green Room is
used throughout the year for small teas and receptions. It also
houses exemplary art, such as the renowned portrait of Benjamin Franklin
by David
Martin, which hangs above the fireplace. On both sides of the handsome
Duncan Phyfe
settee stand two topiaries filled with fresh roses. But it is the
mantelpiece of
the Green Room that is the center of attention, adorned with a creation
by Colette
Peters, a well-known confectionary artist in New York City. This
exquisite display
is an edible Ice Palace made of royal icing and surrounded by a lush Ice
Garden.
The official White House tree stands in the Blue Room. This year an eighteen-foot balsam fir was presented to the President and Mrs. Clinton by Silent Night Evergreens in Endeavor, Wisconsin. The tree was given to the White House by Jim and Diane Chapman and their children Daniel, David, Julia, Laura and Rachel. The Chapmans won the honor after being named the 1998 National Grand Champion Growers by The National Christmas Tree Association. The Blue Room Tree is decorated with interpretations celebrating Winter Wonderland from artists across the nation. Snowmen from all fifty states were made by individuals recommended by the Governor of each state. The warmth of the room is captured with knitted mittens and hats from members of The Knitting Guild of America, and the thrill of winter sports is depicted in colorful wooden ornaments made by artists from the Society of Decorative Painters. The green velvet handmade tree skirt was designed by individuals from each of the fifty states, territories and the District of Columbia in celebration of the Clinton family's first holiday season at the White House. The dramatic Red Room features Colette Peters's second confectionary masterpiece, a Polar Bear Christmas at the North Pole complete with an igloo, penguins, snowflakes, icicles and a snow tree with ice cube presents. The traditional cranberry tree sits atop the most important piece of American Empire furniture in the White House collection, the marble top center table made in New York around 1810 by Charles-Honore Lannuier. |
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