Cabinet Room
Encyclopedia
The Cabinet Room is the meeting room for the cabinet secretaries and advisors serving the President of the United States
. The body is defined as the United States Cabinet
. The Cabinet Room is located in the West Wing
of the White House Complex
, adjoining the Oval Office
, and looks out upon the White House Rose Garden
.
Though completed in 1934 the room is built in the Georgian style
. The neoclassical ceiling molding with triglyph
s was installed in 1934. A series of French doors topped with arched lunette windows are located on the east side of the room. A fireplace, flanked by two niches is located on the north side of the room. Busts of George Washington
and Benjamin Franklin
by Jean-Antoine Houdon
fill the niches. Above the mantel hangs a painting titled "The Signing of the Declaration of Independence" by Charles Édouard Armand-Dumaresq
, (French, 1826–1895). Additional portraits along the west wall are chosen by an incumbent president. The large elliptical mahogany table was a gift from President Richard Nixon
in 1970. The president and the cabinet secretaries' chairs are copies of a late-eighteenth century design. The president's chair is centered on the table on the east side of the room. The back of the president's chair is two inches taller than the cabinet secretaries. Engraved brass plates with the names of the cabinet positions are attached to the back of the chairs. The president's simply says "THE PRESIDENT." The chairs are purchased by the cabinet members, and some cabinet members have had their chairs returned to the cabinet room for several positions and administrations.
In 2006 the room was refurbished somewhat similar to its appearance during the administration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt when the West Wing and current Cabinet Room were largely rebuilt following damages from a fire at the end of the Herbert Hoover
administration. This includes Art Deco
style wall sconces with spread eagles supporting internally lit globes. Three overhead Moderne style
glass pendant lights were recreated from old photographs and a similar surviving example in a hallway between the Oval Office
and Roosevelt Room
. The room is painted an off-white color called deauville. A custom made carpet, in shades of carmine
, old gold
, sapphire
and fern green with a pattern of overscaled stars and olive leaves was woven for the room.
The refurbishment of White House rooms is jointly undertaken by the Curator of the White House, the Committee for the Preservation of the White House
, and White House Historical Association
. Costs relating to construction are often funded by the White House Endowment Trust
. The purchase of fine art, historic furniture, or the recreation of period decorative arts, is frequently paid for by the White House Acquisition Trust
.
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
. The body is defined as the United States Cabinet
United States Cabinet
The Cabinet of the United States is composed of the most senior appointed officers of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States, which are generally the heads of the federal executive departments...
. The Cabinet Room is located in the West Wing
West Wing
The West Wing is the building housing the official offices of the President of the United States. It is the part of the White House Complex in which the Oval Office, the Cabinet Room, the Situation Room, and the Roosevelt Room are located...
of the White House Complex
White House Complex
The White House Complex is the designation of the three principal structures and the adjoining outdoor ceremonial areas, which, along with the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, serve as the seat of the executive branch of United States government...
, adjoining the Oval Office
Oval Office
The Oval Office, located in the West Wing of the White House, is the official office of the President of the United States.The room features three large south-facing windows behind the president's desk, and a fireplace at the north end...
, and looks out upon the White House Rose Garden
White House Rose Garden
The White House Rose Garden is a garden bordering the Oval Office and the West Wing of the White House. The garden is approximately 125 feet long and 60 feet wide...
.
Though completed in 1934 the room is built in the Georgian style
Georgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
. The neoclassical ceiling molding with triglyph
Triglyph
Triglyph is an architectural term for the vertically channeled tablets of the Doric frieze, so called because of the angular channels in them, two perfect and one divided, the two chamfered angles or hemiglyphs being reckoned as one. The square recessed spaces between the triglyphs on a Doric...
s was installed in 1934. A series of French doors topped with arched lunette windows are located on the east side of the room. A fireplace, flanked by two niches is located on the north side of the room. Busts of George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
and Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
by Jean-Antoine Houdon
Jean-Antoine Houdon
Jean-Antoine Houdon was a French neoclassical sculptor. Houdon is famous for his portrait busts and statues of philosophers, inventors and political figures of the Enlightenment...
fill the niches. Above the mantel hangs a painting titled "The Signing of the Declaration of Independence" by Charles Édouard Armand-Dumaresq
Charles Édouard Armand-Dumaresq
Charles Édouard Armand-Dumaresq is a French painter, primarily of religious and military subjects....
, (French, 1826–1895). Additional portraits along the west wall are chosen by an incumbent president. The large elliptical mahogany table was a gift from President Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
in 1970. The president and the cabinet secretaries' chairs are copies of a late-eighteenth century design. The president's chair is centered on the table on the east side of the room. The back of the president's chair is two inches taller than the cabinet secretaries. Engraved brass plates with the names of the cabinet positions are attached to the back of the chairs. The president's simply says "THE PRESIDENT." The chairs are purchased by the cabinet members, and some cabinet members have had their chairs returned to the cabinet room for several positions and administrations.
In 2006 the room was refurbished somewhat similar to its appearance during the administration of Franklin Delano Roosevelt when the West Wing and current Cabinet Room were largely rebuilt following damages from a fire at the end of the Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
administration. This includes Art Deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
style wall sconces with spread eagles supporting internally lit globes. Three overhead Moderne style
Streamline Moderne
Streamline Moderne, sometimes referred to by either name alone or as Art Moderne, was a late type of the Art Deco design style which emerged during the 1930s...
glass pendant lights were recreated from old photographs and a similar surviving example in a hallway between the Oval Office
Oval Office
The Oval Office, located in the West Wing of the White House, is the official office of the President of the United States.The room features three large south-facing windows behind the president's desk, and a fireplace at the north end...
and Roosevelt Room
Roosevelt Room
The Roosevelt Room is a meeting room in the West Wing of the White House, the official home and principal workplace of the President of the United States. Located almost in the center of the West Wing, and near the Oval Office the room is named for two related U.S. presidents, Theodore Roosevelt...
. The room is painted an off-white color called deauville. A custom made carpet, in shades of carmine
Carmine
Carmine , also called Crimson Lake, Cochineal, Natural Red #4, C.I. 75470, or E120, is a pigment of a bright-red color obtained from the aluminum salt of carminic acid, which is produced by some scale insects, such as the cochineal beetle and the Polish cochineal, and is used as a general term for...
, old gold
Old Gold
Old gold is a dark yellow, which varies from light olive or olive brown to deep or strong yellow. The widely-accepted color "Old gold" is on the darker rather than the lighter side of this range....
, sapphire
Sapphire (color)
Sapphire is a saturated shade of blue, referring to the gem of the same name. Sapphire gems are most commonly found in a range of blue shades...
and fern green with a pattern of overscaled stars and olive leaves was woven for the room.
The refurbishment of White House rooms is jointly undertaken by the Curator of the White House, the Committee for the Preservation of the White House
Committee for the Preservation of the White House
The Committee for the Preservation of the White House is an advisory committee charged with the preservation of the White House, the official home and principal workplace of the President of the United States...
, and White House Historical Association
White House Historical Association
The White House Historical Association, founded in 1961 through efforts of First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy is a private, non-profit organization with a mission to enhance the public's understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment of the White House, the official home and principal workplace of the...
. Costs relating to construction are often funded by the White House Endowment Trust
White House Endowment Trust
The White House Endowment Trust, sometimes also called the White House Endowment Fund, is a private, non-profit, tax-exempt fund established to finance the ongoing restoration and refurbishment of the state rooms at the White House, the official home and principal workplace of the President of the...
. The purchase of fine art, historic furniture, or the recreation of period decorative arts, is frequently paid for by the White House Acquisition Trust
White House Acquisition Trust
The White House Acquisition Trust is a private, non-profit, tax-exempt fund established to finance the purchase of fine art and decorative arts for the White House, the official home and principal workplace of the President of the United States. The fund is funded by private donation, through...
.
Further reading
- Abbott James A., and Elaine M. Rice. Designing Camelot: The Kennedy White House Restoration. Van Nostrand Reinhold: 1998. ISBN 0-442-02532-7.
- Garrett, Wendell. Our Changing White House. Northeastern University Press: 1995. ISBN 1-55553-222-5.
- Kloss. William, Doreen Bolger, David Park Curry, et al. Art in the White House, A Nation's Pride, White House Historical Association and Harry Abrams: 1992. ISBN 0-8109-3965-7.
- Monkman, Betty C. The White House: The Historic Furnishing & First Families. Abbeville Press: 2000. ISBN 0-7892-0624-2.
- Seale, William. The President's House. White House Historical Association and the National Geographic Society: 1986. ISBN 0-912308-28-1.
- Seale, William, The White House: The History of an American Idea. White House Historical Association: 1992, 2001. ISBN 0-912308-85-0.
- The White House: An Historic Guide. White House Historical Association and the National Geographic Society: 2006. ISBN 0-912308-79-6.