Note: All submitted events must be approved before they appear in the calendar.
Hear from professionals who work in the arts, then sharpen your own creative skills with a hands-on activity related to the speaker’s expertise. Please register online at AmericanArt.si.edu/calendar ($10 materials fee).
Hear from professionals who work in the arts, then sharpen your own creative skills with a hands-on activity related to the speaker’s expertise. Please register online at AmericanArt.si.edu/calendar ($10 materials fee).
Hear from professionals who work in the arts, then sharpen your own creative skills with a hands-on activity related to the speaker’s expertise. Please register online at AmericanArt.si.edu/calendar ($10 materials fee).
A virtual film festival highlighting groundbreaking women filmmakers and issues of climate change, political activism, global pandemics, and more. The Smithsonian American Art Museum is presenting its third annual Women Filmmakers Festival exclusively online. The festival runs from March 1-21, in honor of Women’s History Month, and is supported by the Smithsonian American Women’s History […]
Curious about American art? Join us for a 30-minute virtual conversation about selected works from the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s collection. This program is presented in American Sign Language (ASL) with voice interpretation for participants who are deaf or partially deaf. Zoom link to be provided via email upon registration. Location: Online Tickets: Free | Registration Required […]
Virtual Cherry Blossom Celebration Saturday, March 20, 10 a.m. ET Celebrate the start of spring and the National Cherry Blossom Festival with the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Join us for a virtual program full of springtime fun for the whole family. Enjoy a lively performance of traditional Japanese Taiko drumming by the group Nen Daiko. Then learn more […]
¡Printing the Revolution! Virtual Conversation Series: The Legacy of Printmaking Thursday, March 25, 6:30 p.m. ET Chicanx artists and print centers have welcomed, nurtured, and collaborated with non Chicanx artists from the early civil rights era to today, creating a long legacy of influence and support across communities. Join us for a virtual conversation that explores […]
Podcast Release: Luce Listening Party with Lightmare FRIDAY, MARCH 26, 2021 Luce Unplugged has gone digital! Tune in for a podcast episode featuring the soulpunk arrangements of Lightmare in conversation with Paul Vodra and Anthony Porreco of Hometown Sounds. Lightmare’s ability to blend the punchy, the political, and the personal into powerful, danceable music has […]
Art & Me Preservation Family Workshop: Celebrating Cherry Blossoms Saturday, March 27, 10–10:45 a.m. ET Celebrate the arrival of spring and the beloved cherry blossoms with a festive virtual family workshop. Discover how Smithsonian conservators preserve beautiful artworks, from paintings to Japanese tea bowls. Then try your hand at making your own cherry blossom–inspired creation. This […]
Thursday, April 8, 7 p.m. ET Join the Smithsonian American Art Museum for a virtual conversation featuring author and professor Alexander Nemerov. Learn more about Nemerov’s most recent publication Fierce Poise: Helen Frankenthaler and 1950s New York (2021). This program is part of SAAM’s ongoing series New Writings in American Art, highlighting new scholarship and publications in the field […]
Wednesday, April 14, 7:00 p.m. ET Grab some colorful duct tape and register now for the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s popular crafting happy hour! Join us for a live crafting workshop and demonstration using upcycled materials you are likely to have at home. Learn how to make a tote bag out of duct tape with […]
Friday, April 23 Luce Unplugged has gone digital! Tune in for a podcast episode featuring singer-songwriter Jenna Camille in conversation with Paul Vodra and Anthony Porreco of Hometown Sounds. Jenna Camille’s background in improvisational jazz brings spontaneity to her brand of electronic R&B. Listen to this episode and subscribe to Hometown Sounds now! Location: Online Tickets: Free | Registration Not Required Event Link: https://hometownsoundsdc.com/
Thursday, April 29, 7:00 p.m. ET Discover the wonders of the celestial world with Lauren Fensterstock, one of the artists featured in Forces of Nature: Renwick Invitational 2020. Fensterstock is joined by guest curator Emily Zilber to discuss her large-scale installation at the Renwick Gallery. Learn more about Fensterstock’s creative process and how the sixteenth-century German manuscript, The Book […]
Virtual May Day Family Celebration Saturday, May 1, 10 a.m. ET Celebrate spring and learn more about art and environmental conservation with our virtual May Day family program. Explore how the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s team of art conservators preserve and protect works of art in a sustainable way. Then join the musical group Bash the […]
Wednesday, May 5, 2 p.m. ET Join the Smithsonian American Art Museum for a virtual program designed for art lovers with mild to moderate dementia and their care partners. Enjoy an opportunity to discuss and engage with artworks from SAAM’s collection. Space is limited, and registration is required; email access@si.edu or call 202.633.2921 to register. Location: Online Tickets: Free […]
Wednesday, May 5, 7 p.m. ET Join the Smithsonian American Art Museum for a virtual conversation featuring author and arts leader Adair Margo. Learn more about Margo’s most recent publication, Voices of La Lydia: The History of Lydia Patterson Institute (2020), which details stories of success and perseverance from the more than 100-year history of the Lydia Preston […]
Wednesday, May 12, 2:30–5 p.m. ET Thursday, May 13, 2:30–5 p.m. ET Friday, May 14, 2:30–5 p.m. ET Join the 2020–2021 class of Smithsonian American Art Museum research fellows as they present new scholarship on a range of topics and time periods, media, and messages. This series of lectures presented entirely online highlights a new […]
Thursday, May 13, 5:30 p.m. ET Curious about American art? Join us for a 30-minute gallery conversation about selected works from the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s collection. This program is presented in American Sign Language (ASL) with voice interpretation for participants who are deaf or hard of hearing. Zoom link provided via email upon registration. […]
Thursday, May 13, 6:30 p.m. ET The digital realm defines a new chapter of Chicanx graphics. Artists use technologically based artwork to critique Big Tech, as well as distribute digital graphics across social media networks as a unifying call for social justice. This virtual conversation features artists from ¡Printing the Revolution! The Rise and Impact of […]
The Smithsonian American Art Museum and its branch museum, the Renwick Gallery, reopen to the public Friday, May 14. This is the second reopening of the museum following closures on March 14, 2020 and on Nov. 23, 2020 as a public health precaution due to the COVID-19 global pandemic. The museum has negotiated extensions into […]
Thursday, May 20, 7 p.m. ET Enjoy a behind-the-scenes virtual studio tour and artwork demonstration by Rowland Ricketts, one of the artists featured in Forces of Nature: Renwick Invitational 2020. Discover more about Ricketts’s work and his holistic creative process. From farming his own indigo to dyeing and aging the fabric, Ricketts looks to nature for inspiration […]
Sunday, May 23, 1–2 p.m. ET Venture beyond the studio with DC artist Marcella Kriebel. Register now for this engaging Zoom workshop and learn the basics of watercolor and illustration techniques, then try your hand at making your own masterpiece. Kriebel is known for her culinary watercolor paintings and murals throughout DC, which include collaborations with […]
Free Week-Long Virtual Event Celebrates Community and Individuality in Gaming The Smithsonian American Art Museum will present its annual “SAAM Arcade” online this year and, for the first time, in […]
Join the Smithsonian American Art Museum for an engaging virtual lecture with award-winning filmmaker Leslie Thornton. Learn how Thornton, with her decades-long episodic film epic Peggy and Fred in Hell (1983–2015), secured a place of reverence in cinema history. Enjoy a special screening of the series’ most well-known video, Peggy and Fred in Kansas (11 […]
August 5, 2021, at 5:30 p.m. ET Join the Smithsonian American Art Museum for an engaging virtual lecture with award-winning filmmaker Leslie Thornton. Learn how Thornton, with her decades-long episodic film epic Peggy and Fred in Hell (1983–2015), secured a place of reverence in cinema history. Enjoy a special screening of the series’ most well-known video, Peggy and Fred […]
SAAM Arcade is back and online this year! Join us for a day of virtual play and be the first to discover the latest independent games created during SAAM’s inaugural game jam. Test out brand new video and tabletop games created by the talented developers, artists, and creators that make up our SAAM Arcade community. This […]
America InSight Online: Verbal Description Tours Thursday, September 2, 5:30 p.m. ET Join the Smithsonian American Art Museum online for a docent-led tour designed for participants who are blind or have low vision. Discover highlights from the collection through rich audio verbal descriptions that invoke a multisensory experience. Location: Online Tickets: Free | Registration Required via Eventbrite […]
Take a journey lead by the creative powerhouse, Fred Wilson, during this captivating virtual lecture. Listen as he traces his artistic career and process through many decades, mediums, and techniques. Wilson is known for challenging assumptions of history, culture, race, and conventions of display by reframing objects and cultural symbols, altering traditional interpretations, and encouraging […]
Museums are powered by professionals with wide-ranging backgrounds—from historians and scientists to accountants, attorneys, computer programmers, and graphic designers. Join staff members from the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) and Smithsonian Gardens for an engaging virtual conversation about the changing landscape of the museum field and the need for greater diversity among the professional staff. […]
Examine the enduring impact of colonialism and orientalism within the mainstream history of modernism with scholar Nada Shabout. During this captivating virtual talk, discuss efforts to decolonize the field of art history and prioritize inclusion and equity. Shabout highlights the noticeable absence of Arab artists in conventional narratives about modern and contemporary art, and uses […]
Discover the magnificent Scandinavian landscapes and other European-based paintings created by celebrated Harlem Renaissance painter William H. Johnson. Take a deep dive into this often overlooked and misunderstood period in Johnson’s life and work with leading scholar Richard Powell. By comparing these paintings with Johnson’s well-known artworks of African Americans, Powell introduces a new understanding […]
Walls of Respect is a new documentary honoring the life and work of Norman Parish, Jr., whose Georgetown gallery showcased international African-American art when few galleries did the same. This film will explore Parish's artistic legacy through interviews with past exhibitors, family, friends, collectors, and art professionals, and the impact of Parish's work on artists […]
You are cordially invited to the preview of Walls of Respect: Norman Parish and the Parish Art Gallery, a new documentary about the legacy of the acclaimed artist and activist Norman Parish, Jr (1937 – 2013). Walls of Respect honors the life and work of Norman Parish, Jr., whose Georgetown gallery (1991- 2010) showcased African […]
John Yau is an art critic, poet, fiction writer, and freelance curator. His talk will feature two artists, Frederic Church and Thomas Nozkowski, who both spent significant time in the Catskills, drawing inspiration from locales for their respective artworks. Yau's discussion focuses on each artist’s vision of nature and how their respective conceptions of seeing, […]
Curious about American art? Join us for a 30-minute virtual conversation about selected works from the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s collection. This program is presented in American Sign Language (ASL) with voice interpretation for hearing participants. A Zoom link will be provided via email upon registration via Eventbrite.
How can artwork help all students access core learning? Differentiated instruction allows teachers to adapt content, process, and products to students’ needs. Collaborate with colleagues and uncover how artwork can offer students multiple ways to access content and explore ideas, while providing options to demonstrate their understanding of concepts. Attendees can meet in the G […]
Something old, something new! Compare how ceramics are made today, in the past, and across the globe! Learn how conservators care for ceramics during this virtual family workshop. Attendees then create their own ceramic masterpieces with advice on how to protect their artwork. This hands-on workshop is designed for children ages three to eight and […]
Join SAAM’s research fellows for this lunchtime series of gallery talks as they share new discoveries about artworks on view. Learn the stories behind these objects and how each one tells us about America’s ever-changing culture. Fellow Elizabeth Driscoll Smith discusses Emery Blagdon's The Healing Machine (ca. 1955–86). Attendees can meet in the G Street […]
Join the Smithsonian American Art Museum in celebrating Día de los Muertos! Bring the whole family to see exciting live performances from Ballet Folklorico Mi Herencia Mexicana, Mariachi Aguila DC, and Sol y Rumba. Enjoy face painting and our featured Día de los Muertos–themed crafts for all ages. This event will be hosted in the […]
People are all different. Our bodies, families, beliefs, abilities, and experiences vary, sometimes making communication difficult. Artwork can often communicate what we do not have the words for across cultures […]
Scholar Julia Bryan-Wilson considers how women of color artists like Pacita Abad and Rosie Lee Tompkins have used embellishment as a strategy to blur the lines between function and decor. […]
Join SAAM's research fellows for this lunchtime series of gallery talks as they share new discoveries about artworks on view. Learn the stories behind these objects and how each one […]
Ring in the Lunar New Year at SAAM! Join us for our annual celebration featuring Chinese and Korean traditions, including performances, crafts, food, and more. Learn about the importance of […]
Join us for a family friendly look at James Hampton’s Throne of the Third Heaven of the Nations’ Millennium General Assembly with Lunder Conservation Fellow Objects Conservator Katya Zinsli. Explore what this piece is made of, its history, and how we care for it. Recommended ages five to twelve. Free; Smithsonian American Art Museum Meet […]
Wednesday, May 17-Friday, May 19, 2023 1 – 5pm EDT (daily) Join the 2022–2023 class of Smithsonian American Art Museum research fellows as they present new scholarship on a range of topics and time periods, media and messages. Speakers will share research discoveries and offer fresh perspectives on works of American art. Wednesday, May 17, […]
Join us for the return of our popular "Take 5! Jazz at SAAM" program. Beat the heat and relax in the Kogod Courtyard. Kicking off our program series is Washington, D.C. native, artist Max Light received his bachelor's degree at New England Conservatory and his master's degree from the Aaron Copland School of Music at […]
Join SAAM’s research fellows for this lunchtime series of gallery talks as they share new discoveries about artworks on view. Learn the stories behind these objects and how each one tells us about America’s ever-changing culture. Amy Kahng, Patricia and Philip Frost Predoctoral Fellow, discusses Yasuo Kuniyoshi’s Strong Woman and Child (1925).
Celebrate with your chosen family at SAAM’s Pride Family Day in the Kogod Courtyard and march to the beat of DC’s Different Drummers. Then dance to the sounds of Afro-Brazilian group Batala and enjoy the acapella music of Snowday. Embrace your creativity with hands-on crafts, strike a pose in our photobooth station, and show your […]
Join artist Carlos Carmonamedina of DC is my City for a live-sketching workshop using your personal iPad and digital graphics apps such as ProCreate, Adobe Fresco, and MediBang. After a brief introduction and tutorial, the group will explore the galleries to practice what they learned. Participants will end the session by creating a one-of-a-kind digital […]
Celebrate a uniquely American art form with Take 5: Jazz at SAAM, a series of free, live performances in SAAM’s airy Kogod Courtyard. This month features Sarah Elizabeth Charles, a vocalist and composer based in Brooklyn. She has worked and studied with artists such as Chief Xian aTunde Adjuah, George Cables, Geri Allen and Sheila […]
Join "Sharing Honors and Burdens: Renwick Invitational 2023" artists Erica Lord (Athabaskan/ Iñupiat) and Maggie Thompson (Fond du Lac Ojibwe) in conversation with guest curator, Lara Evans (Cherokee Nation). Thompson, a fiber artist and designer who derives inspiration from her Ojibwe heritage, explores family history and broader themes relating to her Native American experience in […]
Interdisciplinary artist Cauleen Smith kicks off the annual Clarice Smith Distinguished Lecture Series. Smith explores African American identity through her work, particularly in films such as Sojourner, featured in SAAM’s current exhibition Musical Thinking: New Video Art and Sonic Strategies. She describes her work as a reflection on “the everyday possibilities of the imagination,” drawing […]
Don’t miss this amazing opportunity to hear from legendary artist Carrie Mae Weems, joined in conversation by Saisha Grayson, SAAM’s curator of time-based media, to discuss her new exhibition "Carrie Mae Weems: Looking Forward, Looking Back". Described as an icon, national treasure, and genius, Weems is a moral compass in the field, entwining art and […]
Join SAAM’s curatorial and conservation staff for a series of gallery talks exploring the newly reimagined and reinstalled modern and contemporary art galleries, as well as a look at our special exhibitions, Many Wests: Artists Shape an American Idea and Musical Thinking: New Video Art and Sonic Strategies. These projects highlight many voices—including artists who […]
Go in-depth with Saisha Grayson, curator of time-based media at SAAM, as she discusses the years-long curatorial process behind Musical Thinking: New Video Art and Sonic Strategies. Learn about her reasons for featuring selected artists and video art, with a special focus on auditory artworks and how they merge together in this evocative and emotionally […]
Join SAAM’s research fellows for this lunchtime series of gallery talks as they share new discoveries about artworks on view. Learn the stories behind these objects and how each one tells us about America’s ever-changing culture. Kelly-Christina Grant, the Terra Foundation Predoctoral Fellow in American Art at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, discusses Loïs Mailou […]
New score performed live by Matthew Nolan and Erik Friedlander The Blood of a Poet (Le Sang d'un Poète), the first part of Jean Cocteau’s Orphic Trilogy, is considered one of the finest surrealist films ever made. Cocteau wrote that his film marks “a descent into oneself . . . a kind of half-sleep through […]
