These 40 uniquely designed, hand-crafted envelopes, submitted by professional calligraphers from around the world, illustrate different calligraphic methods and styles. 

This exhibition features rare Japanese philatelic items from the Christenson collection.

To commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Smithsonian, this exhibition looks back at the America of 1846.

This exhibition features "Kimberley" (1994)--a large-scale fabric sculpture resembling a monumental dress.

33 paintings, drawings, and screens illustrate the nature of aestheticism in the United States at the turn of the century.

23 objects from the 14th and 15th centuries explore the interaction between Chinese ceramics and Islamic decorative arts. 

36 objects, ranging from the 7th to 19th centuries, focus on the varied uses of calligraphy on utilitarian and decorative works made of clay, lacquer, metal, jade, bamboo, silk, wood, and bone.

This 2-part exhibition focuses on the lives and works of 4 interlocking circles of avant-garde poets, and chronicles the major artists of the New York School.

This first American retrospective of this German artist includes three decades of his paintings. This exhibition was organized by the Guggenheim Museum in New York City.

17 paintings from albums produced between the 15th and 19th centuries for Hindu and Islamic courts in India focus on various aspects of women.

Examine philatelic items that have been counterfeited, faked, or forged to defraud the Postal Service or unsuspecting collectors.

25 paintings from the 11th to 18th centuries examine the ways actual & symbolic images of people influenced Chinese painting.

Trace the history of the Smithsonian beginning with James Smithson (1765-1829) who started the tradition of philanthropy with his bequest to the United States. 

This exhibition focuses on the birds' eye maple sculpture "Acrobatic Performers" by Chaim Gross.

47 objects show how ceramics have evolved from the 9th century to present day in the adjacent Seto and Mino regions of central Japan.

This exhibition demonstrates different approaches to conserving and remounting Japanese paintings and explains the characteristics of Japanese painting formats and mounting styles.