Past Exhibitions | Smithsonian Institution

A Creative Profile: Artists of the East Bank

See 41 works in a variety of media by a diverse community of professional artists who live and work east of the river in the District of Columbia.

May 13, 2007 – August 12, 2007

Anacostia Community Museum

Banding Together: School Bands as Instruments of Opportunity

March along with school bands to explore the legacy of instrumental music education in Washington, DC public schools from 1880 to 2006.

September 10, 2006 – May 14, 2007

Anacostia Community Museum

Two Hundred Years of Black Paper Dolls: The Collection of Arabella Grayson

Arabella Grayson's interest in finding paper playthings that looked like her evolved into a passionate journey, including this exhibition of 110 black paper dolls from her collection.

November 12, 2006 – April 29, 2007

Anacostia Community Museum

DC Undercover: Photographs by Steven M. Cummings

Witness DC photographer Steven Cummings' passion for photographing people in and around the city—who as it turns out, often wear caps and hats.

November 12, 2006 – April 29, 2007

Anacostia Community Museum

New Orleans Black Mardi Gras Indians: Exploring a Community Tradition from an Insider's View

View more than 45 of New Orleans photographer J. Nash Porter's photographic portraits of the Mardi Gras Indians and their elaborate handmade suits (costumes) and patches.

April 23, 2006 – October 15, 2006

Anacostia Community Museum

Through Their Eyes: Birney Elementary School Students Photograph Anacostia

View a photographic exhibition that includes everyday scenes, special events, residents, and places of interest in the Anacostia community by 13 students of the James Gillespie Birney Elementary School in southeast Washington, D.C.,

April 23, 2006 – October 15, 2006

Anacostia Community Museum

Reclaiming Midwives: Pillars of Community Support

Journey through photographs, drawings, diary entries, and birthing equipment in this exhibition documenting the life and work of Mary Francis Hill Coley in rural Georgia, where she provided midwifery care to thousands for 30 years.

November 13, 2005 – August 6, 2006

Anacostia Community Museum

Reflections: Life Pieces to Masterpieces

See 27 art pieces created by 75 at-risk, east-of-the Anacostia River youths aged 3-21 enrolled in the award-winning human development program known as Life Pieces to Masterpieces.

November 13, 2005 – April 2, 2006

Anacostia Community Museum

Conversation Among Blues Women

Visit an installation that mixes masks, textiles, found objects, lighting, and sound to give voice to and document the experiences of a wide-ranging group of African American women.

November 13, 2005 – April 2, 2006

Anacostia Community Museum

Mother and Child: Expressions of Love

See 10 pieces that show how 8 contemporary, Washington-based artists take different approaches to explore the universal and ancient tie that binds mother and child.

November 13, 2005 – April 2, 2006

Anacostia Community Museum

Walls of Heritage, Walls of Pride: African American Murals

See nearly 70 photographs and nearly 30 pieces of original art in this exhibition spotlighting historic and contemporary murals created by African Americans around the country and other artists who have or are producing pieces for public display in African American communities.

July 11, 2005 – October 16, 2005

Anacostia Community Museum

Why Vote?

See how the artist DeWayne Barton uses poetry and campaign memorabilia to fashion a personal statement about voting, the electoral process, and African American disenfranchisement.

July 11, 2005 – October 16, 2005

Anacostia Community Museum

Forgotten Roots: African American Muslims in Early America

Learn through a range of artifacts, diaries, documents, and photographs in this exhibition showing how newly transported African Muslims played significant roles as explorers, entrepreneurs, educators, and patriotic servicemen in America during the 18th and 19th centuries.

July 11, 2005 – October 16, 2005

Anacostia Community Museum

Close Up in Black: African American Film Posters

Trace the history of the African American experience in the movie industry through ninety framed film posters that illuminate the impact of performers, writers, designers, directors, and producers on screen and behind the screens.

May 7, 2005 – July 28, 2005

Anacostia Community Museum

On Their Own: Selected Works by Self-Taught African American Artists

The wit and daring of self-taught artists take center stage in an exhibition showcasing the works of Chris Clark, Simon Jackson, “The Dot Man” (Sam McMillan), Mary L. Proctor, “Mr. Imagination” (Gregory Warmack), and Ruby Williams.

January 31, 2005 – June 12, 2005

Anacostia Community Museum

The Art of Charles Smith

To teach African American history and heritage, self-taught artist Charles Smith forms life-sized human figures out of concrete and found objects.

January 31, 2005 – June 12, 2005

Anacostia Community Museum

In Celebration of Black Men

See a story quilt created in 1995 by 13 African American men in the Washington, D.C. area, designed to help prepare teenagers for manhood.

January 31, 2005 – June 12, 2005

Anacostia Community Museum

Selected Works by William H. Smith and Floyd Roberts

See the works of two Maryland artists -- 7 paintings by William H. Smith, silver medalist at the 1939 New York World's Fair, and 1 sculpture by Floyd Roberts.

June 7, 2004 – December 31, 2004

Anacostia Community Museum

All the Stories Are True: African American Writers Speak

Notable African American writers tell stories, including Valerie Boyd, Octavia E. Butler, Kenny Carroll, Edwidge Danticat, Samuel R. Delany, Eloise Greenfield, Charles Johnson, Delores Kendrick, and Walter Dean Myers.

June 7, 2004 – December 31, 2004

Anacostia Community Museum

Selected Works by Kadir Nelson

See an exhibition featuring the inspirational works of noted artist and illustrator of children's literature, Kadir Nelson.

June 7, 2004 – December 31, 2004

Anacostia Community Museum

New Visions: Emerging Trends in African American Art

Explore innovations in African American contemporary art and see how it continues to expand and embrace the use of new computer, sound, and video technology in this diverse collection of 45 works.

September 29, 2003 – April 25, 2004

Anacostia Community Museum

Crowns: Portraits of Black Women in Church Hats

Explore a tradition among African American women of wearing church hats. Get to know the “Hat Queens” and admire their collection of “crowns,” from the simple to the simply out-of-this world.

December 12, 2003 – April 25, 2004

Anacostia Community Museum

Anacostia Museum Collects: The Art of James A. Porter

Paintings by celebrated artist James Porter, head of the Howard University art department and its gallery, who came to be considered the Father of African American art history .

September 29, 2003 – April 25, 2004

Anacostia Community Museum

Resistance, Creativity and Survival: The Janina Rubinowitz Collection of Maroon Arts

Explore the history of communities created by runaway slaves, known as maroons, in South America and the Caribbean in this exhibition of 65 paintings, wood carvings, photographs, and objects used in worship ceremonies.

February 3, 2003 – August 31, 2003

Anacostia Community Museum

Captive Passage: The Transatlantic Slave Trade and the Making of the Americas

Follow the story of the slave trade told from a maritime perspective through more than 200 objects and images.

February 3, 2003 – August 31, 2003

Anacostia Community Museum