Past Exhibitions | Smithsonian Institution

Roads of Arabia: Archaeology and History of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

The first U.S. venue of this unprecedented exhibition reveals the unknown past of the Arabian Peninsula with newly discovered artifacts from ancient trade routes stretching from Yemen in the south to Iraq and Syria in the north.

November 17, 2012 – February 24, 2013

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Shadow Sites: Recent Work by Jananne al-Ani

Inspired by archival archaeological and aerial photographs, as well as contemporary news reportage, al-Ani has created a new body of video works that examines enduring representations of the Middle Eastern landscape.

August 25, 2012 – February 10, 2013

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Ancient Iranian Ceramics

See a distinctive type of pottery from the Sackler's collection of ancient Iranian ceramics.

July 16, 2011 – December 31, 2012

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Gifts to the Collection: 1987-2012

See a selection of gifts, including scholar's rocks and seals, made by subsequent benefactors to the Sackler Gallery.

June 23, 2012 – December 15, 2012

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Pure Land: Inside the Mogao Grottoes at Dunhuang

Colorful murals in a Chinese Buddhist cave temple of Dunhuang come alive with floating figures, performing musicians, and Buddhist sculpture in this hyper-real tour of one of the world's important treasures.

December 1, 2012 – December 9, 2012

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Nomads and Networks: The Ancient Art and Culture of Kazakhstan

Devoted entirely to the nomadic culture of ancient Kazakhstan, this landmark exhibition dispels the notion that nomadic societies are less developed than sedentary ones through more than 150 objects, many never before shown in the United States.

August 11, 2012 – December 2, 2012

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Worlds within Worlds: Imperial Paintings from India and Iran

See 50 of the finest folios and paintings from the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery collections, which form one of the world's most important repositories of Mughal and Persian paintings.

July 28, 2012 – September 16, 2012

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Masters of Mercy: Buddha's Amazing Disciples

Selections from Kano Kazunobu's 100-painting series depicting Buddhist disciples at work are featured.

March 10, 2012 – July 8, 2012

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Art of Darkness: Japanese Mezzotints from the Hitch Collection

Some 20 prints and copperplates by Hamaguchi Yozo (1909–2000) and Hamanishi Katsunori (born 1949) demonstrate the innovative use of the mezzotint technique by Japanese artists.

April 7, 2012 – July 8, 2012

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Hokusai: Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji

Take this rare opportunity to view the acclaimed print series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji by Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849).

March 24, 2012 – June 17, 2012

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Goryeo Buddhist Paintings: A Closer Look

Three rare icons from the late Goryeo dynasty that have never been shown together epitomize a golden age in Korean Buddhist art.

February 25, 2012 – May 28, 2012

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Perspectives: Minouk Lim

South Korean performance artist Minouk Lim used a thermal imaging camera to produce the video The Weight of Hands, which was in response to issues raised by one of the largest construction projects in South Korea's history.

November 19, 2011 – April 22, 2012

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Power/Play: China's Empress Dowager

This exhibition provides a compelling and immersive exploration of the Empress Dowager Cixi -- supreme leader of China for more than 45 years-- through 35 glass-plate negatives, two original prints, and film clips.

September 24, 2011 – January 29, 2012

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Family Matters: Portraits from the Qing Court

Paintings of three generations of the Qing dynasty's imperial family are on view.

June 11, 2011 – January 16, 2012

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Taking Shape: Ceramics in Southeast Asia

Explore the migration of pots from their makers to their users in this exhibition of approximately 200 diverse and visually striking ceramic vessels from Southeast Asia.

April 1, 2007 – November 27, 2011

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Perspectives: Hale Tenger

In his video Beirut, multimedia artist Hale Tenger filmed the facade of the St. George Hotel -- the site of the assassination of Rafik Hariri, former prime minister of Lebanon -- during its renovation.

July 30, 2011 – November 6, 2011

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Echoes of the Past: The Buddhist Cave Temples of Xiangtangshan

Majestic 6th-century Chinese Buddhist sculpture is combined with 21st-century 3D-imaging technology in this exploration of one of the most important groups of Buddhist devotional sites in early medieval China.

February 26, 2011 – July 31, 2011

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

The Orchid in Chinese Painting

The orchid -- a symbol of friendship, loyalty, and patriotism -- is the focus of 20 Chinese paintings on view.

January 15, 2011 – July 17, 2011

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Perspectives: Lu Chunsheng

The video History of Chemistry I by renowned Chinese photographer and video artist Lu Chunsheng is on view.

March 19, 2011 – July 17, 2011

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Waves at Matsushima

Paintings and prints record the Bay of Matsushima, an area now substantially altered by the recent earthquake and tsunami, and pay homage to Japan,

May 28, 2011 – July 5, 2011

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Contemporary Japanese Porcelain

Twentieth-century Japanese artists give fresh interpretations to the time-honored art of porcelain.

April 25, 2005 – July 5, 2011

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Shahnama: 1000 Years of the Persian Book of Kings

Celebrate the millennium of the poet Firdawsi's Shahnama (Book of Kings), considered one of the greatest literary works ever written.

October 23, 2010 – April 17, 2011

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Perspectives: Hai Bo

As part of the Perspectives series of contemporary Asian art, view five large-scale photographs from Hai Bo's Northern Series.

March 27, 2010 – February 27, 2011

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Gods of Angkor: Bronzes from the National Museum of Cambodia

Learn about the fascinating story of bronze sculpture and casting in Cambodia through 36 exceptional works.

May 15, 2010 – January 30, 2011

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery

Fiona Tan: Rise and Fall

See how artist Fiona Tan's photos, drawings, and video installations reveal the power of images in constructing memories and identities.

September 25, 2010 – January 21, 2011

Asian Art Museum Sackler Gallery