Past Exhibitions | Smithsonian Institution

A Century Ago..."They Came as Sovereign Leaders"

See photographs of six great Native chiefs who participated in President Theodore Roosevelt's 1905 inaugural parade.

January 14, 2009 – February 22, 2009

American Indian Museum DC

A Century Ago..."They Came as Sovereign Leaders"

See photographs of six great Native chiefs who participated in President Theodore Roosevelt's 1905 inaugural parade.

January 15, 2013 – February 25, 2013

American Indian Museum DC

A Century of Ceramics in the United States, 1878-1978

Trace the growth of ceramics as an art form from its traditional art pottery roots to more recent pioneering personal statements in clay with these 231 works.

November 8, 1979 – January 27, 1980

Renwick Gallery

A Century of Ceramics in the United States, 1878-1978

Visit a variety of ceramics styles, philosophies, and techniques illustrated by some 200 examples of the work of major potters, designers, and craftsmen.

February 26, 1980 – May 25, 1980

Cooper Hewitt Design Museum

A Century of Museum Collecting

The centennial of the Smithsonian's National Philatelic Collection is commemorated in a small exhibit including some of its earliest collected artifacts.

August 23, 1986 – October 1, 1986

American History Museum

A Century of Organized Philately

This small exhibit commemorates the 100th anniversary of the American Philatelic Society, America's largest and oldest philatelic organization.

August 23, 1986 – October 1, 1986

American History Museum

A Century of Weather and Crop Service

Go back to 1849 when Joseph Henry, as the first Smithsonian Secretary, pioneered the nation's weather mapping network. See weather maps and measuring devices from then to now.

June 1, 1972 – December 31, 1972

American History Museum

A Child's World: Sears, Roebuck and Company Collection of American Toys, 1890-1960

Enjoy over 500 cast iron and tinplate toys.

January 1, 1972 – January 1, 1974

American History Museum

A Collector's Vision of Puerto Rico

Carnival masks and costumes, musical instruments, colonial art, and jewelry from Teodoro Vidal's collection explore Puerto Rican history and culture during the past 500 years.

July 31, 1998 – October 16, 2000

American History Museum

A Concrete Vision: Oshogbo Art in the 1960s

View works by 11 Nigerian artists of the Oshogbo Movement, center of a major artistic renaissance.

January 23, 2000 – October 22, 2000

African Art Museum

A Connoisseur's Vision: Selections from Charles Lang Freer's American Art Collection

Enjoy Freer's distinctive taste as show in his choice of paintings, watercolors, pastels and etchings by turn-of-the-century artists.

November 10, 1976 – September 30, 1977

Asian Art Museum Freer Gallery

A Constellation of Black Sports Stars

See memorabilia and artifacts from prominent black athletes, along with baseball, football, and basketball cards.

January 1, 1985 – April 18, 1985

American History Museum

A Country of Three Seas

Investigate 43 poster-size color photos by Diego Samper that explore 3 regions of Colombia -- the Caribbean, the Pacific Coast, and the Amazon basin.

June 16, 1998 – July 15, 1998

National Zoo

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

A Dark, A Light, A Bright: The Designs of Dorothy Liebes

This exhibition explores the full scope of Dorothy Liebes' contributions as a designer, collaborator, mentor, public figure, and tireless promoter of American modernism.

July 7, 2023 – February 4, 2024

Cooper Hewitt Design Museum

A Day at the Museum

Learn about the role of museums in the everyday lives of American artists.

January 14, 2013 – June 2, 2013

Archives of American Art

A Day in the Life: Artists' Diaries from the Archives of American Art

Direct and private, diaries provide firsthand accounts of appointments made and met, places seen, and work in progress—all laced with personal ruminations, name-dropping, and the occasional sketch or doodle.

September 26, 2014 – February 28, 2015

Archives of American Art

A Decade of Discovery: Selected Acquisitions, 1970-1980

View 114 works that represent a variety of Asian cultures, including secular paintings, religious images and ritual objects, personal ornaments and household furnishings ranging in time from 3,000 B.C. to the 19th century.

January 1, 1980 – April 30, 1980

Asian Art Museum Freer Gallery

A Decade of Print Collecting: The Highlights

See some of the most significant prints acquired during the past ten years.

March 1, 1986 – July 13, 1986

Portrait Gallery

A Democracy of Images: Photographs from the Smithsonian American Art Museum

See how photography in America evolved from a documentary medium to an artistic genre.

June 28, 2013 – January 5, 2014

American Art Museum

A Desert Storm : A Photographic Diary

An array of photographs taken by U.S. Army photographers with the 18th Airborne Corps at Fort Bragg and various photojournalists reveal the many facets of operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm.

October 15, 1991 – January 12, 1992

American History Museum

A Durable Memento: Portraits by Augustus Washington, African American Daguerreotypist

On view are some 30 daguerreotypes by Augustus Washington, including the earliest known image of abolitionist John Brown.

September 24, 1999 – January 2, 2000

Portrait Gallery

A Far Distant Land: Letters from the Mexican War

Letters from Lt. William McKean to his family in Arkansas describe his experiences in the Mexican War (1847-1848).

October 5, 1997 – May 4, 1998

Postal Museum

A Feast of Color: Corpus Christi Dance Costumes from Ecuador

Delight in 4 complete fiesta costumes of cotton decorated with beads, ribbon, and foil, as well as individual pieces used during Corpus Christi festivities.

January 9, 1981 – July 12, 1981

Renwick Gallery

A Future for Our Past: The Conservation of Art

Explore the art and science of conservation in paintings, sculptures, photographs and other graphics.

June 28, 1974 – January 28, 1975

American Art Museum