Exhibitions

Newsroom of the Smithsonian

View news releases below or see all of our publicly released upcoming exhibitions.

Sculpture of man sitting on a camel

Inland Niger Delta artist; Djenné, Mopti Region, Mali; Equestrian Figure; 13th-15th century C.E.; Ceramic; National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, museum purchase, 86-12-2; Photograph by Franko Khoury.

National Museum of African Art To Reopen July 16
New Exhibition “Caravans of Gold, Fragments in Time” Now Extended to February 2022
07.09.2021
African Art Museum Exhibitions
Baseball player swinging a baseball bat at a game

Roberto Clemente, Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, around 1967. Courtesy of The Clemente Museum

“¡Pleibol!” Slides Into Smithsonian Summer 2021
Exhibition Explores Latina/o Impact Through Baseball Artifacts, Stories and Photos
06.29.2021
American History Museum Exhibitions
Freer Gallery north entrance
Hokusai’s Breathtaking and Rarely Seen Wave Painting Will Go on View When the Freer Gallery of Art Reopens July 16
06.29.2021
Asian Art Museum Exhibitions
Gold ornament on a stand

The “Echenique Disc,” a pre-Inka gold ornament recognized as the symbol of the city of Cusco. Photo: National Museum of the American Indian

National Museum of the American Indian and the Government of the Republic of Peru Sign a Memorandum of Understanding To Return the “Echenique Disc” to Peru
Indigenous Populations Centered Around the Sacred Valley of Cusco Support the Return
06.15.2021
American Indian Museum Exhibitions
Collage of portraits and artwork
Smithsonian “FUTURES” To Unveil Five New Commissions by Leading Contemporary Artists
Visitors Can See Alternate Future Worlds as Imagined by Beatriz Cortez, Nettrice Gaskins, Soo Sunny Park, Devan Shimoyama, and Tamiko Thiel and /p in Their Smithsonian Debuts
06.15.2021
Arts and Industries Exhibitions
Hallway leading into a museum exhibit

Picturing Women Inventors is presented in both English and Spanish. © Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian’s Lemelson Center Spotlights Women Inventors in New Bilingual Display and Poster Show
Exhibition Reflects the Central Tenet of the Lemelson Center: Everyone Is Inventive
05.25.2021
American History Museum Exhibitions
Painting resembling identification card

“Resident Alien” by Hung Liu, oil on canvas, 1988. Collection of the San Jose Museum of Art; gift of the Lipman Family Foundation. Copyright Hung Liu.

National Portrait Gallery Presents “Hung Liu: Portraits of Promised Lands”
Chinese-born American Artist’s First Retrospective of Portraiture To Be on View Aug. 27– May 30, 2022
05.25.2021
Portrait Gallery Exhibitions
Building exterior
National Museum of American History Reopens to the Public May 21
New Artifacts On View Include Bob Ross Objects and “Crazy Rich Asians” Gown Spotlight on Women’s History Exhibitions: “Girlhood (It’s Complicated)” and “Picturing Women Inventors”
05.21.2021
American History Museum Exhibitions
Painting of a woman with arms crossed

Angel Rodríguez-Díaz, ‘The Protagonist of an Endless Story,” 1993, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase made possible in part by the Smithsonian Latino Initiatives Pool and the Smithsonian Institution Collections Acquisition Program, 1996.19. Copyright 1993, Angel Rodriguez-Diaz

Smithsonian American Art Museum Announces a Nationally Touring Exhibition Re-Examining the American West Through Modern and Contemporary Art
“Many Wests: Artists Shape an American Idea” Opens in Boise, Idaho, July 31
05.20.2021
American Art Museum Exhibitions
Rendering of museum exhibit

Rendering of “Exploring the Planets Gallery” exhibition.

National Air and Space Museum Receives $10 Million Gift From Kenneth C. Griffin
New “Exploring the Planets Gallery” Anticipated To Open Next Year
05.18.2021
Air and Space Museum Exhibitions
Graphic with images of portrait paintings and text: "The Obama Portraits Tour"

Credit information: (L) “Barack Obama” by Kehinde Wiley, 2018, oil on canvas, National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution. Copyright 2018 Kehinde Wiley; (R) “Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama” (detail) by Amy Sherald, 2018, oil on linen, National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution. The National Portrait Gallery is grateful to the generous donors who made these commissions possible and proudly recognizes them at npg.si.edu/obamaportraitstour. Support for the national tour has been generously provided by Bank of America.

Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery Prepares for “The Obama Portraits Tour”
View Michelle Obama’s Likeness by Amy Sherald in Washington, D.C., Through May 23 With Free, Timed-Entry Passes
05.18.2021
Portrait Gallery Exhibitions
Woman wearing safety gear, headdress, and sash stands in a dirt field with cars in background.

Miss Navajo Nation Distributing Food. Ganado, Arizona, Navajo Nation, Oct. 2, 2020. Photo © Navajo Times, 2020.

National Museum of the American Indian’s “Developing Stories: Native Photographers in the Field” To Feature Work of Photojournalist Donovan Quintero
05.13.2021
American Indian Museum Exhibitions
Empty chairs underneath a large outdoor tent
Photo © Donovan Quintero, 2020
Developing Stories: Shutting Down a Church Revival Meeting

Shutting Down a Church Revival Meeting
Gallup, New Mexico, June 26, 2020

Download (5.49 MB)
Car drives in front of billboard
Photo © Donovan Quintero, 2020
Developing Stories: Public Health Message

Public Health Message
Chinle, Arizona, Navajo Nation, July 10, 2020

Download (4.29 MB)
Three people sit in a makeshift classroom outdoors.
Photo © Navajo Times, 2020
Developing Stories: Makeshift Classroom

Makeshift Classroom
Fish Point, Arizona, Navajo Nation, October 19, 2020

Download (6.39 MB)
Two people sit while working in a factory setting.
Photo © Navajo Times, 2020
Developing Stories: Making Nitrile Gloves

Making Nitrile Gloves
Church Rock, New Mexico, Navajo Nation, March 25, 2020

Download (6.17 MB)
Baby panda walks on tree branch

Giant panda cub Xiao Qi Ji will be on view for the first time starting May 21. Credit: Roshan Patel, Smithsonian’s National Zoo.

What’s New at Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Giant Panda Viewing Details
Free Timed-Entry Passes Available Beginning May 14
05.11.2021
National Zoo & SCBI Exhibitions
Woman smiles while installing artwork
Heather Hazzan
Suchi Reddy: "me + you"

Suchi Reddy standing in front of "me + you," Courtesy Heather Hazzan.

Download (9.1 MB)
Rendering of building interior with people standing around a lit sculpture

"me + you" in the Smithsonian's Arts and Industries Building, rendering, Courtesy Reddymade.

Smithsonian Announces New Interactive Installation by Acclaimed Artist Suchi Reddy as Centerpiece of “FUTURES”
‘Emotional AI’ Sculpture Blends Physics, Neuroscience and Data Technology With the Human Voice
05.07.2021
Arts and Industries Exhibitions
Group of people stand in front of interactive art installation
Reddymade
Suchi Reddy: "me + you"

"me + you" in the Smithsonian's Arts and Industries Building, rendering, Courtesy Reddymade

Download (2.99 MB)
Film still of spaceships flying
Lucasfilm
X-wing Starfighter

This X-wing Starfighter appeared in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and is on long-term loan to the National Air and Space Museum from Lucasfilm.

Copyright: Lucasfilm

Download (5.32 MB)
Fictional Star Wars spaceship floating in space

This X-wing Starfighter appeared in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and is on long-term loan from Lucasfilm. It will go on display in 2022 in the museum's flagship building on the National Mall.

Credit: Lucasfilm

National Air and Space Museum Welcomes Star Wars X-Wing Starfighter
Now on View in Restoration Hangar After Traveling From a Galaxy Far, Far Away
05.04.2021
Air and Space Museum Exhibitions New Acquisitions
Airplane hanger
Lucasfilm
X-wing Starfighter in Restoration Hangar

This X-wing Starfighter appeared in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker and is on long-term loan from Lucasfilm. It is pictured here in the Mary Baker Engen Restoration Hangar at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center.

Download (3.13 MB)
Two people carrying children look at sculpture in a museum

Image courtesy of the Smithsonian American Art Museum; Photo by Albert Ting.

Smithsonian American Art Museum Reopens May 14
Critically Acclaimed Exhibitions Shuttered Due to the Global Pandemic Now Extended to Summer
04.23.2021
American Art Museum Renwick Gallery Exhibitions

Pages