Exhibitions

Newsroom of the Smithsonian

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

Woman sings and throws up her arm while playing a guitar on a stage

Sister Rosetta Tharpe performs at the 1967 Newport Folk Festival. Photo by Diana Jo Davies. Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives and Collections.

Sister Rosetta Tharpe, the “Godmother of Rock ‘n’ Roll,” rose to prominence in the 1930s as a pioneer of mixing “secular sounds,” such as electric guitar, with sacred lyrics.

Smithsonian Libraries and Archives and the Smithsonian’s Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Unveil “Music HerStory”
06.21.2022
Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage Smithsonian Libraries and Archives Exhibitions
Person in profile view with hand gently placed on their chin

Septima Poinsette Clark by Brian Lanker, gelatin silver print, 1987. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; Partial gift of Lynda Lanker, and museum purchase with the support of Robert E. Meyerhoff and Rheda Becker, Agnes Gund, Kate Kelly and George Schweitzer, Lyndon J. Barrois and Janine Sherman Barrois, and Mark and Cindy Aron. Copyright Brian Lanker Archive.

National Portrait Gallery Presents “I Dream a World: Selections From Brian Lanker’s Portraits of Remarkable Black Women”
06.16.2022
Portrait Gallery Exhibitions
Entrance to museum exhibit Presente with introductory wall text

Molina Family Latino Gallery. Credit: Tony Powell
 

National Museum of the American Latino Will Open Its First Gallery Dedicated to the Latino Experience June 18
Molina Family Latino Gallery and "¡Presente! A Latino History of the United States" Will Debut at the National Museum of American History
06.14.2022
American Latino Museum Exhibitions
Person in scuba suit floats underwater next to marine experiment
Nicolas Battini, CONICET
Diver Nestor Ortiz beside an experiment

Diver Nestor Ortiz of CONICET beside an experiment in Puerto Madryn, Argentina. Ortiz is adjacent to a panel open to predators. Panels contained within cages to exclude predators hang suspended in the background. 

SI-217-2022

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Four diamonds of various sizes on a blank background

"Great American Diamonds" displays several of the largest and finest diamonds ever discovered in the United States, including the Freedom Diamond (second from left) and the Uncle Sam Diamond (third from left). Image courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution.

New Smithsonian Exhibit Showcases Extraordinary American Diamonds
Exhibit Unveils Some of the Largest and Finest Diamonds Found in the United States, Including Recent Gifts to the National Gem Collection
06.08.2022
Natural History Museum Exhibitions
Antique photograph of a man and woman posed

George Brinton McClellan and Mary Ellen Marcy McClellan, Mathew Brady Studio, modern albumen silver print from c. 1864 wet
collodion negative. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution.

National Portrait Gallery Presents “Family Ties: Daguerreotype Portraits” and “Powerful Partnerships: Civil War-Era Couples”
Two Exhibitions of Early American Photography on View in July
06.01.2022
Portrait Gallery Exhibitions
Stylized artwork with silhouettes of heads in concentric circles

Monica Rickert-Bolter (Prairie Band Potawatomi, Black, and German, b. 1986) Hair Stories, 2021. Digital painting. Photo by the artist.

National Museum of the American Indian To Launch “Ancestors Know Who We Are” June 15
Digital Exhibition Features Works by Six Black-Indigenous Women Artists
06.01.2022
American Indian Museum Exhibitions
Zoo enclosure with pathway

Starting today, visitors can view the Zoo’s new binturong exhibit at Claws and Paws Pathway. Credit: Skip Brown, Smithsonian’s National Zoo 

Claws and Paws Pathway Opens at Smithsonian’s National Zoo
New Animals: Popcorn-Scented Binturongs and Fluffy Pallas’s Cat Sisters
05.27.2022
National Zoo & SCBI Exhibitions
Car on display inside museum

Credit: Jaclyn Nash

1969 Ford LTD Lowrider, “Dave’s Dream,” Goes on Display at National Museum of American History
05.24.2022
American History Museum Exhibitions
Exterior of airplane hanger
“Innovations in Flight” Event Returns to Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum
05.23.2022
Air and Space Museum Exhibitions
Illustration of building and its architectural details
National Museum of Asian Art Reveals Hidden Stories of Ancient Korean Architecture in New Exhibition
“Once Upon a Roof: Vanished Korean Architecture” Will be on View May 21 Through Oct. 30
05.12.2022
Asian Art Museum Exhibitions
Artwork featuring abstract portrait and graphic elements

Courtesy of Smithsonian American Art Museum.

“This Present Moment: Crafting a Better World” Examines the State of Contemporary Craft in America Today
New Exhibition Features 135 Recently Acquired Artworks That Tell an Inclusive Story of American Art
05.10.2022
American Art Museum Exhibitions
Side by side images of city blocks covered in murals

 
(Left) Wall of Respect, Chicago, Illinois, 1967, Photograph by Roy Lewis. Gift of Roy Lewis Archives 1967, Copyright Roy Lewis (Right) Tupac memorial mural on Houston Street in New York City, 1997. From the Eyejammie Hip Hop Photography Collection. Photograph by Al Pereira. Copyright Al Pereira

National Museum of African American History and Culture To Display Golden Era of Hip-Hop Photo Collection
“Represent: Hip-Hop Photography” Exhibition Opens May 6
05.05.2022
African American Museum Exhibitions
Ruby slippers in a glass display case
Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History To Remove Ruby Slippers From View in June
Move Will Prepare Them for Their New Spotlight in “Entertainment Nation” Exhibition, Opening Dec. 9. Last Day To View the Slippers Is June 12.
05.04.2022
American History Museum Exhibitions
Fountain in Hirshhorn Museum plaza
Hirshhorn To Present Exhibition Showcasing a Century of Art by Nearly 50 Pathbreaking Women and Nonbinary Artists
Highlighting Masterworks Alongside Recent Acquisitions by Artists Including Dana Awartani, Loie Hollowell, Sondra Perry, Deborah Roberts and Kiyan Williams, “Put It This Way: (Re)Visions of the Hirshhorn Collection” Opens July 22
05.03.2022
Hirshhorn Museum Exhibitions
Man sits in tent
Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Explores 1968 Poor People’s Campaign
Tour Launches at National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel May 14
05.02.2022
Traveling Exhibition Service Exhibitions
“Anthony Cuts under the Williamsburg Bridge, Morning” by Alison Elizabeth Taylor

“Anthony Cuts under the Williamsburg Bridge, Morning” by Alison Elizabeth Taylor, first prize winner of the 2022 Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition, marquetry hybrid (wood veneers, oil paint, acrylic paint, inkjet prints, shellac, and sawdust on wood), 2020. Collection of the artist. Copyright Alison Elizabeth Taylor. Courtesy of Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery.

National Portrait Gallery Announces Winners of the Sixth National Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition and Opening of “The Outwin 2022: American Portraiture Today”
Alison Elizabeth Taylor Receives $25,000 and New Commission as First-Prize Winner of the National Triennial
04.29.2022
Portrait Gallery Exhibitions
Image of forest mountaintop and second image of stone deity sculpture

Left: Northeast peak of Phnom Da in 2019. Southern Cambodia, Takeo Province. Photo: Konstanty Kulik, courtesy of the Cleveland Museum of Art

Right: Krishna Lifting Mount Govardhan (detail), c. 600. Southern Cambodia, Takeo Province, Phnom Da. Sandstone; The Cleveland Museum of Art

Groundbreaking Exhibition of Newly Restored Cambodian Masterpiece “Krishna Lifting Mount Govardhan” Integrates Art and Experiential Digital Design
“Revealing Krishna: Journey to Cambodia’s Sacred Mountain” Opens at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art April 30
04.14.2022
Asian Art Museum Exhibitions
Outdoor garden with solar powered recharge stations in foreground

Smithsonian Solar-Powered Recharge Stations in the Enid A. Haupt Garden by James Gagliardi

New Smithsonian Solar-Powered Clean Energy “Recharge Stations” To Debut as Part of “FUTURES” Exhibition
Visitors to the National Mall Can Now Recharge Their Devices, and Themselves, at Eco-Friendly Solar-Powered Installations
04.13.2022
Smithsonian Gardens Arts and Industries Exhibitions Public Programs
Side-by-side images showing children playing on a teeter toter and a poster with the words "Act Now"
"Designing Peace" To Open in June at Cooper Hewitt
04.07.2022
Cooper Hewitt Exhibitions
Taxidermied bird on a wooden perch for display
Smithsonian Opens “Really BIG Money” April 8
Exhibit Features Massive Currency in Kid-Friendly Gallery
04.07.2022
American History Museum Exhibitions
Portrait of man and a separate image of a ceramic bowl

Left image: Sam Gilliam portrait by Fredrik Nilsen Studio. Right image: Sam Gilliam, “X for X,” 2021, acrylic and mixed media on panel in beveled frame, 48 x 48 x 4 inches (121.9 x 121.9 x 10.2 cm). Photo: Jonathan Nesteruk. Copyright 2022 Sam Gilliam /Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

Hirshhorn’s Sam Gilliam Exhibition Will Spotlight His Decades-Long Investigation Into Abstraction
“Sam Gilliam: Full Circle” Will Debut New Paintings, May 25–Sept. 11
04.07.2022
Hirshhorn Museum Exhibitions
Robinson Jersey

Jackie Robinson's Jersey

National Museum of African American History and Culture Displays Jackie Robinson’s Jersey in Honor of 75th Anniversary of Robinson’s Major League Debut
04.07.2022
African American Museum Exhibitions
Raytheon Technologies Space Age

Rendering of Raytheon Technologies' "Living in the Space Age."

National Air and Space Museum Receives $25 Million Gift From Raytheon Technologies
New “Living in the Space Age” Exhibition Anticipated To Open in 2025
04.06.2022
Air and Space Museum Exhibitions

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