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Luce Foundation Center for American Art
Third floor mezzanine of the Luce Foundation Center for American Art. © Tim Hursley
The Smithsonian American Art Museum's Luce Foundation Center for American Art is the first visible art storage and study center in Washington. The center displays more than 3,300 objects in secure glass cases, which quadruples the number of artworks from the permanent collection on public view. The innovative space features paintings densely hung on screens, sculptures, crafts and folk art objects arranged on shelves, and miniatures, medals and jewelry in pneumatic drawers. Award-winning interactive computer kiosks provide the public with information on every object in the center, including discussions of each artwork, artist biographies, video clips, and still images.
The Luce Foundation Center runs a variety of programs that are free and open to the public. These include themed scavenger hunts for children, a weekly sketching workshop, and Art + Coffee tours. Museum staff members are available at the Luce Foundation Center information desk seven days a week to answer visitor questions and conduct tours. Free public wireless Internet access (Wi-Fi) is available in the Luce Center.
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