Accessibility

Patrons using sign language at a party at SAAM

Navigating the Building

Buildings

Barrier-free access to both SAAM’s main building and its Renwick Gallery are available.

At SAAM, ramps are located on both sides of the 8th and G Streets NW entrance. If you are using MetroAccess Paratransit, please use 800 G Street NW as the address for our building.

At the Renwick Gallery, a ramp at the corner of 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW leads to an accessible entrance.

All areas of both buildings are served by elevators. Service animals are welcome in both museum buildings.

Restrooms

Accessible restrooms are located on all floors of SAAM.

At the Renwick Gallery, accessible restrooms are located on all levels with unisex accessible restrooms on the first floor and basement level.

Wheelchair Availability

Manual wheelchairs are available free of charge in the G Street and F Street lobbies at SAAM. Please ask a security guard.

The Renwick Gallery offers manual wheelchairs at the basement security desk.

SAAM – McEvoy Auditorium 

The Nan Tucker McEvoy Auditorium is accessible by elevator, and contains wheelchair spaces available during performances and lectures. The auditorium is equipped with an induction hearing loop and T-coil infrared assistive listening system.

Aira Access

The museum is a location for the Aira Access mobile information and verbal description service. Visitors can download the free Aira app on a smartphone, connect to the museum's free Wi-Fi, and use the app to speak to an Aira agent using minutes provided courtesy of the Smithsonian. Visit Aira Access

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently asked questions about accessibility for visitors.

Barrier-free access to both SAAM’s main building and its Renwick Gallery are available.

At SAAM, ramps are located on both sides of the 8th and G Streets NW entrance. If you are using MetroAccess Paratransit, please use 800 G Street NW as the address for our building.

At the Renwick Gallery, a ramp at the corner of 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW leads to an accessible entrance.

Service animals are welcome at Smithsonian museums. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), a service animal is defined as a dog that has been individually trained to do work or perform tasks for an individual with a disability. 

At the Renwick Gallery, accessible restrooms are located on all levels with unisex accessible restrooms on the first floor and basement level.

Accessible restrooms are located on all floors of SAAM.

Accessible Programs and Events

A woman provides interpretation in front of a landscape painting.
Art Signs: Programs in ASL

Explore our collection through gallery talks in American Sign Language. Deaf gallery guides lead lively conversations on Sunday afternoons and Thursday evenings, twice a month. Voice interpretation available.

An ASL Interpreter interprets in front of a painting
Art Signs Online Video Series

This video series in ASL explores paintings, sculpture, and abstract works from the collection, presented by our Deaf gallery guides. View the videos at home, or in the galleries on your mobile device. Videos are captioned. 

a visually impaired tour at the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
America InSight: Verbal Description Tours

Join a docent-led tour for visitors who are blind or have low vision. Discover art through rich verbal description and sensory experience. Touch tour components for sculpture may be included. Thursday tours are often followed by live musical performances in the museum’s courtyard, part of the Take 5! series

A photograph of a group in an art gallery in conversation.
See Me at SAAM: Programs for Visitors with Memory Loss

See Me at the Smithsonian American Art Museum is a gallery program to enhance the well-being of individuals with dementia and their care partners by experiencing and discussing art in a small group. Registration required, please e-mail access@si.edu or call (202) 633-2921.

Accessible Exhibition Resources

A person walks holding a radio near her face. A group of people follow.
Musical Thinking Accessibility Guide

View a full accessibility guide the includes a sensory map, wall text, ASL translations, verbal descriptions, and wayfinding for the exhibition  Musical Thinking: New Video Art and Sonic Strategies