Electronic Superhighway
Welcome to the Smithsonian American Art Museum and its Renwick Gallery

Explore the sweep of the American imagination across four centuries at the nation's flagship museum for American art and craft. Inspiring artworks and special exhibitions online and in person at our two locations. National educational offerings. Innovative research. Video interviews with artists and virtual studio tours, lectures and more. Admission is always free.

Featured Exhibitions

View All Exhibitions
Quilted artwork depicting eight African American soldiers
Contemporary Craft at the Renwick Gallery
Ongoing
Renwick Gallery
SAAM’s branch location for contemporary craft, the Renwick Gallery, showcases the dynamic landscape of American craft today. Currently on view are more than 100 works in a range of mediums from fiber and ceramics to glass, metal, wood, and mixed media.
Media - 1967.129 - SAAM-1967.129_1 - 65164
Artist to Artist
October 1, 2021–May 18, 2025
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Artist to Artist features paired artworks, each representing two figures whose trajectories intersected at a creatively crucial moment, whether as student and teacher, professional allies, or friends.

Upcoming Featured Events

Featured Stories

View All Stories
Detail of quilted portrait showing three African American soldiers
Education
05/24/2023
Unpacking the Stories Behind Artist Bisa Butler’s Portrayal of the Harlem Hellfighters
Tips for teaching the layered World War I history of the 369th Infantry Regiment on their return from France
Ben Brands
A photograph of Phoebe Hillemann
Phoebe Hillemann
Teacher Institutes Educator
A procession of women walking through the desert. The woman in front holds a radio on her shoulder.
Exhibitions
05/19/2023
Discovering the Intersection Between Moving Image and Sound in Video Art
Exhibition invites viewers to discover the intersections and influences of video and sound, through works by some of today’s leading contemporary artists
This is a photograph of curator Saisha Grayson
Saisha Grayson
Curator of Time-Based Media
An illustrated portrait of a woman with short brown hair. The background is red with a yellow pattern.
Women Artists
05/10/2023
Drawn to Tiffany Chung
Celebrating the renowned artist with a comic about her life and work
A photograph of Howard Kaplan on a plane.
Howard Kaplan
Writer
Detail of painting showing the roofs of building and clouds floating over them.
From the CollectionWomen Artists
05/01/2023
Historic New Acquisitions by Two Trailblazing Japanese American Painters
A look at historic new acquisitions of art by two trailblazing Japanese American painters
A photograph of Melissa Ho by Jeff Elkins
Melissa Ho
Curator (20th-Century Art)
A person in a black and white checkered sweater stands holding headphones. They are also black and white, woven with an Indigenous motif and have long white fringe.
Contemporary CraftExhibitions
04/27/2023
Six Artists from Indigenous Nations On Sharing Honors and Burdens
Go in-depth for a look at the themes of Sharing Honors and Burdens in the Renwick’s upcoming exhibition.
Lara Evans

New Acquisitions

View All New Acquisitions
Media - 2022.13 - SAAM-2022.13_1 - 146150
Monumental
Artist
Date2019
woven linen with madder dye and tea stain
Not on view
Media - 2022.25 - SAAM-2022.25_1 - 146159
Don’t Tread on Me, God Damn, Let’s Go! — The Harlem…
Artist
Date2021
cottons, silk, wool, and velvet
On view
Media - 2022.31.1.1-.10 - SAAM-2022.31_1 - 146324
Metabolizing the Border
Artist
Date2018-2020
Performance. Unique objects worn by artist/performer (glass, neoprene, rusted metal fragments of U.S./Mexico border fence, leather, cotton twine, flashlight) and photodocumentation of the performance (digital files)
Not on view
Media - 2021.76.1 - SAAM-2021.76.1_1 - 142514
Untitled (Verse Jar)
Artist
Date1860
stoneware with alkaline glaze
On view