Asian American Artists and the WPA
A critical look at artistic production and the unequal distribution of benefits during the New Deal period
Eye Level
Eye Level is the blog of the Smithsonian American Art Museum and Renwick Gallery. Publishing behind-the-scenes museum stories since 2005.
Protest and Remembrance: Chicanx Artists Confront Police Brutality
Artists honor victims of social injustice and create a space for communal grieving
Welcome Back: SAAM and the Renwick Gallery Reopen May 14
Stephanie Stebich, the Margaret and Terry Stent Director, welcomes visitors back to the museum and looks at artworks on view by Asian American artists in honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.
Discoveries from the Collection: Honoring Service and Sacrifice in American Art
Discover how a partnership between SAAM and the American Battle Monuments Commission revealed an unexpected connection between Paul Manship sketches and a U.S. military cemetery located outside of Rome.
Chicanx Graphic Arts in Focus: Alice Bag
Shizu Saldamando explores identity and representation through portraiture
Chicano Artists Challenging History and Reclaiming Cultural Memory
Chicano artists use graphics to reframe history with new perspectives
Second Nature: Landscapes as a Marker for Stewardship
What do an epic nineteenth-century landscape that inspired the designation of a national park and a twenty-first-century post-apocalyptic scene hinting at a hopeful future have in common?
Podcast Release: Music and Conversation with singer-songwriter Jenna Camille
Singer-songwriter, Jenna Camille, discusses how her creative motivations have evolved over the past year.
Make an Upcycled Planter for Earth Month
Enjoy an easy and fun craft using recycled materials and plant the seed for a greener future
Earth Day 2021: Carleton E. Watkins’ Legacy as a Conservationist
We take a look at the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on nature as well as an excerpt from Eleanor Jones Harvey’s exhibition catalogue focusing on Carleton E. Watkins.
Chicanx Graphic Arts in Focus: Mujer de Mucha Enagua, PA' TI XICANA
Yreina D. Cervántez uses text, imagery, and symbolism to pay tribute to bold female leaders of different eras
Chair-y Blossom at SAAM
Part of the National Cherry Blossom Festival’s inaugural “Art in Bloom” event, the cherry blossom sculpture Cherry Garden by artist Rashin Kheiriyeh is one of 25 that double as chairs sprinkled throughout DC and the neighboring areas.
Christine McHorse, an Artist Whose Clay Works Pushed Against Conventions
Remembering the Navajo artist whose clay works pushed against conventions over her fifty-year career
Beyond the Studio with Revery Paper Flora
Beyond the Studio with Revery Paper Flora
No green thumb? No problem. Hear from local botanical artist and educator, Emily Paluska of Revery Paper Flora, as SAAM's Luce Foundation Center connects with local artists.
Chicanx Graphic Arts in Focus: Hasta La Victoria Siempre
Chicanx Graphic Arts in Focus: Hasta La Victoria Siempre
Luis González’s Hasta La Victoria Siempre combines bold graphics and text in a powerful political poster designed to support the Chicano movement
Alexander Nemerov on Helen Frankenthaler
The author’s new book, Fierce Poise, chronicles the artist coming into her own in the 1950s
Making the Most: In the Studio with Donté K. Hayes
The ceramic artist reflects on his art, studio practice, and life during this challenging period
Five Women Changemakers in American Art
Celebrating Women’s History Month by illuminating the stories of women who challenged both what art could be and who could be an artist.