SAAM Stories

Close up of mixed media portrait quilt
Contemporary Craft Exhibitions 07/08/2022
Contemporary Craft in Focus: Portrait of Resilience
Multimedia artist Sharon Kerry-Harlan pieces together portraits of contemporary Black American life using materials and symbols from the past and present
SAAM
Two wooden sculptures, an elephant and a dog
Exhibitions 06/29/2022
We Are Made of Stories: Self-Taught Artists Featured in the National Collection
Discover how the creativity and bold self-definition of untrained artists became major forces in American art.
SAAM
A man in a Mao suit standing in front of the Golden Gate Bridge
From the Collection Pride 06/23/2022
Performing Ambiguity: The Art of Tseng Kwong Chi
In his all too short career, the photographer rejected conventional codes of identity and insisted on new, ambiguous conditions of being.
A photograph of Melissa Ho by Jeff Elkins
Melissa Ho
Curator (20th-Century Art)
Close up of knitted textile installation
Contemporary Craft Exhibitions 06/15/2022
Contemporary Craft in Focus: The Queer Houses of Brooklyn
Artist L.J. Roberts integrates queer theory with traditional “domestic crafts” such as knitting and embroidery.
SAAM
A painting of a soldier looking at a strolling woman.
Exhibitions From the Collection 06/09/2022
Artists, Friends, Lovers: Paul Cadmus and George Tooker
Celebrating Pride with paintings by two artists whose lives intersected and whose artworks explore similar themes
A photograph of Howard Kaplan on a plane.
Howard Kaplan
Writer
Detail of sculpture of a little girl
One Smithsonian Women Artists 06/03/2022
Closing the Gender Gap: Seeing American Women Sculptors in Wikipedia
Online volunteers learn the basics of how to edit Wikipedia by creating or updating articles related to the history of fifty women sculptors in the United States
Kelly Doyle
Sonoe Nakasone
An illustration of a person wearing a black coat and top hat.
Pride Women Artists 06/01/2022
Drawn to Romaine Brooks
Celebrating the renowned artist with a comic about her life and work
A photograph of Howard Kaplan on a plane.
Howard Kaplan
Writer
Close of up of clay statue with painted face
Contemporary Craft Exhibitions 05/20/2022
Contemporary Craft in Focus: Warrior with Color Face
Sculptor Wanxin Zhang explores history, politics, and culture through clay
SAAM
Gallery view of sculpture
Contemporary Craft Exhibitions 05/13/2022
This Present Moment is Here and Now
New exhibition celebrates the 50th anniversary of SAAM’s Renwick Gallery
SAAM
Gallery view of quilt and ceramic sculptures
Contemporary Craft 05/12/2022
Crafting a Better World
SAAM’s director on the exhibition This Present Moment: Crafting a Better World
 Stephanie Stebich, Former Margaret and Terry Stent Direction in the museum's Lincoln Gallery. Photo by Gene Young. 
Stephanie Stebich
Former Director, Smithsonian American Art Museum
Detail of quilted portrait showing three African American soldiers
Contemporary Craft From the Collection 05/02/2022
Contemporary Craft in Focus: Harlem Hellfighters
Learn more about artist Bisa Butler's vivid portraits of African American heroes from World War I
SAAM
The four members of Broke Royals stand in front of a leafy green background.
Luce Foundation Center 04/28/2022
Podcast Release: Music and Conversation with Broke Royals
SAAM's Luce Foundation Center is teaming up with DC local music podcast Hometown Sounds to bring you music and conversations from your favorite artists.
Anne Wilsey
Program Specialist for the Luce Foundation Center
Detail of abstract painting
From the Collection 04/21/2022
Why I Am Not a Painter: on Michael Goldberg's Sardines
What happens when poet Frank O'Hara walks into Mike Goldberg's studio while he's working on a painting?
A photograph of Howard Kaplan on a plane.
Howard Kaplan
Writer
Conservator pulling a print from the sink of water
Exhibitions Conservation 04/14/2022
Refreshing a View of Venice: How Paper Conservators Clean a Print
SAAM conservator Kate Maynor explains the delicate process of washing paper
Kate Maynor
Black and white photograph of a woman holding a monkey that is swaddled like a baby
From the Collection 04/07/2022
Depicting Love in Diane Arbus’s A woman with her baby monkey, 1971
An unexpected email reveals more about the subject of one of Diane Arbus’s celebrated portraits
Photography of John Jacob by Friedrich Nill.
John Jacob
McEvoy Family Curator for Photography
Roman glass bowl
Exhibitions Conservation 04/01/2022
A Fragile Roman Mosaic Glass Bowl Reveals Its Secrets
Go behind-the-scenes with conservators who make a fascinating discovery about a rarely seen Roman glass bowl
Katya Zinsli
A holographic figure in a dark room behind a velvet rope and drapes.
From the Collection New Acquisitions 03/29/2022
Exploring the American Psyche with Carrie Mae Weems
On the multimedia installation, Lincoln, Lonnie, and Me, recently acquired by SAAM
This is a photograph of curator Saisha Grayson
Saisha Grayson
Curator of Time-Based Media
Bubble graph with interconnected data points.
One Smithsonian Technology 03/25/2022
Building a Web of Knowledge Through Wikidata
This Women's History Month, learn how SAAM is using open data platforms to increase the visibility of artists represented in the collection
Sonoe Nakasone