A marble gallery shows a neon sculpture of the United States across from an abstract painting
Welcome to the Smithsonian American Art Museum and its Renwick Gallery

Explore the sweep of four centuries of the the American imagination at the nation's flagship museum for American art and craft. Dive into inspiring artworks, special exhibitions, and the reimagined collection — American Voices and Visions: Modern and Contemporary Art. Experience our offerings both online and in person at our two locations, including national educational programs, innovative research, video interviews with artists, virtual artist studio tours, lectures, and more. Admission is always free.

Featured Exhibitions

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Carrie Mae Weems: Looking Forward, Looking Back
September 22, 2023 — July 72024 
This focused exhibition pairs two projects by Carrie Mae Weems—a major multimedia installation and a series of photographs—that revisit moments from history.
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Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas
September 15, 2023June 2, 2024
The exhibition Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas provides an intimate view of Alma Thomas’ evolving artistic practices during her most prolific period from 1959 to her death in 1978.
J. P. Ball, Unidentified sitter, 1858–60, daguerreotype
J. P. Ball and Robert S. Duncanson: An African American Artistic Collaboration
September 15, 2023 — March 2024
This focused exhibition pairs artwork by two Black artists working in the mid-nineteenth century—photographer J. P. Ball and painter Robert S. Duncanson.
 The Protagonist of an Endless Story by Angel Rodríguez-Díaz
Many Wests: Artists Shape an American Idea
July 28, 2023January 14, 2024
Ideas about the American West, both in popular culture and in commonly accepted historical narratives, are often based on a past that never was, and fail to take into account important events that actually occurred.
Tour Dates
  • 1
    Smithsonian American Art Museum
    Washington, DC
    July 28, 2023January 14, 2024
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Musical Thinking: New Video Art and Sonic Strategies
June 23, 2023January 29, 2024
Musical Thinking explores the powerful resonances between recent video art and popular music.
Artist Lily Hope with an ornamental headdress
Sharing Honors and Burdens: Renwick Invitational 2023
May 26, 2023March 31, 2024
Artists Joe Feddersen (Arrow Lakes/Okanagan), Lily Hope (Tlingit), Ursala Hudson (Tlingit), Erica Lord (Athabaskan/Iñupiat), Geo Neptune (Passamaquoddy), and Maggie Thompson (Fond du Lac Ojibwe) present a fresh and nuanced vision of Native American art.

Upcoming Featured Events

Featured Stories

View of SAAM gallery.
09/22/2023
Your favorite pieces from SAAM’s collection are now on display alongside new works in the redesigned modern and contemporary galleries
SAAM
A photograph of a woman in front of artwork
SAAM's renovated and reimagined modern and contemporary galleries transform the museum’s third floor into spaces for wonder and reflection
A photograph of a person standing in front of an artwork. She is wearing earbuds and holding her phone up to the work.
SAAM teamed up with the digital firm Smartify to create a series of audio tours that deepen the visitor experience, both in our galleries and online.
SAAM
An illustration of a group of 10 women artists.
09/14/2023
SAAM's comic series launches ten more stories of remarkable women artists
Emma Hitchcock
Detail of a portrait of Sandra Cisneros
Uncovering the passion and power behind Angel Rodríguez-Díaz’s portraiture
SAAM

New Acquisitions

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Pledge
Date2018
screenprint on retroflective vinyl mounted on aluminum composite
On view
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Lincoln, Lonnie, and Me — A Story in 5 Parts
Date2012
video installation and mixed media, color, sound; 18:29 minutes
On view
Untitled (Première Carte Pour L’Introduction A L’Histoire…
Date2022
oil and acrylic on archival printed canvas
On view
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Floating Clouds
Date1944
oil on canvas
Not on view