Events and Programs at the Smithsonian American Art Museum

Events and Programs at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington DC

Alert: Smithsonian Museums and the National Zoo To Close March 14, 2020

Programs are free and open to the public unless ticket information is noted.

Art Talks and Activities

See Me At SAAM 
Wednesday, March 4, 2 p.m. 
In an effort to make SAAM’s collection accessible to all, See Me at SAAM is designed to improve the well-being of individuals with dementia and their care partners. This popular series brings people together to experience and discuss art in a small group setting.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, Kogod Courtyard
Tickets: Free; Registration required by email at access@si.edu or calling (202) 633-2921
Event Link

Conversation Pieces 
Wednesday, March 4, 6 p.m. 
Want to deepen your understanding and appreciation of contemporary art? Join Joanna Marsh, SAAM’s Deputy Education Chair, Head of Interpretation and Audience Research, for this ongoing series of gallery talks. Marsh uses a single artwork from the museum’s collection to spark conversation and closer examination.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, meet in the G Street Lobby
Tickets: Free
Event Link

Heritage at Risk: A Dialogue On the Effects of Climate Change 
Friday, March 6, 5:30 p.m. 
Join six cultural heritage experts in a discussion about the global challenges relating to climate change and the increasing risks to heritage sites and collections. Julian Bickersteth, president of the International Institute of Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (IIC), moderates an engaging dialogue with panelists and the audience.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, McEvoy Auditorium
Tickets: Free; Doors open at 5:15 p.m. Seating is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis
Event Link

Double Take 
Tuesday, March 10, 6 p.m. 
In conjunction with Chiura Obata: American Modern, Crawford Alexander Mann III, SAAM’s curator of prints and drawings, and Noriko Sanefuji, historian and curator at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, discuss Obata’s firsthand experience and painted record of Japanese American incarceration during World War II. Between 1942 and 1943, Obata created over 100 drawings and paintings detailing his family’s forced removal from their home in California to a camp in Utah.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, meet in the G Street Lobby
Tickets: Free
Event Link

Yoga in Luce 
Wednesday, March 11, 6 p.m.
Bring your mat and relax with this Vinyasa yoga and art appreciation series. Participants are invited to reflect on an artwork of their choosing in the Luce Foundation Center before unwinding with a one-hour all-levels vinyasa yoga class.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center
Tickets: $10; Tickets available online starting February 26 at noon. Cash is not accepted at the door
Event Link

Wikipedia Edit-A-Thon: Art and Feminism 
Friday, March 13, 10:30 a.m.-3 p.m. 
Women artists deserve more recognition, and this is your chance to correct the historical record! Join SAAM, the Smithsonian American Art Library, and Art+Feminism for a Wikipedia edit-a-thon. Learn how to edit and create new articles highlighting women artists on Wikipedia. All levels of technological proficiency welcome. A special tour of remarkable women artists in SAAM’s collection kicks off this program.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, MacMillan Education Center
Tickets: Free; Registration required
Event Link

Conservation Talk: Fighters of Freedom 
Friday, March 13, 1 p.m. 
See how art conservators combat the ravages of time on paintings in SAAM’s collection. Keara Teeter, a 2019–20 Samuel H. Kress fellow in paintings conservation, explains her conservation treatment of William H. Johnson’s iconic Fighters for Freedom series.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, Meet at G Street Lobby
Tickets: Free
Event Link

Symposium – Art, Nature, and Environmental Awareness: Alexander von Humboldt’s Legacy 
Friday, March 20, 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. 
Who was Alexander von Humboldt? This symposium answers that question and many more with presentations by historians of art and science, and contemporary artists who address how Humboldt’s view of nature as an interconnected web has influenced the appreciation of the landscape in American art and guided our stewardship of this planet in the face of climate change. This day-long symposium is presented in conjunction with the opening of Alexander von Humboldt and the United States: Art, Nature, and Culture, the first museum exhibition to examine Humboldt’s lasting influence on the art and culture of the United States, specifically examining the way we think about our relationship to our environment.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, McEvoy Auditorium
Tickets: Free; Registration required beginning February 24
Event Link

SAAM Cherry Blossom Celebration 
Saturday, March 21, 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. 
Join SAAM and the National Cherry Blossom Festival for a celebration of Japanese culture. A taiko drumming performance kicks off the festivities, followed by Les The DJ spinning Japanese pop, funk, and boogie beats and the Koto Ensemble performing traditional Japanese dance. Enjoy face painting, make cherry blossom crafts, and go on an art scavenger hunt throughout the exhibition Chiura Obata: American Modern in the first-floor galleries.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, Kogod Courtyard
Tickets: Free
Event Link

A Half-Century of Fellowship: Wyeth Foundation for American Art Symposium 
Saturday, March 21, 1-5 p.m. 
Celebrate fifty years of the Smithsonian American Art Museum fostering new scholarship through its preeminent fellowship program, the oldest and largest in the world for the study of American art. This symposium features discussions about the impact of SAAM’s program on American art history and examines future directions in scholarship through presentations by distinguished alumni and a series of PechaKucha-style fast-paced talks. For more information, visit: AmericanArt.si.edu/fellowships50
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, McEvoy Auditorium
Tickets: Free; Registration required beginning February 24
Event Link

Beyond the Studio Workshop – Screen Printing & Ink Demo with Matt Long 
Sunday, March 22, 1-3 p.m. 
Celebrate the National Cherry Blossom Festival with a screen printing and ink demo workshop with Matt Long, the official artist of the 2020 National Cherry Blossom Festival.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, McMillan Education Center
Tickets: $15; Registration required, beginning March 8 at noon
Event Link

Cherry Blossom Sunrise with SAAM + Daybreakers 
Friday, March 27, 6-9 a.m. 
Time to wake up and dance! Celebrate spring and cherry blossom season with SAAM and Daybreakers, a global community that celebrates wellness, music, and mischief. Greet the dawn in the beautiful glass-enclosed Kogod Courtyard with yoga then dance with reckless abandon. Pink, floral, and sunrise attire encouraged.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, Kogod Courtyard
Tickets: $25; Registration required
Event Link

Art Bites Gallery Talks: Chiura Obata 
Friday, March 27, 12:15 p.m. 
Join SAAM’s research fellows as they share their discoveries about artworks from the collection. In this installment, Predoctoral Fellow Sarah Bane discusses Chiura Obata’s Great Nature, Storm on Mount Lyell from Johnson Peak (1930). Learn the story behind this artwork and find out what it can tell us about America’s ever-changing culture.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, meet in the G Street Lobby
Tickets: Free
Event Link

Symposium: Thoughts of Our People from “Hearts of Our People” 
Friday, March 28, 2-5:30 p.m. 
Join the artists featured the critically acclaimed exhibition Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists, on view at the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s Renwick Gallery. This exhibition explores the artistic achievements of Native women and establishes their rightful place in the art world. Artists Kelly Church (Ottawa/Pottawatomi), Anita Fields (Osage), Carla Hemlock (Kanienkeháka), and Jolene Rickard (Tuscarora) discuss their work and the role of women as artists in Native communities. Exhibition curators Jill Ahlberg Yohe, associate curator of Native American Art at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, and Teri Greeves, an independent curator and member of the Kiowa Nation, moderate a panel discussion following the artists’ talks. Note, this symposium takes place at the National Museum of the American Indian, located at 4th Street and Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC.
Location: National Museum of the American Indian (4th Street and Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC.)
Tickets: Free
Event Link

Alexander von Humboldt: His World of Nature 
Sunday, March 29, 3-4 p.m.
Join Eleanor Jones Harvey, curator of the exhibition Alexander von Humboldt and the United States: Art, Nature, and Culture, for a fascinating exploration into Humboldt’s enduring influence on American art and culture. This lecture is organized by the Smithsonian Associates.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, MacMillan Education Center
Tickets: $30 for Smithsonian Associates members, $45 for non-members; Registration required
Event Link

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Music, Performances & Film

Women Filmmakers Festival at SAAM 
Friday, March 6, 7-9 p.m. and Saturday, March 7, 2-7 p.m. 
Join the Smithsonian American Art Museum and Eaton DC for a two-day film festival that highlights women and nonbinary artists working outside the Hollywood game, making their own rules, and seeking adventurous audiences for their bold visions.

Friday, March 6—Eaton DC hosts a night of shorts featuring innovative local filmmakers.

Saturday, March 7— Smithsonian American Art Museum showcases an afternoon lineup of short films and conversations with artists. Then, enjoy a special feature-length screening of the indie classic Born in Flames (R, 1983) and a discussion with director Lizzie Borden.
Location: Eaton DC (1201 K Street NW), and Smithsonian American Art Museum, McEvoy Auditorium
Tickets: Free; Separate registration required for each day
Event Link

Luce Unplugged Community Showcase – The OSYX & Cecily 
Friday, March 27, 6-8 p.m. 
Enjoy DC’s best local artists paired with local beers, while surrounded by beautiful artworks in the Luce Foundation Center. Our Women’s History Month Community Showcase features the silvery harmonies of pro-womxn rock band The OSYX and the agile soprano of DC-based vocalist Cecily. Free tastings (21+) will be provided by a local craft brewer. Additional libations and snacks are available for purchase from an on-site bar.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center (third floor)
Tickets: Free
Event Link

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Ongoing Programs

Sketching: Draw and Discover!  
Tuesdays, 2:30 – 4:30pm  
Draw inspiration from artists’ sketches as well as the thousands of objects on display in the Luce Foundation Center, then spend some time sketching in this weekly workshop. Some materials provided; please bring a small sketchbook and pencils.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, Luce Foundation Center (third floor)
Tickets: Free
Event Link

Conservation Conversation: Preserving SAAM’s Collection 
Fridays, 1 p.m.
Learn how museum conservators preserve SAAM’s artworks in the Lunder Conservation Center. The center has five state-of-the-art laboratories and studios equipped to treat paintings, prints, drawings, photographs, sculptures, folk art objects, contemporary crafts, decorative arts, and frames. Group size is limited.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, Lunder Conservation Center
Tickets: Free
Event Link

Art Signs: Gallery Talk in American Sign Language (ASL)
Thursday, March 12, 5:30 p.m.
Sunday, March 15, 1 p.m.  
Join us for lively gallery conversations in American Sign Language led by Deaf gallery guides. Don’t miss a single one, as this popular series examines different treasures from SAAM’s collection for each installment. For more information, contact SAAMAccess@si.edu.
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, meet in the F Street Lobby
Tickets: Free
Event Link

America InSight: Verbal Description Tour 
Sunday, March 8, 1:30 p.m.
Join a docent-led tour designed for visitors who are blind or have low vision. Discover highlights of the collection through rich verbal description and sensory experience. Touch components for sculptures and model recreations of paintings may be incorporated into the tour. For more information, contact SAAMAccess@si.edu
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum, meet in the F Street Lobby
Tickets: Free
Event Link

America InSight: Verbal Description Tour at the Renwick Gallery
Sunday, March 22, 1:30 p.m.   
Join a docent-led tour designed for visitors who are blind or have low vision. Discover highlights of the collection through rich verbal description and sensory experience. Touch components for sculptures and model recreations of paintings may be incorporated into the tour. For more information, contact SAAMAccess@si.edu.
Location: Renwick Gallery, meet in the Lobby
Tickets: Free
Event Link

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For more information on this museum, visit our Smithsonian American Art Museum page.

Event listings are provided by the Smithsonian American Art Museum and Renwick Gallery