Exhibits

A selective guide to the many Smithsonian exhibitions currently on view. For a complete listing, please visit our calendar.

Brian Jungen: Strange Comfort

October 16, 2009 - August 8, 2010
National Museum of the American Indian
3rd Level, W. Richard West Jr. Contemporary Arts/3M Gallery
This major survey features iconic works by Brian Jungen (Dunne-za First Nations/Swiss/Canadian), as well as major pieces never before seen in the United States. Jungen is widely regarded as the foremost Native artist of his generation; his art transforms the familiar and banal into exquisite objects that reference themes of globalization, pop culture, museums, and the commodification of Indian imagery. He first came to prominence with Prototypes for New Understandings (1998-2005), which fashioned Nike footwear into masks that suggested Northwest Coast iconography. Later works have included a pod of whales made from plastic chairs, totem poles made from golf bags, and a massive basketball court made from 224 sewing tables.

Free brochure

Catalogue: $29.95 (paper)

See September 2009 Smithsonian magazine, pp. 17 and 20

December 1, 2009 3:00 AM

Up Where We Belong: Native Musicians in Popular Culture

July 1, 2010 - January 2, 2011
National Museum of the American Indian
2nd Level, Sealaska Gallery
This banner exhibition highlights Native people who have been active participants in contemporary music for nearly a century. Musicians like Russell "Big Chief" Moore (Gila River Indian Community), Rita Coolidge (Cherokee), Buffy Sainte-Marie (Cree), and the group Redbone are a few of the Native performing artists who have had successful careers in popular music. Many have been involved in each form of popular music -- from jazz and blues to folk, country, and rock. In this exhibition their stories will be told, along with the history behind them. Visitors can hear samples of these music greats and find out with whom they collaborated, learn by whom they were inspired, and consider contemporary artists whom they influenced. Highlights include:

• Jimi Hendrix's (Cherokee) colorful patchwork full-length leather coat

Grass Roots: African Origins of an American Art

June 23, 2010 - November 28, 2010
National Museum of African Art
Sublevel 2
By tracing the story of the beautiful coiled basket on two continents, Grass Roots demonstrates the enduring contribution of African peoples and cultures to American life in southeastern United States. On view are approximately 200 objects, including baskets made in Africa and the American South, African sculptures, paintings from the Charleston Renaissance, and historic photos and videos. The exhibition also reveals how a simple farm tool, once used for processing rice, has become an important tool for making coiled baskets in the South.

Videos (running continuously)

Exhibition Catalogue: $35 (paper); $60 (cloth) Related publication and video

Read My Pins: The Madeleine Albright Collection

June 18, 2010 - October 17, 2010 (new closing date)
Smithsonian Institution Building, the Castle
Schermer Hall
This exhibition features pins from former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright's collection to explore the use of jewelry as a tool of diplomacy and to capture her wit and the expressive nature of her pins.

During her service as ambassador to the United Nations, and then as secretary of state, Albright came to understand how powerful a symbol an item of jewelry could be, and chose pins to reflect her diplomatic mission, reinforce her negotiating position, or express her pride of country and office. The pins on view span more that a century of jewelry design and range from dime-store pins to designer creations to family heirlooms. She wore these pins at meetings with world leaders and ordinary citizens alike, in settings both formal and informal.

Highlights include:
• the antique eagle purchased to celebrate her appointment as Secretary of State
• the zebra pin she wore when she met Nelson Mandela
• the Valentine Day's heart forged by her five-year-old daughter
• a dazzling array of flags, flowers, birds, bugs, fanciful designs, and even a man made out of vegetables.

Related publication: $40 (cloth)

See related article in Smithsonian magazine: June 2010, p. 28.

No photography permitted.

Note: The exhibition is open to the public during regular hours except during special events.

Paper Engineering: Fold, Pull, Pop and Turn

June 14, 2010 - September 30, 2011 (new closing date)
National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
1st Floor, West Wing, SI Libraries Gallery
This exhibition on innovative book design highlights movable, pop-up, folding, and multiple-construction books from the year 1570 to the present day. Although today pop-up books are often found in the children's book section, the earliest movable books were tools to educate and document information, such as a calendar, the moon's movements, or the inner workings of the human heart. The show features more than 50 works arranged by construction type in four areas:

• movables (primarily books that have movable parts that do not emerge from the surface of the page)
• pop-ups (book that in variant ways do emerge from the page)
• folding books (accordion forms)
• fantastic forms (that use multiple constructions)

The exhibition also features two interactive videos

Free brochure

Revealing Culture

June 8, 2010 - August 29, 2010
S. Dillon Ripley Center, International Gallery
International Gallery
This groundbreaking exhibition of contemporary art by 55 artists with disabilities features over 130 works in a range of media, including installations, video, performance, painting, sculpture, and printmaking. The works were juried from over 400 submissions.

Free booklet

National Design Triennial: Why Design Now?

May 14, 2010 - January 9, 2011
Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum
1st & 2nd Floors
Inaugurated in 2000, the Triennial program seeks out and presents the most innovative designs at the center of contemporary culture. In this fourth exhibition in the series, the National Design Triennial explores the work of designers addressing human and environmental problems across many fields of the design practice -- from architecture and products to fashion, graphics, new media, and landscapes.

Cooper-Hewitt curators Ellen Lupton, Cara McCarty, Matilda McQuaid, and Cynthia Smith present the experimental projects and emerging ideas for the period between 2006 and 2009.

Yves Klein: With the Void, Full Powers

May 20, 2010 - September 12, 2010
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
2nd Floor
The first American retrospective in nearly 30 years of this highly influential French artist's career examines his life and work from the mid-1950s to his untimely death in 1962. Artist, composer, judo master, Rosicrucian, proto-conceptualist, and performance artist, Klein was a multifaceted talent who believed in the transformative power of art. In his series, including the Monochromes, Anthropometries, Cosmogonies, Air Architecture, Fire Paintings, Sponge Reliefs, and Actions, Klein sought to place the immaterial at the heart of his work.

Related Apple iPhone application available from the iTunes App Store for $1.99.

See "Around the Mall: What's Up" in the May 2010 Smithsonian magazine: p. 26.

Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing: How the Apollo Theater Shaped American Entertainment

April 23, 2010 - August 29, 2010
National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
2nd Floor, East Wing
The exhibition explores for the first time the rich history and the cultural significance of Harlem's Apollo Theater. It features photographs and artifacts to trace the story of the theater from its origins in 1913 as a whites-only burlesque hall to its starring role at the epicenter of African American entertainment. Highlights include:

• James Brown's cape and jumpsuit
• Michael Jackson's fedora worn at Amateur Night in 1967 with the Jackson 5
• The Supremes' dresses
• Cab Calloway's baton
• Sammy Davis' childhood tap shoes
• Peg Leg Bates' peg leg
• Duke Ellington's score for "Black and Tan Fantasy" (1927)
• Ella Fitzgerald's dress worn at Amateur Night at the age of 17
• Miles Davis' flugelhorn
• LL Cool J's jacket and hat
• Celia Cruz's dress

Introductory film
Video alcoves
Companion book: $35 (cloth)

Organized by the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

In the Realm of the Buddha

March 13, 2010 - July 18, 2010
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
Sublevel 1, Main Gallery & Northeast Galleries
Two distinct exhibitions offer fascinating encounters with the sacred art of Tibetan Buddhism.

• Lama, Patron, Artist: The Great Situ Panchen: In studying the sacred arts of Tibetan Buddhism, we seldom know who the artist was, let alone his life story. Through new scholarship and recently discovered paintings, this exhibition focuses on an extraordinary Tibetan artist Situ Panchen (1700-1774), who was not only a renowned painter and designer of paintings, but also a revered scholar, teacher, and the founder of Palpung monastery. By bringing together thangkas painted and designed by Situ, sculptures of his chosen deity Tara, and Chinese works from the Freer Gallery of Art collection, this exhibition reveals not only Situ Panchen's genius and enduring influence, but also his engagement with transnational Buddhist culture.

• The Tibetan Shrine from the Alice S. Kandell Collection: On public display for the first time, this privately held reconstructed shrine room features Tibetan Buddhist sacred art created between the 13th and 19th centuries. Works of art on view include bronze sculptures, thangkas (scroll paintings), ritual objects, textile banners, and painted furniture, all presented in a religiously correct manner. This shrine is acknowledged by practicing Buddhists as a sacred place.

The David H. Koch Hall of Human Origins: What Does It Mean To Be Human?

March 17, 2010 - Permanent
National Museum of Natural History
1st Floor, Northwest Wing (Halls 11 & 12)
The museum marked its 100th anniversary on the National Mall with the opening of this new exhibition hall on the same date when the museum opened to the public: March 17, 1910.

This major new exhibition hall focuses on the story of human origins and probes the ecological and genetic connections that human beings have had with the natural world over time. It examines the shared framework of humankind -- the biological and cultural history we all share -- as well as the differences that exist and preoccupy us today.

Highlights include:
- An amphitheater show featuring One Species Living Worldwide
- "Changing the World," a special gallery where visitors can address pressing questions and issues surrounding climate change and humans' impact on the Earth
-Interactive snapshots in time using the actual field site where research is being conducted
- An interactive human family tree showcasing 6 million years of evolutionary evidence from around the world
- A time tunnel depicting life and environments over the past 6 million years

See related articles in March 2010 Smithsonian magazine: pp. 15-20 and 34-41.

Related catalogue: What Does It Mean To Be Human, by Rick Potts ($24.95)

The Modern Gown Gallery: A First Lady's Debut

March 10, 2010 - New Permanent
National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
2nd Floor, West, First Ladies at the Smithsonian's new gallery
This new gallery features 11 inaugural gowns from the country's contemporary first ladies, beginning with Mamie Eisenhower to Michelle Obama. It focuses on the public interest and media coverage of the first lady's "debut" during the inauguration, using contemporary accounts to relay first impressions of each woman and the role she might play in the White House. The white chiffon, one-shoulder, floor-length gown that Jason Wu designed for Michelle Obama to wear to the 2009 inaugural balls, along with shoes by Jimmy Choo and the diamond jewelry she wore, is displayed in a case in the center of the gallery. Also on view are watercolor sketches of 14 gowns from the collection. This gallery is an extension of the First Ladies at the Smithsonian exhibition and collectively the two galleries feature a total of 24 dresses and more than 100 other objects.

4-minute video featuring first ladies and designers of the gowns (runs continuously)

YouTube Video: Museum staff members provide a rare, behind-the-scenes look at the work involved in conserving the first ladies' dresses and accessories.

For more information on First Ladies at the Smithsonian, see separate listing.

The Walt Disney-Tishman African Art Collection Highlights

May 18, 2009 - September 18, 2011 (new closing date)
National Museum of African Art
Sublevel 1
On view are 60 objects and 4 in the lobby from this comprehensive 525-piece collection of African art representing 20 African countries and 75 peoples and covers 5 centuries of African art, including most major styles ranging from a highly abstract Cameroon mask to a naturalistic carved wooden male figure from Madagascar. Many of the works inspired such 20th-century artists as Picasso and Juan Gris.

Catalogue: $39.95 (paper)

Free family guide

See related articles in the February 2007 Smithsonian magazine: pp. 29-30, 32.

Artful Animals

July 1, 2009 - July 25, 2010
National Museum of African Art
Sublevel 1
Dedicated to young audiences, this exhibition explores how African artists create striking works of art using images from an array of domestic and untamed animals. On view are approximately 125 works that capture not only the physical characteristics of animals but also the many ways that animals, from spiders to leopards, act out our human shortcomings and successes. From rock art to contemporary painting, animals are used as symbols of royal arts and in masquerades for the ancestors. Many of the elements of design are derived through direct observation of the animals in their natural habitat. It is the animal's conduct and distinct behaviors that carry the messages in performances, stories, and proverbs. Themes include notions of nurturing, power, wisdom, transformation, beauty, and aggression.

Brochure

See "What's Up Around the Mall" in the September 2009 Smithsonian magazine: p. 25.

Graphic Masters III: Highlights from the Smithsonian American Art Museum

January 15, 2010 - August 8, 2010
Smithsonian American Art Museum
2nd Floor, South Wing, Graphics Gallery
On view are watercolors, pastels, and drawings from the 1960s to the 1990s to celebrate the extraordinary variety and accomplishment of American artists' works on paper. The works on view reveal the central importance of works on paper for American artists, both as studies for creations in other media and as finished works of art. Artists represented include such masters as Robert Arneson, Jennifer Bartlett, Philip Guston, Luis Jimenez, and Wayne Thiebaud.

Catalogue: $19.95

One Life: Echoes of Elvis

January 8, 2010 - August 29, 2010
National Portrait Gallery
1st Floor, East Side
The One Life gallery within the museum is devoted to the exploration of the life of one individual.

This exhibition features Elvis Presley and celebrates the 75th anniversary of his birth. Although Elvis died more than 30 years ago, the world remains fascinated with his image and music. His records have continued to sell by the millions and public interest in his music, career, and life has yet to subside. During the last half century, Elvis became part of the artistic discourse as well. Early in Elvis's career, Andy Warhol illuminated the role he played in the new and youth-powered popular American culture; later, Ralph Wolfe Cowan, Red Grooms, and others created mythical, spiritual, and earthly images of the man whose legacy includes multiple superlative moments in music, entertainment, life, and afterlife. To this day, both the historical Elvis Presley and the fantasy-based vision of Elvis are the subject of poetry, literature, music, film, and the visual arts.

See "Around the Mall: What's Up" in the January 2010 Smithsonian magazine: p. 26

Cornucopia: Ceramics from Southern Japan

December 19, 2009 - January 9, 2011
Freer Gallery of Art
Galleries 6a, 6, & 7 (Japanese Art)
This exhibition illuminates the engaging variety of local styles of glazing and decoration invented by Kyushu potters over three centuries. Around the year 1600, a heightened fascination with the design and uses of ceramics combined with new access to advanced technology launched an era of extraordinarily diverse and accomplished ceramic production. Southern Japan -- in particular, the island of Kyushu -- was the center for this efflorescence, which included both stoneware coated in muted glazes and porcelain ornamented with cobalt blue or multicolored enamels. Hundreds of kilns produced vessels for the domestic market (with a focus on utensils for dining and for the tea ceremony) and also for export to Europe and Southeast Asia.

See "Around the Mall: What's Up" in the January 2010 Smithsonian magazine: page 26.

A Song for the Horse Nation

November 14, 2009 - July 7, 2011
National Museum of the American Indian, George Gustav Heye Center
George Gustav Heye Center, Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House
This exhibition presents the epic story of the horse's influence on American Indian tribes from the 1600s to the present. It features approximately 100 works from the museum's collection to reveal how horses shaped the social, economic, cultural, and spiritual foundations of American Indian life, particularly on the Great Plains. Highlights include historical ledger drawings, beaded bags, hide robes, and paintings, including new works by contemporary Native artists. Also on view is a Hunkpapa Lakota winter count by Long Soldier (c. 1902) that depicts the horse's first appearance in the community.

Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition 2009

October 23, 2009 - September 6, 2010
National Portrait Gallery
2nd Floor
The National Portrait Gallery presents 49 of the finalists' works that were selected from the second triennial Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition. Dave Woody, winner of the competition, received the grand prize of $25,000 and an opportunity to create a portrait for the Portrait Gallery's permanent collection. The competition invited artists working in the figurative arts to submit portraits of people close to them. Submissions were accepted in all visual arts media, including film, video, and digital animation. Through January 18, 2010, the public can vote online or on-site for the artwork to receive the People's Choice Award.

Related catalogue: $13.95

See "What's Up" in the November 2009 Smithsonian magazine: p. 28

Whether it's your first visit, or your 51st, there's always something new to see. Don't miss these featured exhibits - and check each museum for their complete schedule of special collections.