Past Exhibitions | Smithsonian Institution

Finished in Beauty: Southwest Indian Silver

Admire several hundred masterworks in silver--necklaces, bracelets, earrings, concha belts, collar points, and larger items such as horse bridles--mainly Navajo, of different types and from several periods.

April 17, 1984 – July 8, 1984

Cooper Hewitt Design Museum

Adire Cloth from Nigeria

See examples of the indigo-dyed and patterned textiles produced by the skilled dyers among the Yoruba women of Nigeria.

April 23, 1984 – July 5, 1984

African Art Museum

1984 Discover Graphics

See selected etchings from the Resident Associate-sponsored Discover Graphics program.

May 12, 1984 – July 4, 1984

American History Museum

Recently Acquired Chinese Ceramics

See 8 pieces selected from the recently acquired collection of ancient Chinese ceramics.

June 1, 1984 – June 30, 1984

Asian Art Museum, West Building

The Metropolitan Opera Centennial

This case features documents, stage props, and photographs, including memorabilia of Enrico Caruso and Rise Stevens, and the headdress worn by Leontyne Price as Cleopatra.

April 13, 1984 – June 30, 1984

American History Museum

Willys Model MB Jeep

In honor of D-Day, June 6, 1984, see a Willys Model MB Jeep, typical of the four-wheel drive jeeps used in World War II, including the D-Day maneuvers.

June 1, 1984 – June 30, 1984

American History Museum

Special Installation: Paul Manship (1885-1966)

See a representative selection of the American artist's work from the NMAA permanent collection. Manship (1885-1966) enjoyed greater celebrity than any other American sculptor of his time.

August 4, 1983 – June 24, 1984

American Art Museum

The Art of Cameroon

A crossroads for the migrations of many peoples, the diversity of Cameroon's population is reflected in the great variety and richness of art forms. Objects from the steppes and the forest are shown, but the primary focus of the exhibition is the art of the West African kingdoms of the Cameroon grassfields.

February 1, 1984 – June 17, 1984

Natural History Museum

Clay for Walls: Surface Reliefs by American Artists

View 39 works by 20 contemporary artists who create decorative or sculptural ceramic wall reliefs.

September 16, 1983 – June 17, 1984

Renwick Gallery

German Expressionist Sculpture

This major loan exhibition includes more than 120 works in porcelain, wood, stone, plaster, and bronze, from 1905 to the 1920s.

April 4, 1984 – June 17, 1984

Hirshhorn Museum

Inventing Standard Time

Commemorating the 100th anniversary of the acceptance of Standard Time in the U.S., see more than 60 objects, including 2 rare sundials, maps of time zones, railroad watches, and other objects.

November 18, 1983 – June 14, 1984

American History Museum

Nepal

Featured are some twenty objects from Nepal, most dating from the 1940s and 1950s.

December 1, 1983 – June 10, 1984

Natural History Museum

O' Write My Name: American Portraits, Harlem Heroes

View 50 portraits of black Americans by Carl Van Vechten, noted author, critic, and photographer.

December 17, 1983 – June 10, 1984

Portrait Gallery

Embroidered Samplers from the Cooper-Hewitt Collection

See nearly 200 examples of 17th-through-19th century embroidered samplers from around the world, from the Cooper-Hewitt collection.

February 21, 1984 – May 27, 1984

Cooper Hewitt Design Museum

The Prints of Howard Norton Cook

Take in 66 works by Cook (1901-1980), a printmaker who worked with equal success in lithography, wood engraving, and intaglio. His varied subject matter included scenes of New York City, New England villages, and Southwest Indians.

January 27, 1984 – May 13, 1984

American Art Museum

Drawings: 1974-1984

This survey exhibition, commemorating the tenth anniversary of the Hirshhorn, includes some 150 works by 15 American and 15 foreign artists.

March 15, 1984 – May 13, 1984

Hirshhorn Museum

The North Carolina Glass Community

Admire and purchase works selected by noted glass artist Harvey Littleton, who has a studio in North Carolina. Both one-of- a-kind and production pieces of 12 craftsmen are included.

March 8, 1984 – May 6, 1984

Renwick Gallery

Vitamin Technology

Visit a 1920s capsuling machine, a model of a 1950s capsuling machine, and some of the work of early vitamin researcher Casimir Funk and others.

January 1, 1984 – April 30, 1984

American History Museum

Oman: Heritage of a Civilization

Discover the history of the Sultanate of Oman, the 2nd largest country in the Arabian Peninsula, from the 3rd millenium B.C. to present times through handicrafts and seafaring traditions.

April 18, 1984 – April 26, 1984

Smithsonian Castle

African Islam

See more than 100 works of art that explore the interaction of Islam and traditional African life.

November 30, 1983 – April 22, 1984

African Art Museum

Etchings by the Tiepolos

See some 50 etchings by the Teipolos--Giovannia Battista, Domenico, and Lorenzo--all selected from the Cooper-Hewitt's comprehensive collection of the works of these 18th-century Italian artists.

January 17, 1984 – April 22, 1984

Cooper Hewitt Design Museum

The Ramayana

See 24 paintings from a 16th-century Indian manuscript that tell the story of Rama, the Hindu god-man. Accompanying the paintings are 7 sculptural interpretations.

October 1, 1983 – April 15, 1984

Asian Art Museum, West Building

Pre-Islamic Metalwork from the Near East

View 24 objects in silver, gold, and bronze, made in Iran and Egypt, from the 4th century B.C. to the 6th century A.D., including Sassanian Iran (224-651) and 9 gold objects from Egypt.

April 16, 1983 – April 15, 1984

Asian Art Museum, West Building

The Nazca Lines

See 60 black-and-white aerial photographs by Marilyn Bridges offer creative interpretation of the enormous ancient earth designs and drawings executed by the Nazca Indians of Peru.

January 6, 1984 – April 15, 1984

Natural History Museum

German-American Aerospace Heritage

View photographs and career highlights about German-Americans such as Werner von Braun, Eddie Rickenbacker, Edward Heinemann, Grover Loening, William Boeing, and Hans von Ohain.

October 6, 1983 – April 12, 1984

Air and Space Museum