Past Exhibitions | Smithsonian Institution

Herbert Bayer: Bauhaus Master

Coinciding with the centenary of the founding of the Bauhaus in Weimar, Germany, this exhibition presents rare works by the groundbreaking graphic designer Herbert Bayer (1900–1985).

November 16, 2019 – March 13, 2020

Cooper Hewitt Design Museum

Wyss Institute Selects

Wyss Institute Selects is the 18th installment in the exhibition series that invites designers, artists, architects and public figures to examine and interpret the museum’s collection.

July 12, 2019 – March 13, 2020

Cooper Hewitt Design Museum

Game Change: Elephants Prey to Preservation

Traces the shift in public attitudes about elephants from the late 19th century, an era when big game hunting was prevalent, to the critical conservation concerns of today.

October 4, 2018 – March 5, 2020

Natural History Museum

Jeffrey Veregge: Of Gods and Heroes

This site-specific work includes an epic battle between Marvel characters and aliens invading the streets of New York City.

October 6, 2018 – February 17, 2020

American Indian Museum New York

Section 14: The Other Palm Springs, California

This exhibition chronicles the story of Section 14, a square-mile section of land in downtown Palm Springs that forms the heart of the Agua Caliente Reservation.

March 1, 2019 – February 17, 2020

American Indian Museum DC

My Iran: Six Women Photographers

The artists featured in My Iran: Six Women Photographers explore the complexities of life within and outside their home country.

August 10, 2019 – February 9, 2020

Asian Art Museum, East Building

Feel the Sun in Your Mouth: Recent Acquisitions

Noteworthy new acquisitions to the Hirshhon permanent collection are on display.

August 24, 2019 – February 2, 2020

Hirshhorn Museum

Good as Gold: Fashioning Senegalese Women

Good as Gold examines the production, display, and circulation of gold in Senegal as it celebrates a significant gift of gold jewelry to the National Museum of African Art’s collection.

October 24, 2018 – February 2, 2020

African Art Museum

Ella's Books: Volumes from the Library of Ella Fitzgerald

Books that were once part of Ella Fitzgerald’s personal library are on display in the museum library’s exhibit case.

January 1, 2019 – January 31, 2020

African American History and Culture Museum

Pony Express: Romance vs. Reality

This exhibition examines fictional and actual stories from the history of the world's best known mail carriers.

April 3, 2010 – January 26, 2020

Postal Museum

None Swifter Than These: 100 Years of Diplomatic Couriers

The U.S. Department of State's 100 badged diplomatic couriers travel the globe safeguarding our nation's most sensitive information and materials.

September 14, 2019 – January 26, 2020

Postal Museum

Everyday Luxury: Silk Quilts from the National Collection

A rare showing of the museum’s collection of late 19th-century silk quilts meant to be admired in the home.

July 30, 2019 – January 20, 2020

American History Museum

Nature—Cooper Hewitt Design Triennial

Nature addresses the ways designers are exploring sustainable production methods, identifying new ways for protecting future generations, and deepening the understanding of, and relationship with, nature.

May 10, 2019 – January 20, 2020

Cooper Hewitt Design Museum

Superheroes

This rotating showcase display presents artifacts from the museum’s collections that relate to superheroes, including comic books, original comic art, movie and television costumes and props, and memorabilia.

November 20, 2018 – January 12, 2020

American History Museum

Michael Sherrill Retrospective

In his delicately rendered sculptures in clay, glass, and metal, Michael Sherrill seeks to elicit a sense of wonder from viewers, and to make them see the natural world anew.

June 28, 2019 – January 5, 2020

Renwick Gallery

American Stories

See more than 100 historic and cultural touchstones of American history from the museum’s vast holdings.

April 12, 2012 – January 5, 2020

American History Museum

David Best's Temple

David Best’s Temple transforms the Renwick Gallery’s Bettie Rubenstein Grand Salon into a glowing sanctuary, offering visitors a quiet place to reflect and pay tribute to lost loved ones.

March 30, 2018 – January 5, 2020

Renwick Gallery

Ginny Ruffner: Reforestation of the Imagination

Ginny Ruffner (b. 1952) has imagined a gloriously complex and colorful alternative environment that viewers can access using AR’s technological lens.

June 28, 2019 – January 5, 2020

Renwick Gallery

1856 British Guiana One-Cent Magenta

The world's rarest postage stamp, the 1856 British Guiana One-Cent Magenta, is prominently displayed in the museum’s William H. Gross Stamp Gallery.

June 4, 2015 – December 22, 2019

Postal Museum

Taino: Native Heritage and Identity in the Caribbean

Explore the rural roots of the Taíno movement and find information about the legacy of Native peoples throughout the Spanish-speaking Caribbean islands and their U.S. diasporas.

July 28, 2018 – November 12, 2019

American Indian Museum New York

Nature by Design: Paisley

Design’s tear-drop shaped motif popularly known as paisley has persisted, and its timeline of design variations reflect a diversity of natural forms.

April 12, 2019 – November 11, 2019

Cooper Hewitt Design Museum

Whistler in Watercolor

Whistler in Watercolor introduces museum visitors to the artist’s vast creative output and provides wide access to a rarely seen segment of his work.

May 18, 2019 – November 3, 2019

Asian Art Museum, West Building

The Way of the Kami

Shinto centers on worship of kami (deities) that reside in the landscape, natural phenomena, and deceased ancestors. This exhibition highlights the artistic culture of Shinto belief.

May 11, 2019 – November 3, 2019

Asian Art Museum, West Building

Iridescence

Objects ranging from ancient to the contemporary show how the optical effects of iridescence have maintained a lasting impact on design.

July 28, 2018 – October 27, 2019

Cooper Hewitt Design Museum

Nature by Design: Katagami

This exhibition highlights the traditional Japanese craft of katagami: paper stencils carved by master artisans for use in decorating textiles.

March 30, 2019 – October 27, 2019

Cooper Hewitt Design Museum