Past Exhibitions | Smithsonian Institution

Kenyans: Paintings by Lunda Hoyle Gill

Take in a series of paintings of the rural peoples of Kenya, whose varied dress and distinctive ornamentation reflect their diverse origins and separate development as well as the kinds of materials available to them.

January 6, 1976 – March 26, 1976

Natural History Museum

Unseen Flowers of the Desert

See color photographs by R.I. Gilbreath, who uses sepcial lenses in his camera and the heads of pins in his photos to indicate the size of the desert blooms nearly invisible to the naked eye.

November 4, 1975 – December 31, 1975

Natural History Museum

Frederick A. Walpole, Plant Illustrator

Take a look at line drawings in ink, watercolor and pencil by Walpole, a botanical illustrator for Smithsonian publicatios at the turn of the last century.

November 4, 1975 – December 31, 1975

Natural History Museum

Siberia Scientific

Visit Novosibersk, the science center of the U.S.S.R.,and talk to a number of young Russian scientists who explain aspects of the life, science and nature of Siberia.

October 29, 1975 – November 21, 1975

Natural History Museum

Lincoln Fox Sculptures

The culture of the American Indian provides the subject matter for the 50 bronze studies created by the Arizona artist.

September 3, 1975 – October 27, 1975

Natural History Museum

Photographs of the Deep-Ocean Floor

See about 30 color photographs of underwater scenes, some taken 5 miles down, by Walter Jahn, who employs special techniques to obtain his outstanding views.

July 8, 1975 – August 31, 1975

Natural History Museum

Images of Nature

Admire the color photography of Warren Krupsaw in more than 50 photographs of animals, trees, flowers, terrain and other natural objects and scenes.

April 12, 1975 – July 1, 1975

Natural History Museum

It All Depends

This new permanent exhibition hall dramatizes the dependency man and all other living things have on one another for survival.

April 6, 1974 – October 1, 1974

Natural History Museum

The Howe Butterflies

See some 20 acrylics and watercolors of butterflies in natural settings by William Howe.

July 15, 1974 – September 30, 1974

Natural History Museum

The Cicada

Hopefully coinciding with the local emergence of cicadas, an audio-visual, multi-screen presentation of the life of a cicada will be shown in a mini-theater.

July 1, 1974 – September 10, 1974

Natural History Museum

"Save the Whale" Children's Art

Paintings by school children in the U.S. and abroad center on the theme of the threatened extinction of the whale.

May 2, 1974 – June 30, 1974

Natural History Museum

Bhutan: The Land of Dragons

From the kingdom in the heart of the Himalayas, via private and S.I. collections come baskets, textiles, works of silver and gold, woodenwork and costumes to illustrate the Bhutanese way of life.

March 1, 1974 – June 7, 1974

Natural History Museum

The Art of Simon Yavitz

See unique botanical subjects sculpted in gold and silver and enhanced with gems and ivory.

December 1, 1973 – May 28, 1974

Natural History Museum

Tribal Costumes of Southern Africa: Watercolor Portraits by Verda V. Peters and Olemara Peters

View over 400 watercolors documenting the colorful originality of the clothing of the peoples of Southern Africa.

November 2, 1973 – January 13, 1974

Natural History Museum

Synthetic (Man-Made) Crystals

Visit a spectacularly colorful exhibit explaining the role of these newly developed materials, the technology that produces them and their relationship to natural materials.

May 11, 1973 – December 31, 1973

Natural History Museum

Orchids

See 25 paintings of orchids by James E. Walford of Great Britain.

October 1, 1973 – November 4, 1973

Natural History Museum

Krause Paintings

Admire about 20 paintings of plant life by Erik Hans Krause, artist-naturalist -- some representational, some abstract,

August 24, 1973 – September 28, 1973

Natural History Museum

Masterpieces of Eskimo Ivory Carving

See examples of ivory carving in this exhibit prepared in conjunction with the National Gallery of Art's show The Far North: 2000 Years of American Eskimo and Indian Art.

April 1, 1973 – June 10, 1973

Natural History Museum

The Magnificent West: American Heritage

Take in 45 color photos of landscapes taken in U.S. wilderness areas by Milton Goldstein.

April 4, 1973 – May 15, 1973

Natural History Museum

The Splendor of British and European Butterflies

Visit 60 watercolors by Brian Hargreaves, created for use as a field guide.

December 15, 1972 – February 15, 1973

Natural History Museum

John C. Ewers: Studies in Plains Indian Arts

Exhibited with a photograph of Ewers are samples of field notes and a draft of his current book, one of more than 150 publications he has written.

March 1, 1978 – May 30, 1878

Natural History Museum

Ice Age Mammals and the Emergence of Man

This hall provides a glimpse of the Ice Age, one of the most extraordinary times in earth's history and features skeletons of some of the largest Ice Age mammals, including the woolly mammoth.

September 13, 1974 – Spring 2014

Natural History Museum

Critical Distance

Critical Distance is a free, augmented-reality experience emphasizing the intrinsic connection between people, orcas, and the ocean. The experience immerses visitors in a holographic orca pod and allows them to witness this endangered species’ daily obstacles.

September 29, 2021 – Summer 2022

Natural History Museum

Discovery Room

This Discovery Room will give museum visitors of all ages a chance to handle and closely examine samples of a wide variety of natural history specimens of all shapes and sizes, ranging from whale fossils to petrified wood.

March 5, 1974 – Closed

Natural History Museum

Barro Colorado Island 100 Years of Discoveries and Wonder

Celebrate the 100th Birthday of Barro Colorado Island Research Station by immersing yourself in a Panamanian jungle!

November 18, 2022 – December 2025

Natural History Museum