The Peacock Room at 150: Lecture and Reception
Join the Freer Research Center as we celebrate the 150th anniversary of James McNeill Whistler’s most complete Aesthetic-era interior, the Peacock Room. Hear from noted Whistler scholar and former National Museum of Asian Art curator Linda Merrill about the context of the room’s creation. She also discusses some of the art-historical misinterpretations that prevailed before the comprehensive conservation campaign of the 1990s. The program will be followed by a celebratory reception in the courtyard.
The Peacock Room is as awe inspiring for its rich detail as it is notorious for the rupture the project caused between the artist and his patron. Whistler designed the space for shipping magnate Frederick Leyland between 1876 and 1877. Leyland expected a few modest alterations to his new dining room, where he intended to display his collection of Chinese blue-and-white porcelain. The room Whistler ultimately completed, mostly without his patron’s consent, was a lavish space covered floor to ceiling in depictions…
Venue: Asian Art Museum. Building: West Building. Event Location: Courtyard, Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Free. Register in advance (required). Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-peacock-room-at-150-lecture-and-reception-tickets-2000233342773. Categories: After Five. Lectures & Discussions. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Thursday, October 22, 2026, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM.
Conservation Cart Talk | Peacock Room Ceramics
Join objects conservator Ellen Chase to explore the blue-and-white ceramics displayed in the Peacock Room. Learn how artists in China used cobalt pigments and brushes to create their distinctive designs, and discover how conservators study, care for, and preserve them. Examine a replica ceramic and conservation materials up close while gaining a deeper understanding of these works of art. Image: National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, Photo by Colleen Dugan.
Venue: Asian Art Museum. Building: West Building. Event Location: Gallery 12. Cost: Free. Register in advance (optional). Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1999025752839?aff=oddtdtcreator. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Lectures & Discussions. Related Exhibition: The Peacock Room. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible. Assisted listening devices.
Friday, October 23, 2026, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM.
Virtual Book Club | Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar
Register to join. Halloween costumes welcome~
Calling all readers! We’re starting a quarterly virtual book club, hosted by NPR’s Emily Kwong. You may recognize her from the hit podcast Inheriting about AAPI family history. Our club will meet once each season, with fresh recommendations from some of our favorite Asian-owned bookstores (including Loyalty Bookstore and Yu & Me Books).
Expect: open-ended questions, organic conversation, and a structured activity.
To kick off the club, our first book is Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar. Grab a copy from the museum store on your next visit. About Martyr!
A newly sober, orphaned son of Iranian immigrants, guided by the voices of artists, poets, and kings, embarks on a remarkable search for a family secret that leads him to a terminally ill painter living out her final days in the Brooklyn Museum. Electrifying, funny, and wholly original, Kaveh Akbar’s debut novel is a paean to how we spend our lives seeking meaning—in faith, art, ourselves, others. Martyr! is a New York…
Event Location: Online. Cost: Free. Register in advance (required). Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/register/-aNMzt2QS8eO8K6Fh7Uocw#/registration. Categories: Lectures & Discussions. Webcasts & Online. After Five.
Thursday, October 29, 2026, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM.
Conservation Cart Talk | Preparing Art for Display
The same techniques museums use to care for artwork can help protect treasured items at home. Join paper conservator Kesha Talbert for a behind-the-scenes look at how conservators prepare works on paper for display. Learn about conservation-friendly approaches for displaying photographs, prints, and documents, and see how professional practices can be adapted for personal keepsakes. Image credit: National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, Photo by Department of Conservation and Scientific Research.
Venue: Asian Art Museum. Building: West Building. Event Location: North Corridor. Cost: Free. Registration optional. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2003457768116?aff=oddtdtcreator. Categories: Lectures & Discussions. Gallery Talks & Tours. Demonstrations. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible. Assisted listening devices.
Friday, November 13, 2026, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM.