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Wonderplace
Ongoing Tours & Activities
This learning space designed especially for children ages six and under combines age appropriate activities with museum collections and touchable objects to provide a gateway to history and a place to exercise curiosity for the youngest historians.
Admission to Wonderplace is on a first come, first-served basis. At busy times, we may use FREE, timed tickets to minimize wait time if needed. Tickets are available for 30-minute visits on a first-come, first-served basis. No tickets are required for the first session from 10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. To visit during a later half-hour session, visitors may pick up a ticket at Wonderplace in 1 West. The last entry using timed tickets is at 3:30 p.m.
Hours are subject to change.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Wonderplace, 1 West. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Wednesday, June 7, 2023, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
STORYTIME: COLLAGE WITH SOUND
Ongoing Tours & Activities
What can you create with sound? Join us for a reading of Sounds Around Town by Wendy Pfeffer, and a close-look and listen to the artworks Light Gray with Middle C (Variation #2) and Higher Resonance by Jennie C. Jones. We’ll practice collaboratively creating sounds and making our own found sound artworks.
Meet in the Museum Lobby.
Do this at home! Explore sound experiments by artist Laurie Anderson, and then create your own sounds with different materials. Can you make cereal move without touching it? Can you make your voice travel? Can you feel a vibration? Instructions here.
, ABOUT STORYTIME
Join Hirshhorn Kids on Wednesdays for a one-of-a-kind storytime experience! Each week offers a fun and fresh theme for our youngest artists and their adults. Get a fun and hands-on introduction to a new artwork each week, and participate in a joyful read-aloud filled with music, stories, and movement. Then, stay and play while your little artist creates. No reservations or tickets required. Nursing caregivers…
Venue: Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden. Event Location: Third Floor. Cost: Free. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Wednesday, June 7, 2023, 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM.
For more info visit hirshhorn.si.edu. Smithsonian Gardens Tour, Enid A. Haupt Garden
Smithsonian Gardens
Join Smithsonian Gardens for a tour of the Enid A. Haupt Garden is situated between the Smithsonian Castle and Independence Avenue and has provided a welcomed respite for Smithsonian visitors since it opened in 1987 as part of the redesigned Castle quadrangle. Composed of the Parterre, the Moongate Garden, and the Fountain Garden, the Haupt Garden’s design brings together the cultures and architecture of the surrounding museums and buildings.
Meet the tour guide at the South Door of the Smithsonian Castle in the Enid A. Haupt Garden Wednesday at 10 a.m.
Event Location: Smithsonian, Enid A. Haupt Garden. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Wednesday, June 7, 2023, 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM.
Afrofuturism Big Objects, Big Stories: The Paradox of the Liberty
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism. About this Program: From the era of slavery to the present day, African Americans have re-imagined the futures and possibilities of black people across the globe through the dynamic lens of Afro-Futurism. Learn how Colonial Afrofuturists, like Benjamin Banneker and Phillis Wheatly, amplified the cause of abolition by speaking truth to power and producing knowledge for public good.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets at the Paradox of Liberty section, Level C3. Talks take place at: 10:30 AM, 11:30 AM, and 12:30 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Slavery and Freedom.
Wednesday, June 7, 2023, 10:30 AM – 12:45 PM.
CANCELLED - Big Objects, Big Stories: Veranda Post, Olowe of Ise
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led experience and get a fresh look at the Museum's featured object. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object. About this program: Visitors learn about the African art that inspired the design of the Museum and explore the building’s unique architectural features.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets in the Cultural Expressions exhibition, Level 4. Talks take place at 10:30 AM, 11:30 AM, and 12:30 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Cultural Expressions.
Wednesday, June 7, 2023, 10:30 AM – 12:45 PM.
Spark!Lab
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Spark!Lab is where museum visitors become inventors. The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation invites children between the ages of 6 and 12 to create, collaborate, explore, test, experiment and invent. Activities for children and families incorporate traditional science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) with art, history and creativity.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Spark!Lab, First Floor, West Wing. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: Places of Invention, Inventive Minds, Landmark Object: Ralph Baer's Workshop, Inventing in America.
Wednesday, June 7, 2023, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit invention.si.edu. Artist Rachel Jones: On Art & Expression
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Artist Rachel Jones joins Hirshhorn head curator Evelyn Hankins to discuss how art can be used as an expression of oneself and offer a broader cultural critique.
Jones is a London-based painter who creates monumental paintings that employ vibrant colors and textures to propose new possibilities for exploring and understanding identity. According to the artist, “You can use colour and shape and form to speak to people in a way that isn’t about a spoken language, it’s about emotion and inciting feelings that don’t have to be explained or expressed. It’s responsive, it’s instinctive, and a core part of all of us.” Her electric paintings have been exhibited recently at Thaddaeus Ropac in London and at the Chinati Foundation in Marfa Texas.
Her painting SMIIILLLLEEEE (2021) is on view in Put It This Way: (Re)Visions of the Hirshhorn Collection at the Museum through Fall 2023.
This program is online only (via Zoom, YouTube, and Facebook Live). Advance registration is required for Zoom participation, including…
Event Location: Zoom. Cost: FREE. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_VNK_iAj0RV-HqvTar8fXyA#/registration. Categories: Lectures & Discussions. Webcasts & Online. Accessibility: ASL-interpreted program. Captioning.
Wednesday, June 7, 2023, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM.
For more info visit hirshhorn.si.edu. DC | Welcome to a Native Place
One-Time Events
Enjoy tribal songs from Alaska to Florida with Dennis Zotigh (Kiowa, Isanti Dakota and Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo) in the Potomac Atrium. At the end of his 30-minute presentation, visitors from around the world are encouraged to ask questions pertaining to the museum and Indigenous culture in the past and present.
Performances may be cancelled without prior notice.
Venue: American Indian Museum DC. Event Location: Potomac Atrium. Cost: Free. Categories: Performances.
Wednesday, June 7, 2023, 1:00 PM – 1:30 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Wednesday, June 7, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. DC | Guided Gallery Tours
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Experience one of our major exhibitions currently on view—Americans or Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations with a guided tour led by one of our knowledgeable Museum Educators. Join fellow visitors to dive deeper into the content and have your questions answered. These walk-in tours include a brief overview of the museum’s mission, history, and even the building itself.
Tours are subject to availability and may be cancelled without prior notice.
Venue: American Indian Museum DC. Event Location: Level 1, meet in the Potomac Atrium. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Americans, Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations.
Wednesday, June 7, 2023, 1:30 PM – 2:15 PM.
A Journey through Ancient China
Resident Associate Program
This series takes you on a thematic tour of four important topics in ancient Chinese history, <span style="color: #e74c3c;">the third session focusing on law</span>. Justin M. Jacobs, a professor of Chinese history at American University, gives you a nuanced overview based on the latest scholarship and illustrated with copious slides.
Event Location: This online program is presented on Zoom. Online Link: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/256945?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Cost: Click here to view prices. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/256945?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Categories: After Five. Workshops.
Wednesday, June 7, 2023, 6:45 PM – 8:15 PM.
NY | Chancellor's Day Teacher Professional Development with Mohawk Artist Shelley Niro
One-Time Events
UPDATE: Registration is now closed, we have reached capacity for this event. We thank you for your interest, please join our mailing list to be notified of future professional development opportunities for educators.
Join the Education Department of the National Museum of the American Indian in New York for a full-day professional development program with multidisciplinary artist Shelley Niro (Six Nations Reserve, Bay of Quinte Mohawk, Turtle Clan). This program is offered in conjunction with the opening of her first major retrospective exhibition, Shelley Niro: 500 Year Itch.
Shelley Niro: 500 Year Itch celebrates more than a half century of Niro's paintings, photographs, mixed-media works, and films. Accessible, often humorous, and peppered with references to popular culture, her art digs deep into the timeless cultural knowledge and generational histories of her Six Nations Kanyen'kehá:ka (Mohawk) community to provide purpose and healing.
All attendees will receive certificates of participation. New…
Venue: American Indian Museum NY. Event Location: 1st Floor, meet at information desk. Cost: Free, advanced registration required. Get Tickets/Register: https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/7130155/Shelley-Niro-PD-2023. Categories: Workshops. Related Exhibition: Shelley Niro: 500 Year Itch.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 8:30 AM – 3:00 PM.
For more info visit americanindian.si.edu. Wonderplace
Ongoing Tours & Activities
This learning space designed especially for children ages six and under combines age appropriate activities with museum collections and touchable objects to provide a gateway to history and a place to exercise curiosity for the youngest historians.
Admission to Wonderplace is on a first come, first-served basis. At busy times, we may use FREE, timed tickets to minimize wait time if needed. Tickets are available for 30-minute visits on a first-come, first-served basis. No tickets are required for the first session from 10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. To visit during a later half-hour session, visitors may pick up a ticket at Wonderplace in 1 West. The last entry using timed tickets is at 3:30 p.m.
Hours are subject to change.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Wonderplace, 1 West. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
Play Date at NMNH: World Ocean Day Celebration!
One-Time Events
Come celebrate World Ocean Day with Play Date! Together, families will be invited to make observations of different ocean collection specimens, build different ocean landscapes for animals to explore through play, and create their own art inspired by Lindsay Olson’s textile artworks. Lindsay’s artwork is inspired by sounds and movement within the ocean, and we invite families to get creative in how they will use movement and sound in their own art.
The event is part of our drop-in program, Play Date at NMNH. Play Date at NMNH is a program designed for early learners and their caregivers and families. Activities are designed with early learners in mind, but all ages are welcome.
Location: This program is held in the Explorer Theater in the Sant Ocean Hall on the 1st floor of the museum. Accessibility: Access services such as American Sign Language interpretation, real-time captioning (CART), or audio description are available with two-weeks advanced notice. To request this service, please call (202)…
Venue: Natural History Museum. Event Location: 1st Floor, Explorer Theater - Sant Ocean Hall. Cost: Free. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM.
World Ocean Day
One-Time Events
World Ocean Day is a global celebration of our ocean — and you can celebrate with the National Museum of Natural History! Join artists and ocean scientists in NMNH’s Sant Ocean Hall for an exciting series of interactive experiences celebrating our blue planet; from Conversation Stations with real artists and researchers to encounters with life-sized penguin puppets, come explore all the ways art, science, and community action can connect us to our waterways.
Visit our World Ocean Day 2023 webpage for all the details! Photo by @Radiofan, Creative Commons, Wikimedia.
Venue: Natural History Museum. Event Location: 1st Floor, The Sant Ocean Hall. Cost: Free. Categories: Celebrations. Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: The Sant Ocean Hall. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
Afrofuturism Big Objects, Big Stories: I Go To Prepare A Place For You by Bisa Butler
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism. About this Program: From the era of slavery to the present day, African Americans have re-imagined the futures and possibilities of black people across the globe through the dynamic lens of Afro-Futurism. I Go To Prepare A Place For You, by fiber artist Bisa Butler, is based upon a portrait of underground railroad conductor and abolitionist Harriet Tubman. Learn what the artwork reveals about Tubman’s complexity as a person, including her African ancestry, bravery, and legacy as an agent of change.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets at the I Go To Prepare A Place For You by Bisa Butler, Level 4. Talks take place at: 10:15 AM, 11:15 AM, and 12:15 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Visual Arts: The American Experience .
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 10:15 AM – 12:30 PM.
Afrofuturism Big Objects Big Stories: The Mothership
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism.
About this Program: An iconic stage prop, the Mothership symbolizes P-Funk’s Afrofuturist inspired vision as a tangible manifestation of the liberating power and autonomous promise of Clinton’s art.
Event Location: Program meets at the Mothership, L4. Talks take place at: 10:30 AM, 11:30 AM, and 12:30 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Musical Crossroads
Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 10:30 AM – 12:45 PM.
Spark!Lab
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Spark!Lab is where museum visitors become inventors. The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation invites children between the ages of 6 and 12 to create, collaborate, explore, test, experiment and invent. Activities for children and families incorporate traditional science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) with art, history and creativity.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Spark!Lab, First Floor, West Wing. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: Places of Invention, Inventive Minds, Landmark Object: Ralph Baer's Workshop, Inventing in America.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit invention.si.edu. Highlights Tour
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Look for our friendly volunteer at the Welcome Desk for a 45 minute tour of the highlights of the museum.
Venue: Postal Museum. Event Location: Starts at the Welcome Desk in the Historic Lobby. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Assisted listening devices. Wheelchair accessible.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 11:30 AM – 12:15 PM.
Renoir: The Gift of Joy
Resident Associate Program
Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s work reflected one central tenet: “To my mind, a picture should be something pleasant, cheerful and pretty. …There are too many ugly things in life as it is without creating still more of them.” He reveled in lush color that can be seen in his sensual nudes, family portraits, landscapes, and genre depictions such as The Luncheon of the Boating Party. Art historian Bonita Billman showcases selections from his more than 4, 000 works as she illustrates why Renoir is one of the most highly regarded—and joyful—artists of his time. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1/2 credit).
Event Location: This online program is presented on Zoom. Online Link: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/257030?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Cost: Click here to view prices. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/257030?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Categories: Webcasts & Online.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM.
Highlights Tour - Making a Way Out of No Way
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Learn about the ways in which African Americans created possibilities in a world that denied them opportunities. On this docent led tour visitors will reflect on the perseverance, resourcefulness, and resilience required by African Americans to survive and thrive in America.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: This one hour tour program meets at Level 3 in the Making a Way Out of No Way exhibit. Tours take place at 1:00 PM and 2:45 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Making a Way Out of No Way.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 1:00 PM – 3:45 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. Castle Stories: The Megatherium Club
Smithsonian Castle
“The increase and diffusion of knowledge”—words from founding benefactor James Smithson’s will that guide the entire Smithsonian. But what did they mean to a group of (occasionally) rowdy and colorful young scientists? Tasked with exploring the North American continent and collection specimens of all kinds—beetles, birds, rocks, and fossils—for the National Museum housed in the Castle, these scientists paved the way for the discoveries made by Smithsonian scientists today. Members of the Megatherium Club were known individually for their contributions to zoology, paleontology, and geology, but as a group the jolly band held sack races after hours in the Castle and serenaded the neighbors after rounds of eggnog. Join us to hear about the exploits of some of the people who made the Smithsonian and its mission real.
Note: 'Castle Stories' are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur , Registrants will receive a confirmation email with the Zoom link for the 'Castle Stories' event…
Event Location: Online/Zoom. Cost: Free. Categories: Webcasts & Online. Gallery Talks & Tours. Kids & Families. Lectures & Discussions. Accessibility: Captioning.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 1:00 PM – 1:30 PM.
Afrofuturism Big Objects, Big Stories: The Paradox of the Liberty
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism. About this Program: From the era of slavery to the present day, African Americans have re-imagined the futures and possibilities of black people across the globe through the dynamic lens of Afro-Futurism. Learn how Colonial Afrofuturists, like Benjamin Banneker and Phillis Wheatly, amplified the cause of abolition by speaking truth to power and producing knowledge for public good.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets at the Paradox of Liberty section, Level C3. Talks take place at: 1:30 PM, 2:30 PM, and 3:30 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Slavery and Freedom.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 1:30 PM – 3:45 PM.
DC | Guided Gallery Tours
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Experience one of our major exhibitions currently on view—Americans or Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations with a guided tour led by one of our knowledgeable Museum Educators. Join fellow visitors to dive deeper into the content and have your questions answered. These walk-in tours include a brief overview of the museum’s mission, history, and even the building itself.
Tours are subject to availability and may be cancelled without prior notice.
Venue: American Indian Museum DC. Event Location: Level 1, meet in the Potomac Atrium. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Americans, Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 1:30 PM – 2:15 PM.
Special Exhibition Tour
Tours
Join a tour of the special exhibition, Anyang: China’s Ancient City of Kings, featuring artworks excavated from the capital of the ancient Shang Dynasty (ca. 1250 BCE–ca.1050 BCE), including jades and bronze vessels. Learn about the advanced technology of bronze casting, explore intricate and sophisticated designs of ritual objects, and discover famous “oracle bones.”.
Venue: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Event Location: Meet at the Sackler Information Desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: https://asia.si.edu/exhibition/anyang-chinas-ancient-city-of-kings/.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
In-Person Art Signs: Artful Conversations in ASL
One-Time Events
Curious about American art? Join us for a 30-minute in person conversation about selected works from the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s collection. This program is presented in American Sign Language (ASL) with voice interpretation for hearing participants.
Venue: American Art Museum. Event Location: Meet in the F Street Lobby. Cost: Free | Registration required. Get Tickets/Register: https://events.blackthorn.io/5f4ZMUx7/5a2b5f1Qr7k. Categories: After Five. Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: ASL-interpreted program.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 5:30 PM – 6:00 PM.
In-Person Handi-hour
One-Time Events
DC’s original crafting hour is here for your summer memories. Relive your summer camp days at Handi-hour with throwback arts and crafts. Make a bracelet with embroidery thread, a lanyard with plastic ties, or a popsicle stick bowl. Enjoy a refreshing adult beverage from ANXO cidery and light snacks. Must be 21+ and provide valid ID to participate. Tickets are $25 and available beginning May 22.
Venue: Renwick Gallery. Event Location: 2nd floor, Rubenstein Grand Salon. Cost: $25 | Registration required
Must be 21+ and provide valid ID to participate. Tickets are $25 and available beginning May 22. Get Tickets/Register: https://events.blackthorn.io/5f4ZMUx7/5a2b5f1QqXP. Categories: After Five. Workshops.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 5:30 PM – 8:00 PM.
After-Hours Sip & Create with Artist Dwight Hwang
One-Time Events
Gyotaku, or fish rubbing, is a traditional form of Japanese art that began over 100 years ago from a technique fishermen used to record the size of their catch. For renowned artist Dwight Hwang, embracing this classical art in today’s modern time is a way to give “life” to the sea and bear emotive witness to the power and beauty of the Pacific Ocean, and the deep and lasting environmental changes that are occurring.
Join the National Museum of Natural History after-hours on World Ocean Day for a conversation and printing demo with Dwight Hwang, explore the Sant Ocean Hall, and create Gyotaku-inspired art to deepen your own ocean connections.
This is a 21+ event. Your $30 ticket includes: 2 drinks and light snacks , Access to Sant Ocean Hall after hours.
Venue: Natural History Museum. Event Location: National Museum of Natural History (10th Street & Constitution Ave, NW). Cost: $30. Click the "Get Tickets" link to reserve your seat. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.etix.com/ticket/p/8737072/afterhours-sip-create-with-artist-dwight-hwang-21-washington-national-museum-of-natural-history. Categories: After Five. Gallery Talks & Tours. Demonstrations. Celebrations. Workshops. Related Exhibition: Sant Ocean Hall. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Thursday, June 8, 2023, 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM.
For more info visit www.etix.com. The Seventh Forbes Symposium on Scientific Research in the Field of Asian Art
Talks and Lectures
Organized to mark the hundredth anniversary of the Freer Gallery of Art, this symposium brings together scholars from around the world to present a broad overview of current scientific research in Asian art. Support for the symposium comes from the Edward Waldo Forbes Fund.
Information and pre-conference registration is available until May 31, 2023.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: For those interested in attending the symposium, there will be no fee, but registration is necessary. Space is limited. Categories: Lectures & Discussions.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 8:00 AM – 5:30 PM.
Writing Workshop Inspired by The Struggle for Justice
One-Time Events
In this creative writing workshop, we will explore themes of justice, dignity, freedom, community and self-love inspired by the portraits in “The Struggle for Justice.” Through guided writing prompts, we will reflect and respond to portraits of activists and leaders, including Rosa Parks, John Lewis, Eunice Kennedy, Russell Means and Dolores Huerta.
Event Location: G Street Lobby. Cost: Free. Registration Required. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/in-gallery-writing-workshop-inspired-by-the-struggle-for-justice-tickets-632867984177?aff=ebdsoporgprofile. Categories: Workshops.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM.
For more info visit www.eventbrite.com. Wonderplace
Ongoing Tours & Activities
This learning space designed especially for children ages six and under combines age appropriate activities with museum collections and touchable objects to provide a gateway to history and a place to exercise curiosity for the youngest historians.
Admission to Wonderplace is on a first come, first-served basis. At busy times, we may use FREE, timed tickets to minimize wait time if needed. Tickets are available for 30-minute visits on a first-come, first-served basis. No tickets are required for the first session from 10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. To visit during a later half-hour session, visitors may pick up a ticket at Wonderplace in 1 West. The last entry using timed tickets is at 3:30 p.m.
Hours are subject to change.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Wonderplace, 1 West. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
Flights of Fancy Story Time: Oh No, Astro! by Matt Roeser
Ongoing Activities
Join us for a reading of Oh No, Astro! by Matt Roeser and follow along with a grumpy asteroid as he collides with a satellite and gets thrown out of orbit. Learn about asteroids and meteorites and learn a few ways to detect meteorites in your rock collection.
Event Location: Zoom. Cost: Free with registration. Categories: Kids & Families. Webcasts & Online. Related Events: Soar Together @ Air and Space Family Program.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 10:00 AM – 10:45 AM.
Afrofuturism Big Objects, Big Stories: The Paradox of the Liberty
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism. About this Program: From the era of slavery to the present day, African Americans have re-imagined the futures and possibilities of black people across the globe through the dynamic lens of Afro-Futurism. Learn how Colonial Afrofuturists, like Benjamin Banneker and Phillis Wheatly, amplified the cause of abolition by speaking truth to power and producing knowledge for public good.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets at the Paradox of Liberty section, Level C3. Talks take place at: 10:30 AM, 11:30 AM, and 12:30 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Slavery and Freedom.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 10:30 AM – 12:45 PM.
Smithsonian Orientation
Smithsonian Castle
Join one of our volunteer ambassadors in front of the Castle for an orientation to the Smithsonian. Learn about the history of the 175-year-old Institution and our museums. Hear about current highlights and offerings and ask for tips to maximize your journey/visit.
Event Location: On the National Mall, in front of the Joseph Henry Statue which is on the north side of the Smithsonian Castle. Cost: FREE. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 10:30 AM – 10:40 AM.
Spark!Lab
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Spark!Lab is where museum visitors become inventors. The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation invites children between the ages of 6 and 12 to create, collaborate, explore, test, experiment and invent. Activities for children and families incorporate traditional science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) with art, history and creativity.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Spark!Lab, First Floor, West Wing. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: Places of Invention, Inventive Minds, Landmark Object: Ralph Baer's Workshop, Inventing in America.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit invention.si.edu. Highlights Tour
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Look for our friendly volunteer at the Welcome Desk for a 45 minute tour of the highlights of the museum.
Venue: Postal Museum. Event Location: Starts at the Welcome Desk in the Historic Lobby. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Assisted listening devices. Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 11:30 AM – 12:15 PM.
Smithsonian Orientation
Smithsonian Castle
Join one of our volunteer ambassadors in front of the Castle for an orientation to the Smithsonian. Learn about the history of the 175-year-old Institution and our museums. Hear about current highlights and offerings and ask for tips to maximize your journey/visit.
Event Location: On the National Mall, in front of the Joseph Henry Statue which is on the north side of the Smithsonian Castle. Cost: FREE. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 11:30 AM – 11:40 AM.
Meditation and Mindfulness
Workshops
Meditation helps us build a relationship to a place of inner quietude. Whether you’re a beginner or a skilled practitioner, join us for free online meditation sessions each week led by DC-based meditation teachers on Tuesdays and Fridays. Friday sessions include inspiration from art in the museum collections as well as appearances by special guest teachers and artists. All are welcome! No previous experience is required. Meet our meditation teachers: Aparna Sadananda and Philip Bender.
Register and join the sessions here: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpdeuhqjItG9HB6wJ6vIhf5Vk-_Tm-RCtZ
Image:
Spring flowers, Kitagawa Sōsetsu (17th century), Japan, Edo period, mid-17th century, one of a pair of handscrolls; ink and color on paper, The Mary and Cheney Cowles Collection, Gift of Mary and Cheney Cowles, Freer Gallery of Art, F2020.5.25.1a–b.
Event Location: Online. Online Link: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpdeuhqjItG9HB6wJ6vIhf5Vk-_Tm-RCtZ. Cost: Free. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpdeuhqjItG9HB6wJ6vIhf5Vk-_Tm-RCtZ. Categories: Workshops. Webcasts & Online.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 12:00 PM – 12:45 PM.
Smithsonian Orientation
Smithsonian Castle
Join one of our volunteer ambassadors in front of the Castle for an orientation to the Smithsonian. Learn about the history of the 175-year-old Institution and our museums. Hear about current highlights and offerings and ask for tips to maximize your journey/visit.
Event Location: On the National Mall, in front of the Joseph Henry Statue which is on the north side of the Smithsonian Castle. Cost: FREE. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 12:30 PM – 12:40 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. DC | Guided Gallery Tours
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Experience one of our major exhibitions currently on view—Americans or Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations with a guided tour led by one of our knowledgeable Museum Educators. Join fellow visitors to dive deeper into the content and have your questions answered. These walk-in tours include a brief overview of the museum’s mission, history, and even the building itself.
Tours are subject to availability and may be cancelled without prior notice.
Venue: American Indian Museum DC. Event Location: Level 1, meet in the Potomac Atrium. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Americans, Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 1:30 PM – 2:15 PM.
Smithsonian Orientation
Smithsonian Castle
Join one of our volunteer ambassadors in front of the Castle for an orientation to the Smithsonian. Learn about the history of the 175-year-old Institution and our museums. Hear about current highlights and offerings and ask for tips to maximize your journey/visit.
Event Location: On the National Mall, in front of the Joseph Henry Statue which is on the north side of the Smithsonian Castle. Cost: FREE. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 1:30 PM – 1:40 PM.
Special Exhibition Tour
Tours
Join a tour of the special exhibition, Anyang: China’s Ancient City of Kings, featuring artworks excavated from the capital of the ancient Shang Dynasty (ca. 1250 BCE–ca.1050 BCE), including jades and bronze vessels. Learn about the advanced technology of bronze casting, explore intricate and sophisticated designs of ritual objects, and discover famous “oracle bones.”.
Venue: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Event Location: Meet at the Sackler Information Desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: https://asia.si.edu/exhibition/anyang-chinas-ancient-city-of-kings/.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
Terrains of Visuality: Photography, Cartography and Disciplinary Architecture in the Formation of the U.S. Imperial Archipelago: Lecture by Lanny Thompson
One-Time Events
Lanny Thompson, professor emeritus at the University of Puerto Rico, will deliver a public keynote address highlighting themes from the major exhibition "1898: U.S. Imperial Visions and Revisions." His work analyzes the visual representations of the U.S. empire, the colonial gaze and their relation to early systems of governance in Puerto Rico and across the “imperial archipelago.” The hour-long program will include a Q&A and be followed by a public reception.
This program is hosted by PORTAL, the museum’s Scholarly Center, and is part of the Greenberg Steinhauser Forum in American Portraiture.
Event Location: McEvoy Auditorium. Cost: Free. Registration Encouraged. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/terrains-of-visuality-in-the-us-imperial-archipelago-tickets-638132831477. Categories: Lectures & Discussions.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 5:00 PM – 6:00 PM.
For more info visit www.eventbrite.com. Afterhours @ NMAA: Fluxus and Ay-Ō's Happy Rainbow Hell
National Museum of Asian Art
Free; advanced registration recommended. RSVP here.
Afterhours @ NMAA is back! Join us for an afterhours and immerse yourself in Ay-Ō's Happy Rainbow Hell. Enjoy Ay-Ō’s world of sensory experience with experimental art and music inspired by Fluxus, including a special performance by Chromic Duo and an exclusive curator tour of the exhibition. Experience the museum galleries open late, purchase exclusive cocktails, and enjoy making Ay-Ō’s signature finger boxes.
5–8 p.m.: Museum galleries are open and food and drinks from local vendors are available to purchase.
5–8 p.m.: Create your own finger box inspired by Ay-Ō.
6–6:30 p.m.: Immersive performance by Chromic Duo.
6:30–7:00 p.m.: Curator talk on the exhibition Ay-Ō’s Happy Rainbow Hell.
7:15–7:45 p.m.: Immersive performance by Chromic Duo.
Venue: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Event Location: Sackler Bavilion, B1. Cost: Free; advanced registration recommended. Categories: After Five. Performances. Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Ay-Ō’s Happy Rainbow Hell.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 5:30 PM – 8:00 PM.
Understanding Modern Art
Resident Associate Program
The radical innovations made by European and American painters and sculptors between 1900 and 1960 forever altered the way we think about visual art. In a richly illustrated course, art historian Nancy G. Heller discusses major works by the period’s seminal painters and sculptors, emphasizing their broader socio-political and aesthetic contexts. (World Art History Certificate core course, 1 credit).
Event Location: This online program is presented on Zoom. Online Link: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/256909?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Cost: Click here to view prices. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/256909?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Categories: After Five. Workshops.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM.
NMAAHC Live! - An Afrofuturism Concert with Dawn Richard
One-Time Events
The Museum will return our signature NMAAHC Live concert program to celebrate our new exhibition, Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures. The Museum will feature New Orleans musician, multimedia artist, animator, and entrepreneur, Dawn Richard. Richard will discuss her expansive artistic career and creative influences with Angela Tate, Women’s History Curator; following this brief discussion, Richard will perform her futuristic, genre-straddling take on Pop music live.
As a founding member of Danity Kane and later with Diddy’s Dirty Money, Richard has explored the ins and outs of commercial pop music. As a solo artist, she opted to self-release her music; throughout six critically acclaimed full-length albums, she treats Louisiana Creole culture, New Orleans bounce, and Southern Swag as elemental, allowing her to weave in and out of house, footwork, R&B, and more. Her most recent album, Pigments, a collaboration with multi-instrumentalist and producer Spencer Zahn, is an orchestral fusion of neoclassical,…
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Heritage Hall. Cost: Free - Registration Required. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.etix.com/ticket/p/4647151. Categories: After Five. Celebrations. Performances. Related Exhibition: Afrofuturism: History of Black Futures.
Friday, June 9, 2023, 8:00 PM – 10:00 PM.
The Seventh Forbes Symposium on Scientific Research in the Field of Asian Art
Talks and Lectures
Organized to mark the hundredth anniversary of the Freer Gallery of Art, this symposium brings together scholars from around the world to present a broad overview of current scientific research in Asian art. Support for the symposium comes from the Edward Waldo Forbes Fund.
Information and pre-conference registration is available until May 31, 2023.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: For those interested in attending the symposium, there will be no fee, but registration is necessary. Space is limited. Categories: Lectures & Discussions.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 8:30 AM – 5:30 PM.
Little Critters Nature Play
Special Zoo Events
New, drop-in activity and story time for children and families at the Zoo!
Join us for a wild time as we explore animals and the natural world through creative, free-choice activity stations in our brand-new indoor/outdoor classroom! Dig for horseshoe crabs in the sand table, make lunch for a bird in the mud kitchens, or just join us for a story or two!
Little Critters Nature Play is designed for ages 0-5 and their caregivers and families. Activities are designed with early learners in mind, but all ages are welcome. Parents and guardians must remain with their children.
Location: Bird House Classroom.
Venue: National Zoo. Event Location: Bird House Classroom. Cost: Free drop-in program; no pre-registration required.Parents and guardians must remain with their children. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 9:30 AM – 4:30 PM.
FRESHFARM ACM Farm Stand
One-Time Events
Venue: Anacostia Community Museum. Event Location: 1901 Fort Place, SE Washington, DC 20020. Cost: Free with produce for purchase. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/freshfarm-acm-farm-stand-tickets-623839058417. Categories: Celebrations.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM.
GirlTrek: Walk Towards Liberation and Healing
One-Time Events
Join us on a 1 mile walk through Anacostia with GirlTrek – an organization that describes itself as a “life-saving sisterhood.” GirlTrek is featured in our current exhibition, To Live and Breathe: Women in Environmental Justice in Washington D.C. Meet new friends while prioritizing your health. The trek starts at 10am in the Anacostia neighborhood and culminates at the museum with a viewing of To Live and Breathe and refreshments from 11am – 12pm. Walk dates are May 20, June 10th, August 12, and October 14. Registration required and managed by GirlTrek, Instructions to register: Go to https://www.girltrek.org/map , Scroll Down to GirlTrek National Map and enter zip code: 20020 , Clip on RSVP button to select the date of the walk you would like to attend. Event is rain or shine (except in the case of severe weather), Kids welcome!
Venue: Anacostia Community Museum. Event Location: 1901 Fort Place, SE Washington, DC 20020. Cost: Free. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.girltrek.org/map. Categories: Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: To Live & Breathe: Women and Enviromental Justice in Washington, D.C.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM.
Growing Community: The Pride and Joy of Working the Earth
One-Time Events
10:00 -11:00 AM: Young gardeners (5-12)
Our young gardeners will be given tasks for maintaining their gardens. Participants will explore how growing a vegetable from seed to plant to harvest is an accomplishment to be proud of and will learn how to make a garden journal.
11:00 AM-12:00 PM: Adult gardeners
Our garden attendees will work to create a miniature cold frame. The use of the cold frame will be instrumental in starting young plants and seeds in our upcoming workshops. We will maintain the gardens and add any late veggies. We will plant tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, beans and corn.
To attend via Zoom please register here:
https://smithsonian.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_GRjB7twqRYCeargB6iMgug#/registration.
Venue: Anacostia Community Museum. Event Location: Smithsonian's Anacostia Community Museum 1901 Fort Pl, SE Washington, DC 20020. Cost: Free. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/urban-gardening-the-pride-and-joy-of-working-the-earth-tickets-630389230157. Categories: Workshops.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM.
Wonderplace
Ongoing Tours & Activities
This learning space designed especially for children ages six and under combines age appropriate activities with museum collections and touchable objects to provide a gateway to history and a place to exercise curiosity for the youngest historians.
Admission to Wonderplace is on a first come, first-served basis. At busy times, we may use FREE, timed tickets to minimize wait time if needed. Tickets are available for 30-minute visits on a first-come, first-served basis. No tickets are required for the first session from 10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. To visit during a later half-hour session, visitors may pick up a ticket at Wonderplace in 1 West. The last entry using timed tickets is at 3:30 p.m.
Hours are subject to change.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Wonderplace, 1 West. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
Flights of Fancy Story Time: Oh No, Astro! by Matt Roeser
Ongoing Activities
Join us for a reading of Oh No, Astro! by Matt Roeser and follow along with a grumpy asteroid as he collides with a satellite and gets thrown out of orbit. Learn about asteroids and meteorites and learn a few ways to detect meteorites in your rock collection.
ASL Interpretation will be provided for this program.
Event Location: Zoom. Cost: Free with registration. Categories: Kids & Families. Webcasts & Online. Related Events: Soar Together at Air and Space Family Program. Accessibility: ASL-interpreted program.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 10:00 AM – 10:45 AM.
ART CART: FOUND SOUNDS
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Make some noise with your own handcrafted instrument! Join us at this week’s Art Cart to investigate and play with sound. Then, make your own instrument inspired by artist Jennie C. Jones.
Find the Art Cart on the Third Level and pick up noise-making materials.
Do this at home! Play a game inspired by Marcel Duchamp! Make your own noisemaker, with a secret noise inside. Instructions here.
, ABOUT THE ART CART
Want to make art inspired by your favorite Hirshhorn works on view? The Art Cart offers young artists a hands-on maker experience during their visit to the Hirshhorn. Each week’s Art Cart offers a fresh and fun theme featuring an artwork on view, an artmaking activity to do at the Museum, and kids’ projects to extend the fun at home!
The Art Cart is free; no registration required. Drop in any Saturday between 10am–1pm.
Venue: Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden. Event Location: Third Floor. Cost: Free. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM.
For more info visit hirshhorn.si.edu. Spark!Lab
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Spark!Lab is where museum visitors become inventors. The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation invites children between the ages of 6 and 12 to create, collaborate, explore, test, experiment and invent. Activities for children and families incorporate traditional science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) with art, history and creativity.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Spark!Lab, First Floor, West Wing. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: Places of Invention, Inventive Minds, Landmark Object: Ralph Baer's Workshop, Inventing in America.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit invention.si.edu. Weekend Workshops
One-Time Events
Calling all artists! Get creative during our drop-in workshops for all ages. Learn about artists and changemakers and create art inspired by their stories. .
Event Location: Education Center, E151. Cost: Free.No Registration Required. Categories: Kids & Families.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 11:30 AM – 3:00 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. DC | Guided Gallery Tours
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Experience one of our major exhibitions currently on view—Americans or Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations with a guided tour led by one of our knowledgeable Museum Educators. Join fellow visitors to dive deeper into the content and have your questions answered. These walk-in tours include a brief overview of the museum’s mission, history, and even the building itself.
Tours are subject to availability and may be cancelled without prior notice.
Venue: American Indian Museum DC. Event Location: Level 1, meet in the Potomac Atrium. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Americans, Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 1:30 PM – 2:15 PM.
Curator-Led Tour - Unstill Waters: Contemporary Photography from India
Tours
Join Carol Huh, associate curator of contemporary Asian art, for a final weekend tour of Unstill Waters: Contemporary Photography from India before the exhibition closes on June 11.
Image: Yamuna Morning IV (detail), Atul Bhalla (b. 1964, India), 2007, inkjet print on archival Hahnemüle paper, Gift of Drs. Umesh and Sunanda Gaur, Courtesy of the Artist and sepiaEYE, S2019.6.6.
Venue: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Event Location: Sackler lobby; meet at information desk on level 1. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
CANCELLED - Special Exhibition Tour
Tours
Join a tour of the special exhibition, Anyang: China’s Ancient City of Kings, featuring artworks excavated from the capital of the ancient Shang Dynasty (ca. 1250 BCE–ca.1050 BCE), including jades and bronze vessels. Learn about the advanced technology of bronze casting, explore intricate and sophisticated designs of ritual objects, and discover famous “oracle bones.”.
Venue: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Event Location: Meet at the Sackler Information Desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: https://asia.si.edu/exhibition/anyang-chinas-ancient-city-of-kings/.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
The Duke Ellington Orchestra: A Centennial Celebration
Resident Associate Program
They’ve been called everything from the Washingtonians to Duke Ellington and His Kentucky Club Orchestra to Duke Ellington and His Famous Orchestra (and more). But the Duke Ellington Orchestra under any name maintains an unparalleled place in the history of American music. This year marks the 100th anniversary of this legendary ensemble, and the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra is ready to celebrate its vast musical legacy.
Venue: Natural History Museum. Event Location: National Museum of Natural History Baird Auditorium. Cost: Click here to view prices. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/256779?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Categories: After Five. Workshops.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM.
Smithsonian Orientation
Smithsonian Castle
Join one of our volunteer ambassadors in front of the Castle for an orientation to the Smithsonian. Learn about the history of the 175-year-old Institution and our museums. Hear about current highlights and offerings and ask for tips to maximize your journey/visit.
Event Location: On the National Mall, in front of the Joseph Henry Statue which is on the north side of the Smithsonian Castle. Cost: FREE. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Saturday, June 10, 2023, 11:30 PM – 11:40 PM.
The Seventh Forbes Symposium on Scientific Research in the Field of Asian Art
Talks and Lectures
Organized to mark the hundredth anniversary of the Freer Gallery of Art, this symposium brings together scholars from around the world to present a broad overview of current scientific research in Asian art. Support for the symposium comes from the Edward Waldo Forbes Fund.
Information and pre-conference registration is available until May 31, 2023.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: For those interested in attending the symposium, there will be no fee, but registration is necessary. Space is limited. Categories: Lectures & Discussions.
Sunday, June 11, 2023, 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM.
Little Critters Nature Play
Special Zoo Events
New, drop-in activity and story time for children and families at the Zoo!
Join us for a wild time as we explore animals and the natural world through creative, free-choice activity stations in our brand-new indoor/outdoor classroom! Dig for horseshoe crabs in the sand table, make lunch for a bird in the mud kitchens, or just join us for a story or two!
Little Critters Nature Play is designed for ages 0-5 and their caregivers and families. Activities are designed with early learners in mind, but all ages are welcome. Parents and guardians must remain with their children.
Location: Bird House Classroom.
Venue: National Zoo. Event Location: Bird House Classroom. Cost: Free drop-in program; no pre-registration required.Parents and guardians must remain with their children. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Sunday, June 11, 2023, 9:30 AM – 4:30 PM.
Wonderplace
Ongoing Tours & Activities
This learning space designed especially for children ages six and under combines age appropriate activities with museum collections and touchable objects to provide a gateway to history and a place to exercise curiosity for the youngest historians.
Admission to Wonderplace is on a first come, first-served basis. At busy times, we may use FREE, timed tickets to minimize wait time if needed. Tickets are available for 30-minute visits on a first-come, first-served basis. No tickets are required for the first session from 10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. To visit during a later half-hour session, visitors may pick up a ticket at Wonderplace in 1 West. The last entry using timed tickets is at 3:30 p.m.
Hours are subject to change.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Wonderplace, 1 West. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Sunday, June 11, 2023, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
Spark!Lab
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Spark!Lab is where museum visitors become inventors. The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation invites children between the ages of 6 and 12 to create, collaborate, explore, test, experiment and invent. Activities for children and families incorporate traditional science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) with art, history and creativity.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Spark!Lab, First Floor, West Wing. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: Places of Invention, Inventive Minds, Landmark Object: Ralph Baer's Workshop, Inventing in America.
Sunday, June 11, 2023, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit invention.si.edu. Weekend Workshops
One-Time Events
Calling all artists! Get creative during our drop-in workshops for all ages. Learn about artists and changemakers and create art inspired by their stories. .
Event Location: Education Center, E151. Cost: Free.No Registration Required. Categories: Kids & Families.
Sunday, June 11, 2023, 11:30 AM – 3:00 PM.
Smithsonian Orientation
Smithsonian Castle
Join one of our volunteer ambassadors in front of the Castle for an orientation to the Smithsonian. Learn about the history of the 175-year-old Institution and our museums. Hear about current highlights and offerings and ask for tips to maximize your journey/visit.
Event Location: On the National Mall, in front of the Joseph Henry Statue which is on the north side of the Smithsonian Castle. Cost: FREE. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Sunday, June 11, 2023, 12:30 PM – 12:40 PM.
In-Person Beyond the Studio Workshop: Digital Sketching with Carlos Carmonamedina
One-Time Events
SOLD OUT
Join artist Carlos Carmonamedina of DC is my City for a live-sketching workshop using your personal iPad and digital graphics apps such as ProCreate, Adobe Fresco, and MediBang. After a brief introduction and tutorial, the group will explore the galleries to practice what they learned. Participants will end the session by creating a one-of-a-kind digital poster inspired by SAAM’s collection. Visitors must provide their own iPad and download a graphics drawing app ahead of time. Space is limited; ages 14 and up.
Photo by Albert Ting.
Venue: American Art Museum. Event Location: MacMillan Education Center. Cost: Sold out. Waitlist available.
Free. Visitors must provide personal iPad with graphics app |Registration required. Get Tickets/Register: https://events.blackthorn.io/5f4ZMUx7/5a2b5f1Qr9l. Categories: Workshops.
Sunday, June 11, 2023, 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Sunday, June 11, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. Smithsonian Orientation
Smithsonian Castle
Join one of our volunteer ambassadors in front of the Castle for an orientation to the Smithsonian. Learn about the history of the 175-year-old Institution and our museums. Hear about current highlights and offerings and ask for tips to maximize your journey/visit.
Event Location: On the National Mall, in front of the Joseph Henry Statue which is on the north side of the Smithsonian Castle. Cost: FREE. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Sunday, June 11, 2023, 1:30 PM – 1:40 PM.
Special Exhibition Tour
Tours
Join a tour of the special exhibition, Anyang: China’s Ancient City of Kings, featuring artworks excavated from the capital of the ancient Shang Dynasty (ca. 1250 BCE–ca.1050 BCE), including jades and bronze vessels. Learn about the advanced technology of bronze casting, explore intricate and sophisticated designs of ritual objects, and discover famous “oracle bones.”.
Venue: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Event Location: Meet at the Sackler Information Desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: https://asia.si.edu/exhibition/anyang-chinas-ancient-city-of-kings/.
Sunday, June 11, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
Portrait Gallery Kid
One-Time Events
Children and families are invited to learn, play and create at the Portrait Gallery! Join educators every Monday as we explore a variety of topics, such as colors, emotions, STEM and history. Through close looking at art, hands-on activities, music and movement, Portrait Gallery Kids offers a fun way to engage with art and each other. For kids of all ages.
Event Location: Education Center, E151. Cost: Free. No Registration Required. Categories: Kids & Families.
Monday, June 12, 2023, 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM.
Highlights Tour
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Look for our friendly volunteer at the Welcome Desk for a 45 minute tour of the highlights of the museum.
Venue: Postal Museum. Event Location: Starts at the Welcome Desk in the Historic Lobby. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Assisted listening devices. Wheelchair accessible.
Monday, June 12, 2023, 11:30 AM – 12:15 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Monday, June 12, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. Castle Stories: The Increase and Diffusion of Knowledge
Smithsonian Castle
Six words in a British scientist’s will launched what would become 21 museums, nine research centers, 21 libraries, 13 gardens, and the National Zoo. James Smithson died and left his money to the United States to found the Smithsonian Institution, "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge." He didn't say how to do this, so it was up to the Smithsonian's early leaders to try and interpret this. Join us as we explore what Smithson might have meant and how "increase and diffusion" has been interpreted in our history.
This is a live, interactive, virtual presentation that lasts 30 minutes.
Note: 'Castle Stories' are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur , Registrants will receive a confirmation email with the Zoom link for the 'Castle Stories' event they signed-up for , We welcome all visitors to our programs! Automatic Zoom captions will be turned on for this event. , 'Castle Stories' are 30-minute presentations on Zoom , Visitors are encouraged to interact with the Castle…
Event Location: Online/Zoom. Cost: free. Categories: Webcasts & Online. Gallery Talks & Tours. Kids & Families. Accessibility: Captioning.
Monday, June 12, 2023, 1:00 PM – 1:30 PM.
Afrofuturism Big Objects, Big Stories: The Paradox of the Liberty
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism. About this Program: From the era of slavery to the present day, African Americans have re-imagined the futures and possibilities of black people across the globe through the dynamic lens of Afro-Futurism. Learn how Colonial Afrofuturists, like Benjamin Banneker and Phillis Wheatly, amplified the cause of abolition by speaking truth to power and producing knowledge for public good.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets at the Paradox of Liberty section, Level C3. Talks take place at: 1:30 PM, 2:30 PM, and 3:30 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Slavery and Freedom.
Monday, June 12, 2023, 1:30 PM – 3:45 PM.
How Disney Conquered the Entertainment Universe
Resident Associate Program
There’s nothing Mickey Mouse about the impact the Walt Disney Company has had on the entertainment business. Media historian Brian Rose traces how the company evolved from a small cartoon studio in 1923 to one of the most powerful forces in worldwide entertainment today.
Event Location: This online program is presented on Zoom. Online Link: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/256950?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Cost: Click here to view prices. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/256950?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Categories: After Five. Webcasts & Online.
Monday, June 12, 2023, 6:30 PM – 7:45 PM.
Outdoor Walking Tour: The Museum, A Century in the Making
Ongoing Tours & Activities
During this 25-min outdoor walking tour, visitors hear the story behind the design of the National Museum of African American History and Culture and explore its unique architectural features.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: This program meets at the Museum’s oculus, located on 14th Street and Constitution Ave. All tours are held outdoors and are stair-free. Talks take place at: 10:15 AM, 11:15 AM, and 12:15 PM. Cost: Outdoor walking tours are open to the public and are free of charge. No registration is required.
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur.
All visitors, regardless of age, must have a timed-entry pass to enter the building. Same-day timed-entry passes are released online only at 8:15 a.m. EST daily. https://nmaahc.si.edu/visit/plan-your-visit . Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: A Century in the Making: Building the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 10:15 AM – 12:30 PM.
Hello, Museo
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join educators from the National Postal Museum every other Tuesday for a bilingual program featuring music, stories, crafts, and gallery exploration. Designed for children ages 2-5 and their caregivers, but all are welcome!
Únase a los educadores del Museo Postal Nacional cada dos martes para un programa bilingüe que presenta música, historias, artesanías y exploración de galerías. Diseñado para niños de 2 a 5 años y sus cuidadores, ¡pero todos son bienvenidos!
Venue: Postal Museum. Event Location: Byrne Classroom, 3rd floor. Cost: Free. Categories: Kids & Families.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 10:30 AM – 11:30 AM.
Play Date at NMNH: Pockets & Pouches
One-Time Events
Join us on Tuesdays for special family play dates with museum educators!
Tuesday, June 13th is all about animals with pockets and pouches! Families will learn about different animals that have pockets or pouches and how they use their pocket or pouch. Families will also be invited to create their own pouch to carry their own favorite or special item.
The event is part of our drop-in program, Play Date at NMNH. Play Date at NMNH is a program designed for early learners and their caregivers and families. Activities are designed with early learners in mind, but all ages are welcome.
Location: This program is held in Q?rius, The Coralyn W. Whitney Science Education Center, on the Ground Floor of the museum. Please enter through the Constitution Avenue entrance. Q?rius is located on the right as you enter the museum. Accessibility: Access services such as American Sign Language interpretation, real-time captioning (CART), or audio description are available with two-weeks advanced notice. To request this…
Venue: Natural History Museum. Event Location: Q?rius, The Coralyn W. Whitney Science Education Center (Ground Floor). Cost: Free. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM.
Afrofuturism Big Objects Big Stories: The Mothership
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism.
About this Program: An iconic stage prop, the Mothership symbolizes P-Funk’s Afrofuturist inspired vision as a tangible manifestation of the liberating power and autonomous promise of Clinton’s art.
Event Location: Program meets at the Mothership, L4. Talks take place at: 10:30 AM, 11:30 AM, and 12:30 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Musical Crossroads
Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 10:30 AM – 12:45 PM.
CANCELLED - Big Objects, Big Stories: Veranda Post, Olowe of Ise
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led experience and get a fresh look at the Museum's featured object. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object. About this program: Visitors learn about the African art that inspired the design of the Museum and explore the building’s unique architectural features.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets in the Cultural Expressions exhibition, Level 4. Talks take place at 10:30 AM, 11:30 AM, and 12:30 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Cultural Expressions.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 10:30 AM – 12:45 PM.
Drawn to Figures
One-Time Events
Discover your inner artist in this virtual drawing workshop. Facilitated by artist Jill Galloway, it will include guided instruction on the techniques and challenges of figure drawing. Each program will highlight portraits from the National Portrait Gallery’s collection. Open to all skill levels, ages 18 and up.
Event Location: Online via Zoom. Online Link: https://www.eventbrite.com/o/national-portrait-gallery-810710525. Cost: Free. Registration Required. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/o/national-portrait-gallery-810710525. Categories: Workshops.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM.
Explore More! In STEM: Having Fun with Frequencies
One-Time Events
Are you curious about what sound is and what sound waves look like? Have you ever wondered how electric guitars work? Or are you simply a music lover and want to share some of your favorite tunes? Jam out with us to learn how these things work and more.
These activities are designed for students 8 years+
Image credit: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Donation of Charles E. Berry.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: 2nd floor classrooms. Cost: This is a free event. No registration is required for participation. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM.
Meditation and Mindfulness
Workshops
Meditation helps us build a relationship to a place of inner quietude. Whether you’re a beginner or a skilled practitioner, join us for free online meditation sessions each week led by DC-based meditation teachers on Tuesdays and Fridays. Friday sessions include inspiration from art in the museum collections as well as appearances by special guest teachers and artists. All are welcome! No previous experience is required. Meet our meditation teachers: Aparna Sadananda and Philip Bender.
Register and join the sessions here: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpdeuhqjItG9HB6wJ6vIhf5Vk-_Tm-RCtZ
Image:
Spring flowers, Kitagawa Sōsetsu (17th century), Japan, Edo period, mid-17th century, one of a pair of handscrolls; ink and color on paper, The Mary and Cheney Cowles Collection, Gift of Mary and Cheney Cowles, Freer Gallery of Art, F2020.5.25.1a–b.
Event Location: Online. Online Link: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpdeuhqjItG9HB6wJ6vIhf5Vk-_Tm-RCtZ. Cost: Free. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpdeuhqjItG9HB6wJ6vIhf5Vk-_Tm-RCtZ. Categories: Workshops. Webcasts & Online.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 12:00 PM – 12:45 PM.
DC | Welcome to a Native Place
One-Time Events
Enjoy tribal songs from Alaska to Florida with Dennis Zotigh (Kiowa, Isanti Dakota and Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo) in the Potomac Atrium. At the end of his 30-minute presentation, visitors from around the world are encouraged to ask questions pertaining to the museum and Indigenous culture in the past and present.
Performances may be cancelled without prior notice.
Venue: American Indian Museum DC. Event Location: Potomac Atrium. Cost: Free. Categories: Performances.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 1:00 PM – 1:30 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. Afrofuturism Big Objects, Big Stories: Costumes from The Wiz on Broadway
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism.
About this program: Ease on down the road with a docent and explore how the narrative of The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz" explores Afrofuturist themes, from reimagining black characters in white roles to the incorporation of mysticism, time traveling and liberation in the story.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets in the Taking the Stage exhibition, Broadway section, Level 4. Talks take place at 1:15 PM, 2:15 PM, and 3:15 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 1:15 PM – 3:30 PM.
Black Future Spotlights: Visualizing Afrofuturism on Stage and Screen
One-Time Events
Black Future Spotlights: Visualizing Afrofuturism on Stage and Screen, Description: Our 20-minute spotlight tours provide an engaging introduction to a key topic in the Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures exhibition. About this program: On stage and screen, representation matters. Representation is important so that art and media can reflect the diversity of society. Explore how Afrofuturism provides a platform for reimagining Black characters in traditionally white roles.
Image: Costume for the Wizard in The Wiz on Broadway.Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of the Black Fashion Museum founded by Lois K. Alexander-Lane.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets at Visualizing Afrofuturism on Stage and Screen section, in the Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures exhibition, located on the Concourse Level. Talks take place at: 1:15 PM, 2:15 PM, and 3:15 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 1:15 PM – 2:35 PM.
Afrofuturism Big Objects, Big Stories: The Paradox of the Liberty
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism. About this Program: From the era of slavery to the present day, African Americans have re-imagined the futures and possibilities of black people across the globe through the dynamic lens of Afro-Futurism. Learn how Colonial Afrofuturists, like Benjamin Banneker and Phillis Wheatly, amplified the cause of abolition by speaking truth to power and producing knowledge for public good.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets at the Paradox of Liberty section, Level C3. Talks take place at: 1:30 PM, 2:30 PM, and 3:30 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Slavery and Freedom.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 1:30 PM – 3:45 PM.
Ocean Topics Cart Chat
One-Time Events
Looking for a deeper dive into ocean topics? Come and find one of our Ocean Educators to explore some of the latest discoveries in marine science, stationed at an interactive cart every Tuesday in the Sant Ocean Hall from 2 pm-3 pm.
Image Credit: Sant Ocean Hall, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, from the main hall, 2nd floor. Photo by @Radiofan, Creative Commons, Wikimedia.
Venue: Natural History Museum. Event Location: 1st Floor, The Sant Ocean Hall. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Lectures & Discussions. Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: The Sant Ocean Hall. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
Quakers and the Birth of the Antislavery Movement
Resident Associate Program
As members of the Religious Society of Friends, Quakers in colonial America were the first group of white Christians to confront slaveholding as a religious problem that demanded social action. Historian Richard Bell recounts this untold story, focusing on the dramatic antislavery crusades and wildly different tactics of three 18th-century Quakers: Benjamin Lay, a hermit; John Woolman, a shopkeeper; and Anthony Benezet, a schoolteacher.
Event Location: This online program is presented on Zoom. Online Link: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/257031?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Cost: Click here to view prices. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/257031?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Categories: After Five. Webcasts & Online.
Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM.
National History Day Exhibit Showcase
One-Time Events
As the museum marks Flag Day, open spaces on all three floors will be taken over by 50 table-top displays created by middle- and high-school students competing in the 2023 National History Day National Contest. The exhibits represent topics relevant to their state and local communities and reflect the 2023 theme of “Frontiers in History: People, Places, Ideas.”.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Throughout the Museum. Cost: Free. Categories: Kids & Families.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 10:00 AM – 5:30 PM.
Wonderplace
Ongoing Tours & Activities
This learning space designed especially for children ages six and under combines age appropriate activities with museum collections and touchable objects to provide a gateway to history and a place to exercise curiosity for the youngest historians.
Admission to Wonderplace is on a first come, first-served basis. At busy times, we may use FREE, timed tickets to minimize wait time if needed. Tickets are available for 30-minute visits on a first-come, first-served basis. No tickets are required for the first session from 10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. To visit during a later half-hour session, visitors may pick up a ticket at Wonderplace in 1 West. The last entry using timed tickets is at 3:30 p.m.
Hours are subject to change.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Wonderplace, 1 West. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
STORYTIME: WE MARCH
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a Storytime exploring rights. We’ll read We March by Shane W. Evans, look closely at Mark Bradford’s Pickett’s Charge, and create our own collaborative call for change.
Meet in the Museum Lobby. Do this at home! What do you want to change? Assemble a collage inspired by Lois Mailou Jones’s Challenge—America. Choose a cause that you care about, and then arrange and rearrange images to create a collage that inspires change in your community! Instructions here.
, ABOUT STORYTIME
Join Hirshhorn Kids on Wednesdays for a one-of-a-kind storytime experience! Each week offers a fun and fresh theme for our youngest artists and their adults. Get a fun and hands-on introduction to a new artwork each week, and participate in a joyful read-aloud filled with music, stories, and movement. Then, stay and play while your little artist creates. No reservations or tickets required. Nursing caregivers are welcome. Stroller parking is available in the Hirshhorn Lobby. An ASL Interpreter may be requested for this…
Venue: Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden. Event Location: Third Floor. Cost: Free. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM.
For more info visit hirshhorn.si.edu. National History Day at the NMAAHC Student Documentary Showcase
One-Time Events
The National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) is proud to feature student documentaries created for the National History Day (NHD) competition. We will explore and understand history through the lens of the next generation of historians and filmmakers on Wednesday, June 14, 2023.
National History Day is a global program for middle and high school students to produce and present an original historical research project on a topic of their choosing.
The documentaries will represent the work of student historians and filmmakers. The documentaries chosen for this showcase highlight a range of topics that embody the mission and stories reflected in NMAAHC, narratives of human and civil rights, and the histories of other underrepresented and marginalized groups and communities.
This event is FREE to the public with advanced or same-day museum passes for Wednesday, June 14, 2023.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Oprah Winfrey Theater. Cost: This event is FREE to the public with advanced or same-day museum passes for Wednesday, June 14, 2023. Categories: Kids & Families. Films.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 10:00 AM – 5:30 PM.
For more info visit nmaahc.si.edu. Afrofuturism Big Objects, Big Stories: The Paradox of the Liberty
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism. About this Program: From the era of slavery to the present day, African Americans have re-imagined the futures and possibilities of black people across the globe through the dynamic lens of Afro-Futurism. Learn how Colonial Afrofuturists, like Benjamin Banneker and Phillis Wheatly, amplified the cause of abolition by speaking truth to power and producing knowledge for public good.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets at the Paradox of Liberty section, Level C3. Talks take place at: 10:30 AM, 11:30 AM, and 12:30 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Slavery and Freedom.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 10:30 AM – 12:45 PM.
Highlights Tour - Making a Way Out of No Way
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Learn about the ways in which African Americans created possibilities in a world that denied them opportunities. On this docent led tour visitors will reflect on the perseverance, resourcefulness, and resilience required by African Americans to survive and thrive in America.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: This one hour tour program meets at Level 3 in the Making a Way Out of No Way exhibit. Tours take place at 10:30 AM and 11:45 AM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Making a Way Out of No Way.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 10:30 AM – 12:45 PM.
Citizenship Ceremony
One-Time Events
As the home of the Star-Spangled Banner, the actual flag that inspired Francis Scott Key to pen what would become the national anthem, the museum will mark Flag Day by hosting a citizenship ceremony. This will be a special ceremony, in partnership with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, to mark the conveying of citizenship to 25 children. The ceremony is open to the public.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Flag Hall, 2 West. Cost: Free. Categories: Celebrations. Related Exhibition: The Star-Spangled Banner: The Flag that Inspired the National Anthem.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM.
Virtual Young Portrait Explorers
One-Time Events
Join educators from the National Portrait Gallery as we learn about art, history and more! This 30-minute virtual workshop incorporates close looking at portraiture, movement activities and art making. Recommended for children ages three and up and their adult companions.
Event Location: Online via Zoom. Online Link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/virtual-young-portrait-explorers-june-tickets-630392620297?aff=ebdsoporgprofile. Cost: Free. Registration Required. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/virtual-young-portrait-explorers-june-tickets-630392620297?aff=ebdsoporgprofile. Categories: Kids & Families.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 11:00 AM – 11:30 AM.
Spark!Lab
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Spark!Lab is where museum visitors become inventors. The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation invites children between the ages of 6 and 12 to create, collaborate, explore, test, experiment and invent. Activities for children and families incorporate traditional science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) with art, history and creativity.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Spark!Lab, First Floor, West Wing. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: Places of Invention, Inventive Minds, Landmark Object: Ralph Baer's Workshop, Inventing in America.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit invention.si.edu. Explore More! In STEM: Having Fun with Frequencies
One-Time Events
Are you curious about what sound is and what sound waves look like? Have you ever wondered how electric guitars work? Or are you simply a music lover and want to share some of your favorite tunes? Jam out with us to learn how these things work and more.
These activities are designed for students 8 years+
Image credit: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Donation of Charles E. Berry.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: 2nd floor classrooms. Cost: This is a free event. No registration is required for participation. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM.
DC | Welcome to a Native Place
One-Time Events
Enjoy tribal songs from Alaska to Florida with Dennis Zotigh (Kiowa, Isanti Dakota and Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo) in the Potomac Atrium. At the end of his 30-minute presentation, visitors from around the world are encouraged to ask questions pertaining to the museum and Indigenous culture in the past and present.
Performances may be cancelled without prior notice.
Venue: American Indian Museum DC. Event Location: Potomac Atrium. Cost: Free. Categories: Performances.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 1:00 PM – 1:30 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. DC | Guided Gallery Tours
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Experience one of our major exhibitions currently on view—Americans or Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations with a guided tour led by one of our knowledgeable Museum Educators. Join fellow visitors to dive deeper into the content and have your questions answered. These walk-in tours include a brief overview of the museum’s mission, history, and even the building itself.
Tours are subject to availability and may be cancelled without prior notice.
Venue: American Indian Museum DC. Event Location: Level 1, meet in the Potomac Atrium. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Americans, Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 1:30 PM – 2:15 PM.
Late Spring
Films
Get tickets
One of the most powerful of Yasujirō Ozu’s family portraits, Late Spring tells the story of a widowed father who feels compelled to marry off his beloved only daughter. Eminent Ozu players Chishu Ryu and Setsuko Hara command this poignant tale of love and loss in postwar Japan, which remains as potent today as ever—and a strong justification for its maker’s inclusion in the pantheon of cinema’s greatest directors. Description courtesy of Janus Films. (Dir.: Yasujirō Ozu, Japan, 1949, 108 min. DCP, b&w, Japanese with English subtitles).
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Film admission policy: Films are shown in the 300-seat Meyer Auditorium. Free tickets (up to four per person per film) can be reserved using the links above. Patrons may also register at the door if seats are still available. . Categories: Films.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM.
Coral Reef Tank Talk
One-Time Events
Swim by the Sant Ocean Hall to meet some of the coral reef species that call the Smithsonian NMNH home! Hosted by an Ocean Educator, this interactive cart experience will walk you through the world of saltwater fish, coral colonies, and invertebrates galore!
Image Credit: Sant Ocean Hall, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, from the main hall, 2nd floor. Photo by @Radiofan, Creative Commons, Wikimedia.
Venue: Natural History Museum. Event Location: 1st Floor, The Sant Ocean Hall. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Kids & Families. Lectures & Discussions. Related Exhibition: The Sant Ocean Hall. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
A Journey through Ancient China
Resident Associate Program
This series takes you on a thematic tour of four important topics in ancient Chinese history, <span style="color: #e74c3c;">the final session focusing on eunuchs</span>. Justin M. Jacobs, a professor of Chinese history at American University, gives you a nuanced overview based on the latest scholarship and illustrated with copious slides.
Event Location: This online program is presented on Zoom. Online Link: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/256946?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Cost: Click here to view prices. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/256946?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Categories: After Five. Workshops.
Wednesday, June 14, 2023, 6:45 PM – 8:15 PM.
Drawing with the Portrait Gallery
One-Time Events
Join us for a drawing workshop at the Portrait Gallery. Facilitated by artist Jill Galloway, each session will include guided instruction on figure drawing and time to work on your own. Open to all skill levels, ages 18 and up.
Event Location: G Street Lobby. Cost: Free. Registration Required. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/o/national-portrait-gallery-810710525. Categories: Workshops.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM.
For more info visit www.eventbrite.com. Wonderplace
Ongoing Tours & Activities
This learning space designed especially for children ages six and under combines age appropriate activities with museum collections and touchable objects to provide a gateway to history and a place to exercise curiosity for the youngest historians.
Admission to Wonderplace is on a first come, first-served basis. At busy times, we may use FREE, timed tickets to minimize wait time if needed. Tickets are available for 30-minute visits on a first-come, first-served basis. No tickets are required for the first session from 10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. To visit during a later half-hour session, visitors may pick up a ticket at Wonderplace in 1 West. The last entry using timed tickets is at 3:30 p.m.
Hours are subject to change.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Wonderplace, 1 West. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
Afrofuturism Big Objects Big Stories: The Mothership
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism.
About this Program: An iconic stage prop, the Mothership symbolizes P-Funk’s Afrofuturist inspired vision as a tangible manifestation of the liberating power and autonomous promise of Clinton’s art.
Event Location: Program meets at the Mothership, L4. Talks take place at: 10:30 AM, 11:30 AM, and 12:30 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Musical Crossroads
Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 10:30 AM – 12:45 PM.
Big Objects, Big Stories: Veranda Post, Olowe of Ise
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led experience and get a fresh look at the Museum's featured object. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object. About this program: Visitors learn about the African art that inspired the design of the Museum and explore the building’s unique architectural features.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets in the Cultural Expressions exhibition, Level 4. Talks take place at 10:30 AM, 11:30 AM, and 12:30 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Cultural Expressions.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 10:30 AM – 12:45 PM.
Spark!Lab
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Spark!Lab is where museum visitors become inventors. The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation invites children between the ages of 6 and 12 to create, collaborate, explore, test, experiment and invent. Activities for children and families incorporate traditional science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) with art, history and creativity.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Spark!Lab, First Floor, West Wing. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: Places of Invention, Inventive Minds, Landmark Object: Ralph Baer's Workshop, Inventing in America.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit invention.si.edu. Highlights Tour
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Look for our friendly volunteer at the Welcome Desk for a 45 minute tour of the highlights of the museum.
Venue: Postal Museum. Event Location: Starts at the Welcome Desk in the Historic Lobby. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Assisted listening devices. Wheelchair accessible.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 11:30 AM – 12:15 PM.
Peacock Room Shutters Open
National Museum of Asian Art
Third Thursday of every month.
Free, no registration required.
See the Peacock Room in a whole new light! Please join us for a beloved NMAA tradition: our third Thursday opening of the Peacock Room shutters. Experience this unique masterwork of art and design in a whole new way as natural light reveals details of James McNeill Whistler's painted interior and accents the gleaming surfaces of Charles Lang Freer's collection of Asian ceramics.
The shutters are open from noon to 5:30 p.m. every third Thursday of each month.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Freer gallery 12 (Peacock Room). Cost: Free. Categories: Demonstrations. Gallery Talks & Tours.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 12:00 PM – 5:30 PM.
Let's Talk Gardens, Native Pollinators of the Mid-Atlantic
Smithsonian Gardens
Free.
Event Location: Online/Online only. Online Link: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_s2gC__cXSpy2l5_Uk7HIFQ#/registration. Cost: Free. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_s2gC__cXSpy2l5_Uk7HIFQ#/registration. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM.
For more info visit smithsonian.zoom.us. Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. Castle Stories: Where It All Began
Smithsonian Castle
Did you know that the Castle is the Smithsonian’s first and oldest building? It first opened its doors in 1855 and has borne witness to countless moments in history for the Smithsonian, the United States, and the world. Join one of our volunteer Castle Docents as they explain the importance of the phrase “the increase and diffusion of knowledge” and how it went from being six words in an English scientist’s will to shaping the destiny of the Smithsonian we know today. Come learn about the founding and early history of the Smithsonian; its original benefactor, James Smithson; and the incredible history and architecture of the Castle. Here is your opportunity to discover some of the treasured stories that are part of the Castle’s rich history.
Image caption: Lantern slide, photograph on glass in wood mount, William Langenheim (1807-1874) and Frederick Langenheim (1809-1879) Philadelphia, 1850, Smithsonian Castle Collection, gift of Tom Rall, Arlington, Virginia
Note: 'Castle Stories' are subject to docent…
Event Location: Online/Zoom. Cost: Free. Categories: Webcasts & Online. Gallery Talks & Tours. Kids & Families. Accessibility: Captioning.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 1:00 PM – 1:30 PM.
Afrofuturism Big Objects, Big Stories: I Go To Prepare A Place For You by Bisa Butler
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism. About this Program: From the era of slavery to the present day, African Americans have re-imagined the futures and possibilities of black people across the globe through the dynamic lens of Afro-Futurism. I Go To Prepare A Place For You, by fiber artist Bisa Butler, is based upon a portrait of underground railroad conductor and abolitionist Harriet Tubman. Learn what the artwork reveals about Tubman’s complexity as a person, including her African ancestry, bravery, and legacy as an agent of change.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets at the I Go To Prepare A Place For You by Bisa Butler, Level 4. Talks take place at: 1:15 PM, 2:15 PM, and 3:15 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Visual Arts: The American Experience .
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 1:15 PM – 3:30 PM.
Science on a Sphere
One-Time Events
Come explore our blue planet with NMNH Ocean Educators. Through NOAA’s Science on a Sphere technology, you’ll encounter a series of interactive visualizations projected on the Sant Ocean Hall’s giant globe. Watch sea turtles migrate coast to coast, track ships through global waters in real-time, explore the changing climate patterns shaping our planet, and much more!
Image Credit: NASA.
Venue: Natural History Museum. Event Location: 1st Floor, The Sant Ocean Hall. Cost: Free and open to the public. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Kids & Families. Lectures & Discussions. Demonstrations. Related Exhibition: The Sant Ocean Hall. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
Conservation Cart Talk: Using Light to Study Works of Art
Talks and Lectures
Examining an object under regular lighting is a first step to discovering more about it. However, other forms of light, from x-rays to the infrared, can be used to reveal more information than we can see by eye. Join conservation scientist Matthew Clarke to learn more about how NMAA conservators use light to research works of art.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Freer gallery 1. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
Special Exhibition Tour
Tours
Join a tour of the special exhibition, Anyang: China’s Ancient City of Kings, featuring artworks excavated from the capital of the ancient Shang Dynasty (ca. 1250 BCE–ca.1050 BCE), including jades and bronze vessels. Learn about the advanced technology of bronze casting, explore intricate and sophisticated designs of ritual objects, and discover famous “oracle bones.”.
Venue: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Event Location: Meet at the Sackler Information Desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: https://asia.si.edu/exhibition/anyang-chinas-ancient-city-of-kings/.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
DC/DOX Film Festival Screening of JOAN BAEZ I AM A NOISE at the National Portrait Gallery
One-Time Events
In partnership with DC/DOX, the newest documentary film festival in the nation’s capital kicks off with JOAN BAEZ I AM A NOISE at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery. This expansive biographical film explores the many facets of Baez’s life - her musical gifts, her passion for activism, her lifelong emotional struggles - creating an intimate portrait of a legendary artist. The film is co-directed by Karen O’Connor, Miri Navasky, and Maeve O’Boyle. Joan Baez and filmmaker Karen O’Connor will be in attendance to participate in a post-screening conversation moderated by The Washington Post's chief film critic, Ann Hornaday.
Event Location: McEvoy Auditorium. Cost: Seats are available for purchase. Get Tickets/Register: https://dcdoxfest.com/films/joan-baez-i-am-a-noise/. Categories: After Five. Films.
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM.
Wonderplace
Ongoing Tours & Activities
This learning space designed especially for children ages six and under combines age appropriate activities with museum collections and touchable objects to provide a gateway to history and a place to exercise curiosity for the youngest historians.
Admission to Wonderplace is on a first come, first-served basis. At busy times, we may use FREE, timed tickets to minimize wait time if needed. Tickets are available for 30-minute visits on a first-come, first-served basis. No tickets are required for the first session from 10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. To visit during a later half-hour session, visitors may pick up a ticket at Wonderplace in 1 West. The last entry using timed tickets is at 3:30 p.m.
Hours are subject to change.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Wonderplace, 1 West. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
Smithsonian Orientation
Smithsonian Castle
Join one of our volunteer ambassadors in front of the Castle for an orientation to the Smithsonian. Learn about the history of the 175-year-old Institution and our museums. Hear about current highlights and offerings and ask for tips to maximize your journey/visit.
Event Location: On the National Mall, in front of the Joseph Henry Statue which is on the north side of the Smithsonian Castle. Cost: FREE. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 10:30 AM – 10:40 AM.
Spark!Lab
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Spark!Lab is where museum visitors become inventors. The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation invites children between the ages of 6 and 12 to create, collaborate, explore, test, experiment and invent. Activities for children and families incorporate traditional science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) with art, history and creativity.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Spark!Lab, First Floor, West Wing. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: Places of Invention, Inventive Minds, Landmark Object: Ralph Baer's Workshop, Inventing in America.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit invention.si.edu. Tiny But Mighty: the Potential of Phytoplankton
One-Time Events
What’s responsible for the oxygen we breathe, glowing and sometimes dangerous water, and some omega-3 fatty acid supplements? Phytoplankton! Phytoplankton are the primary energy source in aquatic water bodies, both saline and fresh, around the world. Though microscopic, they play an enormous role in sustaining life on Earth. Join Savannah Mapes, Marine Scientist, Virginia Institute of Marine Science, in the Ocean Hall to learn more!
Venue: Natural History Museum. Event Location: 1st Floor, The Sant Ocean Hall. Cost: Free and open to the public. Categories: Lectures & Discussions. Kids & Families. Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM.
Highlights Tour
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Look for our friendly volunteer at the Welcome Desk for a 45 minute tour of the highlights of the museum.
Venue: Postal Museum. Event Location: Starts at the Welcome Desk in the Historic Lobby. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Assisted listening devices. Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 11:30 AM – 12:15 PM.
Smithsonian Orientation
Smithsonian Castle
Join one of our volunteer ambassadors in front of the Castle for an orientation to the Smithsonian. Learn about the history of the 175-year-old Institution and our museums. Hear about current highlights and offerings and ask for tips to maximize your journey/visit.
Event Location: On the National Mall, in front of the Joseph Henry Statue which is on the north side of the Smithsonian Castle. Cost: FREE. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 11:30 AM – 11:40 AM.
Meditation and Mindfulness
Workshops
Meditation helps us build a relationship to a place of inner quietude. Whether you’re a beginner or a skilled practitioner, join us for free online meditation sessions each week led by DC-based meditation teachers on Tuesdays and Fridays. Friday sessions include inspiration from art in the museum collections as well as appearances by special guest teachers and artists. All are welcome! No previous experience is required. Meet our meditation teachers: Aparna Sadananda and Philip Bender.
Register and join the sessions here: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpdeuhqjItG9HB6wJ6vIhf5Vk-_Tm-RCtZ
Image:
Spring flowers, Kitagawa Sōsetsu (17th century), Japan, Edo period, mid-17th century, one of a pair of handscrolls; ink and color on paper, The Mary and Cheney Cowles Collection, Gift of Mary and Cheney Cowles, Freer Gallery of Art, F2020.5.25.1a–b.
Event Location: Online. Online Link: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpdeuhqjItG9HB6wJ6vIhf5Vk-_Tm-RCtZ. Cost: Free. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpdeuhqjItG9HB6wJ6vIhf5Vk-_Tm-RCtZ. Categories: Workshops. Webcasts & Online.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 12:00 PM – 12:45 PM.
Smithsonian Orientation
Smithsonian Castle
Join one of our volunteer ambassadors in front of the Castle for an orientation to the Smithsonian. Learn about the history of the 175-year-old Institution and our museums. Hear about current highlights and offerings and ask for tips to maximize your journey/visit.
Event Location: On the National Mall, in front of the Joseph Henry Statue which is on the north side of the Smithsonian Castle. Cost: FREE. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 12:30 PM – 12:40 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. DC | Guided Gallery Tours
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Experience one of our major exhibitions currently on view—Americans or Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations with a guided tour led by one of our knowledgeable Museum Educators. Join fellow visitors to dive deeper into the content and have your questions answered. These walk-in tours include a brief overview of the museum’s mission, history, and even the building itself.
Tours are subject to availability and may be cancelled without prior notice.
Venue: American Indian Museum DC. Event Location: Level 1, meet in the Potomac Atrium. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Americans, Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 1:30 PM – 2:15 PM.
Smithsonian Orientation
Smithsonian Castle
Join one of our volunteer ambassadors in front of the Castle for an orientation to the Smithsonian. Learn about the history of the 175-year-old Institution and our museums. Hear about current highlights and offerings and ask for tips to maximize your journey/visit.
Event Location: On the National Mall, in front of the Joseph Henry Statue which is on the north side of the Smithsonian Castle. Cost: FREE. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 1:30 PM – 1:40 PM.
Special Exhibition Tour
Tours
Join a tour of the special exhibition, Anyang: China’s Ancient City of Kings, featuring artworks excavated from the capital of the ancient Shang Dynasty (ca. 1250 BCE–ca.1050 BCE), including jades and bronze vessels. Learn about the advanced technology of bronze casting, explore intricate and sophisticated designs of ritual objects, and discover famous “oracle bones.”.
Venue: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Event Location: Meet at the Sackler Information Desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: https://asia.si.edu/exhibition/anyang-chinas-ancient-city-of-kings/.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
Guest Curator Talk: One Life: Frederick Douglass with John Stauffer
One-Time Events
Join guest curator John Stauffer, Sumner R. and Marshall S. Kates Professor of English and of African and African American Studies at Harvard University, and Ann Shumard, the museum’s senior curator of photographs, for a tour of “One Life: Frederick Douglass.” Don’t miss this rare opportunity to learn about a highly influential abolitionist writer, speaker and intellectual – and be sure to stay for the Q&A.
Event Location: Meet at the “One Life” exhibition, Second Floor. Cost: Free. Registration Recommended. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/o/national-portrait-gallery-810710525. Categories: Lectures & Discussions. Related Exhibition: One Life: Frederick Douglass.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit www.eventbrite.com. The Novelist's Film
Films
Get tickets, Watch the trailer
A must-see for Hong Sang-soo fans (his In Front of Your Face was an audience favorite at last year’s festival), The Novelist’s Film is “as close as Hong has come to dramatizing his own process” according to Dennis Lim, author of a book-length study of Hong’s work. Hong’s onscreen proxy is Jun-hee (Lee Hye-young of In Front of Your Face), a novelist who has grown disenchanted with her writing. After a chance encounter with a famous actress (longtime Hong collaborator Kim Min-hee) at a similar artistic crossroads, Jun-hee decides to make a movie with her. What follows is both a peek at Hong’s methods and an interrogation of what we expect of works of art, ending in a surprising final flourish that hints at a new direction in his work. (Dir.: Hong Sang-soo, Korea, 2022, 92 min. DCP, Korean with English subtitles).
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Film admission policy: Films are shown in the 300-seat Meyer Auditorium. Free tickets (up to four per person per film) can be reserved using the links above. Patrons may also register at the door if seats are still available. Categories: Films. After Five.
Friday, June 16, 2023, 7:00 PM – 8:45 PM.
Little Critters Nature Play
Special Zoo Events
New, drop-in activity and story time for children and families at the Zoo!
Join us for a wild time as we explore animals and the natural world through creative, free-choice activity stations in our brand-new indoor/outdoor classroom! Dig for horseshoe crabs in the sand table, make lunch for a bird in the mud kitchens, or just join us for a story or two!
Little Critters Nature Play is designed for ages 0-5 and their caregivers and families. Activities are designed with early learners in mind, but all ages are welcome. Parents and guardians must remain with their children.
Location: Bird House Classroom.
Venue: National Zoo. Event Location: Bird House Classroom. Cost: Free drop-in program; no pre-registration required.Parents and guardians must remain with their children. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 9:30 AM – 4:30 PM.
FRESHFARM ACM Farm Stand
One-Time Events
Venue: Anacostia Community Museum. Event Location: 1901 Fort Place, SE Washington, DC 20020. Cost: Free with produce for purchase. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/freshfarm-acm-farm-stand-tickets-623839058417. Categories: Celebrations.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM.
Expressive Arts Workshop: Spaces of Comfort
One-Time Events
Join the National Portrait Gallery for an interactive art-making workshop that fosters self-reflection and personal well-being. Drawing inspiration from the “Kinship” exhibition, participants will explore themes of community and family by creating their own miniature 3D “comfort cube” to represent a space that brings them feelings of safety, comfort and support. This workshop will be co-facilitated by a registered art therapist and museum educator. No previous art experience is required. Adults ages 18 and up.
Event Location: G Street Lobby. Cost: Free. Registration Required. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/o/national-portrait-gallery-810710525. Categories: Workshops. Related Exhibition: Kinship.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM.
For more info visit www.eventbrite.com. Wonderplace
Ongoing Tours & Activities
This learning space designed especially for children ages six and under combines age appropriate activities with museum collections and touchable objects to provide a gateway to history and a place to exercise curiosity for the youngest historians.
Admission to Wonderplace is on a first come, first-served basis. At busy times, we may use FREE, timed tickets to minimize wait time if needed. Tickets are available for 30-minute visits on a first-come, first-served basis. No tickets are required for the first session from 10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. To visit during a later half-hour session, visitors may pick up a ticket at Wonderplace in 1 West. The last entry using timed tickets is at 3:30 p.m.
Hours are subject to change.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Wonderplace, 1 West. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
ART CART: LINES AND LAYERS
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a layering Art Cart! Together, we will explore lines and layers in art, stories and history in honor of Juneteenth. Young artists will take a close look at Mark Bradford’s work, Pickett’s Charge, and layer lines to make their own collage story inspired by artist Mark Bradford and his practice!
Find the Art Cart on the Third Level and pick up your layering materials. Do this at home! Reveal the layers within a story that matters to you with Mark Bradford. Instructions here.
, ABOUT THE ART CART
Want to make art inspired by your favorite Hirshhorn works on view? The Art Cart offers young artists a hands-on maker experience during their visit to the Hirshhorn. Each week’s Art Cart offers a fresh and fun theme featuring an artwork on view, an artmaking activity to do at the Museum, and kids’ projects to extend the fun at home!
The Art Cart is free; no registration required. Drop in any Saturday between 10am–1pm.
Venue: Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden. Event Location: Third Floor. Cost: Free. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM.
For more info visit hirshhorn.si.edu. Spark!Lab
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Spark!Lab is where museum visitors become inventors. The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation invites children between the ages of 6 and 12 to create, collaborate, explore, test, experiment and invent. Activities for children and families incorporate traditional science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) with art, history and creativity.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Spark!Lab, First Floor, West Wing. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: Places of Invention, Inventive Minds, Landmark Object: Ralph Baer's Workshop, Inventing in America.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit invention.si.edu. History Alive!: USCT: Juneteenth: What it Means, and Why We Celebrate
One-Time Events
Afrofuturism often incorporates a historical reconstruction of the past and many science fiction writers are often inspired by the real-life stories of African Americans serving in the military. Attend one of our History Alive! programs and hear real stories about Blacks in the military and explore themes of freedom, self-determination, citizenship, valor, and much, much, more. Two years, five months, and nineteen days after the Emancipation Proclamation, Blacks in Galveston, Texas found out about Mr. Lincoln’s order. In the course of this program visitors will learn what it meant, and why we celebrated it today.
Additional Information: John W. McCaskill, M.A. brings dynamic public speaking presentations in Washington, DC and across the country. To authenticate his living history presentations, he adorns period attire for colonial, WWII/Army Air Corps Tuskegee Airmen, and Civil War U.S. Colored Troops, World War I, Reconstruction, Buffalo Soldier, and the 1960’s Civil Rights period.
Image Credit: …
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets at C3/Landing Area 1. Each 30-minute performance starts at: 11:00 AM and 1:00 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in. Categories: Performances. Related Exhibition: Slavery and Freedom
Double Victory: The African American Military Experience
Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures
Defending Freedom, Defining Freedom: The Era of Segregation 1876-1968.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM.
Juneteenth Community Day
One-Time Events
In celebration of Juneteenth 2023 the National Museum of African American History and Culture returns to its perennial theme, Senses of Freedom: The Taste, Sound, and Experience of an African American Celebration.
During this year’s Juneteenth Community Day visitors can explore the gifts of gardening and the culinary arts, hear stories, listen to music, and discover their inner artist with crafts for all ages. We invite the public to visit the Museum’s galleries, grounds, and Sweet Home Cafe to create memories and learn more about this historic holiday both inside and outside the museum.
Outdoors (Tickets Not Required)
Big Objects, Big Stories: The Museum in the Making
During this twenty-five-minute presentation, visitors participate in a guided tour focused the design of the National Museum of African American History and Culture and its unique architectural features.
A Garden of Vignettes
SI Horticulture staff take visitors on a walk through NMAAHC’s unique planting areas and arbors…
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Various Locations, National Museum of African American History and Culture. Cost: Free; Registration Required. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.etix.com/ticket/p/3572018/juneteenth-community-day-washington-national-museum-of-african-american-history-culture-public-programs. Categories: Kids & Families. Lectures & Discussions. Performances. Culinary Arts. Celebrations.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM.
Highlights Tour
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Look for our friendly volunteer at the Welcome Desk for a 45 minute tour of the highlights of the museum.
Venue: Postal Museum. Event Location: Starts at the Welcome Desk in the Historic Lobby. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Assisted listening devices. Wheelchair accessible.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 11:30 AM – 12:15 PM.
Portrait Signs
One-Time Events
Explore the National Portrait Gallery's collection with a Deaf docent. These 60-minute tours in American Sign Language are offered monthly, both in person and on Zoom.
Event Location: G Street Lobby. Cost: Free. Registration Required. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/o/national-portrait-gallery-810710525. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: ASL-interpreted program.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM.
For more info visit www.eventbrite.com. NY | At the Movies: Café Daughter
One-Time Events
The National Museum of the American Indian is proud to present a special screening of Shelley Niro’s latest feature film at our New York museum in conjunction with the exhibition Shelley Niro: 500 Year Itch.
A Q&A with director Shelley Niro follows the film.
Preceded by a book signing of the exhibition catalog at 10 AM outside the Museum Store on Level 2 with Shelley Niro, David Penney, and Greg Hill. The exhibition catalog will be available for purchase in the store. No registration required; first come, first served.
In a small Saskatchewan town in the 1960s, Yvette Wong, a young girl of Chinese and Cree heritage, struggles with her Indigenous identity amidst family tragedy in this coming-of-age film directed by Mohawk artist and filmmaker Shelley Niro. Yvette’s mother, Katherine, discourages her from embracing her Cree identity, so she explores it in secret. As she learns more about herself and her Indigenous heritage, Yvette finds a friend in Maggie Wolf, who embraces being part Mi’kmaq and encourages…
Venue: American Indian Museum NY. Event Location: Auditorium. Cost: Free. Categories: Films. Related Exhibition: Shelley Niro: 500 Year Itch.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
Weekend Workshop: Kinship
One-Time Events
Calling all artists! Get creative during a special drop-in workshop for all ages inspired by the “Kinship” exhibition. Engage in an interactive art-making activity exploring themes of comfort, family and community.
Event Location: Education Center, E151. Cost: Free. No Registration Required. Categories: Workshops. Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: Kinship.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. Afrofuturism Big Objects, Big Stories: Costumes from The Wiz on Broadway
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism.
About this program: Ease on down the road with a docent and explore how the narrative of The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz" explores Afrofuturist themes, from reimagining black characters in white roles to the incorporation of mysticism, time traveling and liberation in the story.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets in the Taking the Stage exhibition, Broadway section, Level 4. Talks take place at 1:15 PM, 2:15 PM, and 3:15 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 1:15 PM – 3:30 PM.
DC | Guided Gallery Tours
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Experience one of our major exhibitions currently on view—Americans or Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations with a guided tour led by one of our knowledgeable Museum Educators. Join fellow visitors to dive deeper into the content and have your questions answered. These walk-in tours include a brief overview of the museum’s mission, history, and even the building itself.
Tours are subject to availability and may be cancelled without prior notice.
Venue: American Indian Museum DC. Event Location: Level 1, meet in the Potomac Atrium. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Americans, Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 1:30 PM – 2:15 PM.
Special Exhibition Tour
Tours
Join a tour of the special exhibition, Anyang: China’s Ancient City of Kings, featuring artworks excavated from the capital of the ancient Shang Dynasty (ca. 1250 BCE–ca.1050 BCE), including jades and bronze vessels. Learn about the advanced technology of bronze casting, explore intricate and sophisticated designs of ritual objects, and discover famous “oracle bones.”.
Venue: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Event Location: Meet at the Sackler Information Desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: https://asia.si.edu/exhibition/anyang-chinas-ancient-city-of-kings/.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
A Seat at the Table: Heritage Rooted in the Earth
One-Time Events
NMAAHC is collaborating with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) to commemorate Juneteenth in a special edition of A Seat at the Table. The dinner and discussion experience will help audiences understand the connections between contemporary gardening and other subsistence practices documented by renowned scientist George Washington Carver. Moderated by Dr. Julianne Malveaux, the program will also discuss the progress and struggles of Black farmers and fishers who have maintained property and businesses following Emancipation with panelists Che Axum, Director of the Center of Urban Agriculture and Gardening Education at UDC; Imani Black, Founder and President of Minorities In Aquaculture; and Angie and June Provost, Owners of Provost Farm LLC. The program will feature a Juneteenth-inspired menu with foods grown, caught, or prepared by local Black cultivators and businesses representing centuries of communal resilience and economic autonomy.
Cost: $40.00
This program was…
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Heritage Hall, National Museum of African American History and Culture. Cost: $40.00. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.etix.com/ticket/p/2477088/a-seat-at-the-tableheritage-rooted-in-the-earth-washington-national-museum-of-african-american-history-culture-public-programs. Categories: After Five. Lectures & Discussions.
Saturday, June 17, 2023, 6:45 PM – 9:15 PM.
Little Critters Nature Play
Special Zoo Events
New, drop-in activity and story time for children and families at the Zoo!
Join us for a wild time as we explore animals and the natural world through creative, free-choice activity stations in our brand-new indoor/outdoor classroom! Dig for horseshoe crabs in the sand table, make lunch for a bird in the mud kitchens, or just join us for a story or two!
Little Critters Nature Play is designed for ages 0-5 and their caregivers and families. Activities are designed with early learners in mind, but all ages are welcome. Parents and guardians must remain with their children.
Location: Bird House Classroom.
Venue: National Zoo. Event Location: Bird House Classroom. Cost: Free drop-in program; no pre-registration required.Parents and guardians must remain with their children. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Sunday, June 18, 2023, 9:30 AM – 4:30 PM.
Wonderplace
Ongoing Tours & Activities
This learning space designed especially for children ages six and under combines age appropriate activities with museum collections and touchable objects to provide a gateway to history and a place to exercise curiosity for the youngest historians.
Admission to Wonderplace is on a first come, first-served basis. At busy times, we may use FREE, timed tickets to minimize wait time if needed. Tickets are available for 30-minute visits on a first-come, first-served basis. No tickets are required for the first session from 10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. To visit during a later half-hour session, visitors may pick up a ticket at Wonderplace in 1 West. The last entry using timed tickets is at 3:30 p.m.
Hours are subject to change.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Wonderplace, 1 West. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Sunday, June 18, 2023, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
Spark!Lab
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Spark!Lab is where museum visitors become inventors. The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation invites children between the ages of 6 and 12 to create, collaborate, explore, test, experiment and invent. Activities for children and families incorporate traditional science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) with art, history and creativity.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Spark!Lab, First Floor, West Wing. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: Places of Invention, Inventive Minds, Landmark Object: Ralph Baer's Workshop, Inventing in America.
Sunday, June 18, 2023, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit invention.si.edu. Weekend Workshops
One-Time Events
Calling all artists! Get creative during our drop-in workshops for all ages. Learn about artists and changemakers and create art inspired by their stories. .
Event Location: Education Center, E151. Cost: Free.No Registration Required. Categories: Kids & Families.
Sunday, June 18, 2023, 11:30 AM – 3:00 PM.
Highlights Tour
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Look for our friendly volunteer at the Welcome Desk for a 45 minute tour of the highlights of the museum.
Venue: Postal Museum. Event Location: Starts at the Welcome Desk in the Historic Lobby. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Assisted listening devices. Wheelchair accessible.
Sunday, June 18, 2023, 11:30 AM – 12:15 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Sunday, June 18, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. Walk Up
Films
Get tickets, Watch the trailer
A return to Hong Sang-soo’s frequent use of unorthodox narrative structures, Walk Up stars Hong regular Kwon Hae-hyo as Byung-soo, a successful filmmaker who takes his daughter to meet an old friend, Mrs. Kim (Lee Hye-young), in a small apartment building she owns. When Mrs. Kim invites him to move into the vacant top-floor apartment, the film swerves into gently surrealist territory, as each floor of the building comes to embody a different period in Byung-soo’s life—or perhaps a series of alternate realities altogether. “A film of gently discombobulating pleasures,” writes the Los Angeles Times’s Justin Chang, “constructed with a care and intricacy that never hinders the life, spontaneity and sense of possibility bursting out of every frame.” It will leave you feeling like you’ve spent the afternoon polishing off a few bottles of wine with a group of good friends. (Dir.: Hong Sang-soo, Korea, 2022, DCP, 97 min. Korean with English subtitles).
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meyer Auditorium. Cost: Film admission policy: Films are shown in the 300-seat Meyer Auditorium. Free tickets (up to four per person per film) can be reserved using the links above. Patrons may also register at the door if seats are still available. Categories: Films.
Sunday, June 18, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:45 PM.
Special Exhibition Tour
Tours
Join a tour of the special exhibition, Anyang: China’s Ancient City of Kings, featuring artworks excavated from the capital of the ancient Shang Dynasty (ca. 1250 BCE–ca.1050 BCE), including jades and bronze vessels. Learn about the advanced technology of bronze casting, explore intricate and sophisticated designs of ritual objects, and discover famous “oracle bones.”.
Venue: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Event Location: Meet at the Sackler Information Desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: https://asia.si.edu/exhibition/anyang-chinas-ancient-city-of-kings/.
Sunday, June 18, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
Through the African American Lens: Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project
One-Time Events
Join the Museum and DC/DOX Festival for the D.C. premiere of Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project, directed by Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson. Through intimate vérité archival footage, and visually innovative treatments of Nikki Giovanni’s poetry, the film pushes the boundaries of biographical documentary film by traveling through time and space to reveal the enduring influence of one of America’s greatest living artists and social commentators. The film will be followed by a moderated panel discussion featuring Giovanni in conversation with Brewster and Stephenson.
Reserve your seat here in advance to guarantee your seat.
The panel discussion will be livestreamed starting at 3:30 PM, EST.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Concourse, Oprah Winfrey Theater + streaming. Online Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OostOXMjl2Y. Cost: Free; Registration Required. Get Tickets/Register: https://dcdoxfest.eventive.org/schedule/645e8ebfb26eb3004194f13d. Categories: Films. Lectures & Discussions. Webcasts & Online.
Sunday, June 18, 2023, 2:00 PM – 4:15 PM.
Juneteenth Freedom Celebration: Unity. Freedom. Acknowledgment.
One-Time Events
Join ACM on Monday, June 19 from 11am - 4pm for a day-long celebration as we gather with family, friends, and neighbors to honor the present and reflect on shared tradition and history.
Activities include: Juneteenth Main Stage Curated Together with PorchFest DC- Southeast Edition, featuring local talent throughout the day. , East of the River Trivia , Interactive activities with the National Portrait Gallery , a Double Dutch contest , Urban Gardening workshop Be sure to visit gallery for our latest exhibition To Live and Breathe: Women and Environmental Justice in Washington, D.C. which explores how local women of color draw on a long history of activism and advance environmental justice efforts not only in D.C. but across the country and beyond.
Follow ACM on social media for the most up to date information and a full schedule of activities.
Registration recommended.(link is external).
Venue: Anacostia Community Museum. Event Location: 1901 Fort Place, SE Washington, DC 20020. Cost: Free. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/juneteenth-freedom-celebration-unity-freedom-acknowledgment-tickets-629435016077. Categories: Celebrations. Kids & Families.
Monday, June 19, 2023, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit anacostia.si.edu. Explore More! In STEM: Having Fun with Frequencies
One-Time Events
Are you curious about what sound is and what sound waves look like? Have you ever wondered how electric guitars work? Or are you simply a music lover and want to share some of your favorite tunes? Jam out with us to learn how these things work and more.
These activities are designed for students 8 years+
Image credit: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Donation of Charles E. Berry.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: 2nd floor classrooms. Cost: This is a free event. No registration is required for participation. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Monday, June 19, 2023, 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM.
Portrait Gallery Kid
One-Time Events
Children and families are invited to learn, play and create at the Portrait Gallery! Join educators every Monday as we explore a variety of topics, such as colors, emotions, STEM and history. Through close looking at art, hands-on activities, music and movement, Portrait Gallery Kids offers a fun way to engage with art and each other. For kids of all ages.
Event Location: Education Center, E151. Cost: Free. No Registration Required. Categories: Kids & Families.
Monday, June 19, 2023, 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM.
Highlights Tour
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Look for our friendly volunteer at the Welcome Desk for a 45 minute tour of the highlights of the museum.
Venue: Postal Museum. Event Location: Starts at the Welcome Desk in the Historic Lobby. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Assisted listening devices. Wheelchair accessible.
Monday, June 19, 2023, 11:30 AM – 12:15 PM.
Highlights Tour - Making a Way Out of No Way
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Learn about the ways in which African Americans created possibilities in a world that denied them opportunities. On this docent led tour visitors will reflect on the perseverance, resourcefulness, and resilience required by African Americans to survive and thrive in America.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: This one hour tour program meets at Level 3 in the Making a Way Out of No Way exhibit. Tours take place at 1:00 PM and 2:45 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Making a Way Out of No Way.
Monday, June 19, 2023, 1:00 PM – 3:45 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Monday, June 19, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. Afrofuturism Big Objects, Big Stories: Costumes from The Wiz on Broadway
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism.
About this program: Ease on down the road with a docent and explore how the narrative of The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz" explores Afrofuturist themes, from reimagining black characters in white roles to the incorporation of mysticism, time traveling and liberation in the story.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets in the Taking the Stage exhibition, Broadway section, Level 4. Talks take place at 10:15 AM, 11:15 AM, and 12:15 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 10:15 AM – 12:30 PM.
Play Date at NMNH: Investigating Insects
One-Time Events
Join us on Tuesdays for special family play dates with museum educators!
Tuesday, June 20 is all about insects! Families can make close observations of select pieces from our insect collection, learn about what makes an insect an insect, and create their own take-home craft to help them remember key physical traits of insects!
The event is part of our drop-in program, Play Date at NMNH. Play Date at NMNH is a program designed for early learners (ages 0-5) and their caregivers and families. Activities are designed with early learners in mind, but all ages are welcome.
Location: This program is held in Q?rius, The Coralyn W. Whitney Science Education Center, on the Ground Floor of the museum. Please enter through the Constitution Avenue entrance. Q?rius is located on the right as you enter the museum. Accessibility: Access services such as American Sign Language interpretation, real-time captioning (CART), or audio description are available with two-weeks advanced notice. To request this service, please…
Venue: Natural History Museum. Event Location: Q?rius, The Coralyn W. Whitney Science Education Center (Ground Floor). Cost: Free. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 10:30 AM – 12:00 PM.
Explore More! In STEM: Having Fun with Frequencies
One-Time Events
Are you curious about what sound is and what sound waves look like? Have you ever wondered how electric guitars work? Or are you simply a music lover and want to share some of your favorite tunes? Jam out with us to learn how these things work and more.
These activities are designed for students 8 years+
Image credit: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Donation of Charles E. Berry.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: 2nd floor classrooms. Cost: This is a free event. No registration is required for participation. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM.
Highlights Tour
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Look for our friendly volunteer at the Welcome Desk for a 45 minute tour of the highlights of the museum.
Venue: Postal Museum. Event Location: Starts at the Welcome Desk in the Historic Lobby. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Assisted listening devices. Wheelchair accessible.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 11:30 AM – 12:15 PM.
Meditation and Mindfulness
Workshops
Meditation helps us build a relationship to a place of inner quietude. Whether you’re a beginner or a skilled practitioner, join us for free online meditation sessions each week led by DC-based meditation teachers on Tuesdays and Fridays. Friday sessions include inspiration from art in the museum collections as well as appearances by special guest teachers and artists. All are welcome! No previous experience is required. Meet our meditation teachers: Aparna Sadananda and Philip Bender.
Register and join the sessions here: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpdeuhqjItG9HB6wJ6vIhf5Vk-_Tm-RCtZ
Image:
Spring flowers, Kitagawa Sōsetsu (17th century), Japan, Edo period, mid-17th century, one of a pair of handscrolls; ink and color on paper, The Mary and Cheney Cowles Collection, Gift of Mary and Cheney Cowles, Freer Gallery of Art, F2020.5.25.1a–b.
Event Location: Online. Online Link: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpdeuhqjItG9HB6wJ6vIhf5Vk-_Tm-RCtZ. Cost: Free. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUpdeuhqjItG9HB6wJ6vIhf5Vk-_Tm-RCtZ. Categories: Workshops. Webcasts & Online.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 12:00 PM – 12:45 PM.
DC | Welcome to a Native Place
One-Time Events
Enjoy tribal songs from Alaska to Florida with Dennis Zotigh (Kiowa, Isanti Dakota and Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo) in the Potomac Atrium. At the end of his 30-minute presentation, visitors from around the world are encouraged to ask questions pertaining to the museum and Indigenous culture in the past and present.
Performances may be cancelled without prior notice.
Venue: American Indian Museum DC. Event Location: Potomac Atrium. Cost: Free. Categories: Performances.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 1:00 PM – 1:30 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. Castle Stories: Where It All Began
Smithsonian Castle
Did you know that the Castle is the Smithsonian’s first and oldest building? It first opened its doors in 1855 and has born witness to countless moments in history for the Smithsonian, the United States, and the world. Join one of our volunteer Castle Docents as they explore how the Smithsonian evolved from an idea to a Castle, to the largest museum and research complex in the world. Learn about the Smithsonian’s evolution into what we know it as today. Here is your opportunity to discover some of the treasured stories that are part of the Castle’s rich history.
Note: 'Castle Stories' are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur , Registrants will receive a confirmation email with the Zoom link for the 'Castle Stories' event they signed-up for , We welcome all visitors to our programs! Automatic Zoom captions will be turned on for this event. , 'Castle Stories' are 30-minute presentations on Zoom , Visitors are encouraged to interact with the Castle docent , Registration is…
Event Location: Online/Zoom. Cost: free. Categories: Webcasts & Online. Gallery Talks & Tours. Kids & Families. Lectures & Discussions. Accessibility: Captioning.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 1:00 PM – 1:30 PM.
Black Future Spotlights: Visualizing Afrofuturism on Stage and Screen
One-Time Events
Black Future Spotlights: Visualizing Afrofuturism on Stage and Screen, Description: Our 20-minute spotlight tours provide an engaging introduction to a key topic in the Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures exhibition. About this program: On stage and screen, representation matters. Representation is important so that art and media can reflect the diversity of society. Explore how Afrofuturism provides a platform for reimagining Black characters in traditionally white roles.
Image: Costume for the Wizard in The Wiz on Broadway.Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of the Black Fashion Museum founded by Lois K. Alexander-Lane.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets at Visualizing Afrofuturism on Stage and Screen section, in the Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures exhibition, located on the Concourse Level. Talks take place at: 1:15 PM, 2:15 PM, and 3:15 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 1:15 PM – 2:35 PM.
Ocean Topics Cart Chat
One-Time Events
Looking for a deeper dive into ocean topics? Come and find one of our Ocean Educators to explore some of the latest discoveries in marine science, stationed at an interactive cart every Tuesday in the Sant Ocean Hall from 2 pm-3 pm.
Image Credit: Sant Ocean Hall, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, from the main hall, 2nd floor. Photo by @Radiofan, Creative Commons, Wikimedia.
Venue: Natural History Museum. Event Location: 1st Floor, The Sant Ocean Hall. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Lectures & Discussions. Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: The Sant Ocean Hall. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
Virtual Writing Hour
One-Time Events
Join us for a virtual, creative writing hour at the National Portrait Gallery! We've set up an online space where writers can create, connect and draw inspiration from the Portrait Gallery's collection. Bring your own happy hour beverage and write with us. Although we will provide writing prompts, you are also welcome to bring your own writing project-in-progress. We will write for about 30 minutes and end each session with a brief discussion or reading.
Event Location: Online via Zoom. Cost: Free. Registration Required. Get Tickets/Register: https://www.eventbrite.com/o/national-portrait-gallery-810710525. Categories: Workshops.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 5:00 PM – 6:00 PM.
For more info visit www.eventbrite.com. Gender, Sexuality, and the Fairy Tale
Resident Associate Program
Many famous fairy tales—think Cinderella and Jack and the Beanstalk—appear to be quite conventional. But they can be wonderfully disruptive to our expectations. Folklorists Sara Cleto and Brittany Warman discuss modern LGBTQ+ twists on old tales and share some very unconventional fairy tales.
Event Location: This online program is presented on Zoom. Online Link: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/256951?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Cost: Click here to view prices. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/256951?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Categories: After Five. Webcasts & Online.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 6:45 PM – 8:15 PM.
Sexuality and the Harlem Renaissance
One-Time Events
In recognition of Pride Month, this conversation with Professors Jacoby Carter and Benjamin Kahan will explore sexuality during the Harlem Renaissance. This program will touch upon the radicalized art of the Harlem Renaissance, its fluid expressions of gender and sexuality and the lives and philosophies of figures such as Alice Dunbar Nelson and Alain Locke. Moderated by a Portrait Gallery historian, this program is hosted by PORTAL, the museum’s Scholarly Center, and is part of the Tommie L. Pegues and Donald A. Capoccia Conversation Series in LGBTQ+ Portraiture.
Event Location: Online via Zoom. Online Link: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Q182Y4iWT7W8qSsuEMfaUg?mc_cid=f233aa8a2a&mc_eid=244c5ec890#/registration. Cost: Free. Registration Required. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonian.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Q182Y4iWT7W8qSsuEMfaUg?mc_cid=f233aa8a2a&mc_eid=244c5ec890#/registration. Categories: Lectures & Discussions.
Tuesday, June 20, 2023, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM.
For more info visit smithsonian.zoom.us. Wonderplace
Ongoing Tours & Activities
This learning space designed especially for children ages six and under combines age appropriate activities with museum collections and touchable objects to provide a gateway to history and a place to exercise curiosity for the youngest historians.
Admission to Wonderplace is on a first come, first-served basis. At busy times, we may use FREE, timed tickets to minimize wait time if needed. Tickets are available for 30-minute visits on a first-come, first-served basis. No tickets are required for the first session from 10:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. To visit during a later half-hour session, visitors may pick up a ticket at Wonderplace in 1 West. The last entry using timed tickets is at 3:30 p.m.
Hours are subject to change.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Wonderplace, 1 West. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
STORYTIME: WEAVE WITH COLOR
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Explore patterns in this week’s Storytime. We’ll look closely at I Went Away and Forgot You. A While Ago I Remembered. I Remembered Iʼd Forgotten You. I Was Dreaming, by artist Dana Awartani, read aloud Rainbow Weaver by Linda Elovitz Marshall, and we’ll practice arranging our own layered works of art.
Meet in the Museum Lobby. Do this at home! Create a woven artwork with scrap fabric inspired by artist Anni Albers. Instructions here.
, ABOUT STORYTIME
Join Hirshhorn Kids on Wednesdays for a one-of-a-kind storytime experience! Each week offers a fun and fresh theme for our youngest artists and their adults. Get a fun and hands-on introduction to a new artwork each week, and participate in a joyful read-aloud filled with music, stories, and movement. Then, stay and play while your little artist creates. No reservations or tickets required. Nursing caregivers are welcome. Stroller parking is available in the Hirshhorn Lobby. An ASL Interpreter may be requested for this program; two weeks advance notice is…
Venue: Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden. Event Location: Third Floor. Cost: Free. Categories: Kids & Families. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM.
For more info visit hirshhorn.si.edu. Afrofuturism Big Objects, Big Stories: I Go To Prepare A Place For You by Bisa Butler
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism. About this Program: From the era of slavery to the present day, African Americans have re-imagined the futures and possibilities of black people across the globe through the dynamic lens of Afro-Futurism. I Go To Prepare A Place For You, by fiber artist Bisa Butler, is based upon a portrait of underground railroad conductor and abolitionist Harriet Tubman. Learn what the artwork reveals about Tubman’s complexity as a person, including her African ancestry, bravery, and legacy as an agent of change.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets at the I Go To Prepare A Place For You by Bisa Butler, Level 4. Talks take place at: 10:15 AM, 11:15 AM, and 12:15 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Visual Arts: The American Experience .
Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 10:15 AM – 12:30 PM.
Highlights Tour - Sports: Leveling the Playing Field
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Because sports were among the first and most high-profile organizations to accept African Americans on terms of relative equality, sports have a unique role in American culture. Go on a docent led tour. Hear about the contributions of athletes on and off the field.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: This one hour tour program meets at Level 3 in the Sports: Leveling the Playing Field exhibit. Tours take place at 10:15 AM and 11:30 AM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Sports: Leveling the Playing Field.
Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 10:15 AM – 12:30 PM.
Afrofuturism Big Objects, Big Stories: The Paradox of the Liberty
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Join us for a docent-led talk and get a fresh look into a featured object that is on view in one of our permanent exhibitions. At each of these 15-minute talks visitors will hear incredibly big stories about a big object and experience the infinite possibilities of Afrofuturism. About this Program: From the era of slavery to the present day, African Americans have re-imagined the futures and possibilities of black people across the globe through the dynamic lens of Afro-Futurism. Learn how Colonial Afrofuturists, like Benjamin Banneker and Phillis Wheatly, amplified the cause of abolition by speaking truth to power and producing knowledge for public good.
Venue: African American History and Culture Museum. Event Location: Program meets at the Paradox of Liberty section, Level C3. Talks take place at: 10:30 AM, 11:30 AM, and 12:30 PM. Cost: Free; walk-in
Tours are subject to docent availability; last minute cancellations may occur. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Slavery and Freedom.
Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 10:30 AM – 12:45 PM.
Spark!Lab
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Spark!Lab is where museum visitors become inventors. The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation invites children between the ages of 6 and 12 to create, collaborate, explore, test, experiment and invent. Activities for children and families incorporate traditional science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) with art, history and creativity.
Venue: American History Museum. Event Location: Spark!Lab, First Floor, West Wing. Cost: Free; first come, first served. Categories: Kids & Families. Related Exhibition: Places of Invention, Inventive Minds, Landmark Object: Ralph Baer's Workshop, Inventing in America.
Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 11:00 AM – 4:00 PM.
For more info visit invention.si.edu. Highlights Tour
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Look for our friendly volunteer at the Welcome Desk for a 45 minute tour of the highlights of the museum.
Venue: Postal Museum. Event Location: Starts at the Welcome Desk in the Historic Lobby. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Accessibility: Assisted listening devices. Wheelchair accessible.
Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 11:30 AM – 12:15 PM.
DC | Welcome to a Native Place
One-Time Events
Enjoy tribal songs from Alaska to Florida with Dennis Zotigh (Kiowa, Isanti Dakota and Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo) in the Potomac Atrium. At the end of his 30-minute presentation, visitors from around the world are encouraged to ask questions pertaining to the museum and Indigenous culture in the past and present.
Performances may be cancelled without prior notice.
Venue: American Indian Museum DC. Event Location: Potomac Atrium. Cost: Free. Categories: Performances.
Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 1:00 PM – 1:30 PM.
Permanent Collection Tour
Tours
The National Museum of Asian Art has over 45,000 artworks from across Asia. Enjoy some of the finest on a docent-led tour and learn about commonalities and differences in cultures, aesthetics, and ideas.
The public can schedule reserved group tours using the online reservation form.
Venue: Freer Gallery of Art. Event Location: Meet at Freer Information desk. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours.
Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM.
For more info visit asia.si.edu. DC | Guided Gallery Tours
Ongoing Tours & Activities
Experience one of our major exhibitions currently on view—Americans or Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations with a guided tour led by one of our knowledgeable Museum Educators. Join fellow visitors to dive deeper into the content and have your questions answered. These walk-in tours include a brief overview of the museum’s mission, history, and even the building itself.
Tours are subject to availability and may be cancelled without prior notice.
Venue: American Indian Museum DC. Event Location: Level 1, meet in the Potomac Atrium. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Related Exhibition: Americans, Nation to Nation: Treaties Between the United States and American Indian Nations.
Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 1:30 PM – 2:15 PM.
Coral Reef Tank Talk
One-Time Events
Swim by the Sant Ocean Hall to meet some of the coral reef species that call the Smithsonian NMNH home! Hosted by an Ocean Educator, this interactive cart experience will walk you through the world of saltwater fish, coral colonies, and invertebrates galore!
Image Credit: Sant Ocean Hall, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, from the main hall, 2nd floor. Photo by @Radiofan, Creative Commons, Wikimedia.
Venue: Natural History Museum. Event Location: 1st Floor, The Sant Ocean Hall. Cost: Free. Categories: Gallery Talks & Tours. Kids & Families. Lectures & Discussions. Related Exhibition: The Sant Ocean Hall. Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible.
Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM.
Lady Jane Grey: First Tudor Queen or Royal Traitor?
Resident Associate Program
For several days after the death of young King Edward VI in early July 1553, two women considered themselves the ruler of England: his Catholic half-sister Mary Tudor and Lady Jane Grey Dudley. Tudor scholar and historian Carol Ann Lloyd-Stanger explores the woman at the heart of the conflict as she considers the life and character of Jane Grey; the political and personal forces at play in Tudor England; Jane’s complicated relationship with Mary Tudor—and why it was necessary for one of them to lose her life.
Event Location: This online program is presented on Zoom. Online Link: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/257032?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Cost: Click here to view prices. Get Tickets/Register: https://smithsonianassociates.org/ticketing/tickets/257032?utm_source=SI-Trumba-Calendar&utm_medium=SIWeb&utm_campaign=2023FY-Trumba-SA-ev&utm_content=SA-Trumba-event&promo=264355. Categories: After Five. Webcasts & Online.
Wednesday, June 21, 2023, 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM.