SAAM Stories

SAAM is honoring the Patent Office's issuing of its 10 millionth patent on June 19, 2018, with a look at patents in our own collection.

"Trevor Paglen: Sites Unseen," is as sanguine as it is surreptitious, inviting viewers to question the very essence of surveillance and to ask themselves whether a surreal sky or landscape can ever be just that.

Summer movies at SAAM include Barry Lyndon; 2001: A Space Odyssey; and Taxi Driver.

“What would the world be like if women were truly safe?” This is the question Marco Cochrane challenges both male and female audiences to consider when viewing his sculpture "Truth is Beauty."

The Smithsonian American Art Museum’s own corps of volunteer docents has an illustrious history of creating eye-opening experiences for visitors, and this year marks their 50th anniversary.

The exterior of the Reynolds Center, home to SAAM and NPG, is being lit red in honor of the Washington Capitals, and the Stanley Cup playoffs.

On the artist Vinnie Ream, one of a handful of successful female sculptors in the 19th century, and her sculpture, Sappho, on view at SAAM.

The Terrence Malick film, Days of Heaven, relies heavily on images inspired by artist Andrew Wyeth.

Do you remember the thrill of putting a quarter in a slot and getting a gumball? Now imagine pulling a lever and getting a piece of art! That’s what you can do in the Luce Foundation Center, at a vending machine called the Art-o-mat.

The other day, my colleague, Libby, and I walked through the museum in search of an artwork we could talk about. And though each artwork has a story to tell, Lava Thomas's "Requiem for Charleston," the artist's response to the church massacre at Mother Emanuel in 2015, spoke the most to us, in a quietly powerful way (if such a thing is possible).

On Thursday, April 26th, the Luce Foundation Center hosts another installment of Luce Unplugged from 6-8 p.m. Thursday shows, presented with D.C. Music Download, are a tribute to a Luce Center artwork selected by the performer. This installment of Luce Unplugged features DC rock duo, Bat Fangs, whose music recalls the rock icons of the 80s with their catchy lyrics and raucous guitar riffs. 

SAAM has created a dance for Museum Dance Off 5: The Last Dance.

David Best creates temples for Burning Man that are made of recycled wood that are ritually burned at the end of the annual festival. In this video Best discusses the Temple he created for the Renwick Gallery’s Bettie Rubenstein Grand Salon, as a sacred space for people to reflect on loss.

Anne Showalter, Digital Interpretation Specialist at SAAM, sat down with Sarah Newman, the James Dicke Curator of Contemporary Art at SAAM, to talk about the recently opened exhibition Do Ho Suh: Almost Home.

In 1972, Diane Arbus became the first photographer to have her work exhibited at the Venice Biennale. These pivotal works will be featured in the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s exhibition, Diane Arbus: a box of ten photographs, opening at SAAM on Friday, April 6, and remaining on view through January 21, 2019

"No Spectators: The Art of Burning Man" brings the large-scale, participatory work from this desert gathering to the nation’s capital for the first time.

No Spectators: The Art of Burning Man, opens on Friday, March 30, and features large-scale installations--the artistic hallmark of Burning Man--at the core of the exhibition. These include a temple designed for the Renwick's Grand Salon by David Best.

The Luce Foundation Center's interview with experimental pop artist, Adriana-Lucia Cotes, as Antonia. She performs as part of the Luce Unplugged series on March 23, 2018.