SAAM Stories

In celebration of Jazz Appreciation Month, the Smithsonian American Art Museum will present a concert in tribute of the late Dave Brubeck by the Brubeck Institute's Jazz Quintet (BIJQ) from the University of the Pacific.

A haiku consists of three phrases and a set syllabic pattern, which changes depending on what type of haiku you're writing. It is usually inspired by nature and includes some sort of twist. I decided to browse the works on display in the Luce Foundation Center for poetic inspiration.

Stephen Vitiello, electronic musician and media artist, interviewed Academy Award- and Grammy Award-winning musician and composer, Ryuichi Sakamoto, before they perform their tribute Strange Music for Nam June Paik, part of the Art & Process program on Sunday, April 14.

April is National Poetry Month.

Serendipity has always been an important role in the art making experience. Sometimes an artist's muse seems to talk to us in ways we could never predict. Actually, it's something we often count on and, hopefully, ready to embrace. But what about the art viewing experience?

This month marks my six-year anniversary as a Luce Foundation Center employee. Since I became the Center's program coordinator last year, I've been spending less and less time in the Center itself. While I miss regularly interacting with visitors, I think what I miss most is being able to brag about having the prettiest office in Washington.

The only thing I ever knew about the portrait that hung on my great aunt's wall for most of my childhood was that it showed my great, great, great, Uncle William, a sea captain in the late 1700s. Now that the painting rests in my care, I decided to take it in, along with another family portrait, to the Lunder Conservation Center's monthly clinic. All I had to do was make an appointment to take part in this free public service.

This post is part of an ongoing series on Eye Level: "Q and Art," where American Art's Research department brings you interesting questions and answers about art and artists from our archive.

American Art and the Portrait Gallery share not only a building but also our museum stores. We have two stores that are now under new management with a completely new array of gifts and merchandise that is collection-based. Writer Warren Perry, at the National Portrait Gallery recently spoke with Milissa Ferrari, the new manager of our stores.

The Smithsonian American Art Museum has been working with the D.C. Wikimedia community to share our collections and research resources on Wikipedia.

In conjunction with our exhibition, The Civil War and American Art, the museum has invited four contemporary artists to discuss "Why the Civil War Still Matters to American Artists." This panel discussion will be moderated by Senior Curator Eleanor Harvey on Wednesday, March 13 at 4 p.m. in the museum's McEvoy Auditorium. Harvey had a chance to speak with one of the artists about his work: Dario Robleto.

The Civil War was anything but civil, as Harvard president and noted historian Drew Gilpin Faust reminded us the other evening when she spoke at American Art in conjunction with the current exhibition, The Civil War and American Art.

Eye Level had a chance to speak with Leslie Umberger, curator of folk and self-taught art, about the museum's recent acquisition of the Mingering Mike collection, comprised of well over one hundred pieces of musical ephemera made between 1965 and 1979 by a self-taught Washington, D.C. artist who has consistently chosen to conceal his true identity.

This blog post is part of a monthly Eye Level feature on our exhibition The Civil War and American Art. Curator Eleanor Harvey talks about many of the important intersections between American art and the Civil War.

Alli Jessing, Joint Programs Coordinator for the Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery, fills us in on our next cinematic screening, The Artist, Wednesday, February 20, 2013 at 7:00 p.m. in museum's Kogod Courtyard. Admission is free.

Jazz musician Mike "Bags" Davis will be performing a tribute to composer Kenny Durham at Take 5! on February 21st from 5-7 p.m. in the Kogod Courtyard. Public Programs Coordinator, Laurel Fehrenbach, interviewed him recently to find out more about Durham's impact on the jazz world.

Remember PaikBot? He's the robot artwork who tweets from American Art's Nam June Paik: Global Visionary exhibition. He's been enjoying his time in the galleries: seeing visitors experience and enjoy Paik's innovative works. One visitor described the exhibition as "the most amazing atmosphere" they had ever walked through. Another said it was "like walking into Alice's digital, virtual wonderland."

We sat down with Martha Conboy, the writer and producer who spearheaded the documentary 40 Under 40 for the Smithsonian Channel. Martha and her team spent almost 6 weeks filming the installation of the exhibition at the Renwick Gallery this past summer.