Fine Arts

This Friday night, head over to the Freer Gallery’s Meyer Auditorium for a screening of the film, “An Autumn’s Tale” (Dir.: Mabel Cheung,1987).

Events August 10-12: Date Night, Super Science Saturday, The Story of the Earth

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The American Art Museum Announces Nominees for Contemporary Artist Award

We help you sort out who's who from the museum's recent announcement, in a series of three posts

The artist’s black, white and red phrases titled Belief+Doubt exist outside the traditional galleries.

Look at the Writing on the Wall: Barbara Kruger Opens Soon at the Hirshhorn

The artist behind "I shop therefore I am" has plastered her monumental statements all over the Hirshhorn

This Wednesday, hear the original sounds of Arvel Bird as he performs a blend of Celtic and Native American music.

Events August 7-9: Sketching, Musical Genre-Bending and Stitching

This week, sketch like a master, catch a concert that blends Native American and Celtic sounds and stitch in the presence of greatness

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Packing List Series, Part 2: An Artist’s Illustrated Guide

With a watercolor sketchbook guide, Adolf Konrad drew on his talents to record his belongings

A French postcard issued around 1900, predicting La France’s future

Could a Whale-Powered Bus Be the Future of Transportation?

Visionary postcard artists illustrated around 90 fanciful cards between 1899 to 1910 imagined what the future held in store for France in the year 2000

Jacob Lawrence’s 1941 Bar and Grill depicts the reality of segregation of the Jim Crow South, a new experience to the Harlem artist.

Curator Talk at the American Art Museum on African-American Art Exhibition

Virginia Mecklenburg offers a Wednesday lecture on the artists from "Harlem Renaissance, Civil Rights Era and Beyond"

Mycoplasma mycoides, 2011

Teaching Molecular Biology with Watercolors

Molecular biology professor David Goodsell is just as skilled with a microscope as with a paint brush

As the Olympic Games head to London, you should head to the Mall.

Olympic Games at the Smithsonian

Before you settle into your couch to watch the Olympics, get down to the Smithsonian for exhibits, games and more

Both the creator of the Klingon language and the coach who helped Star Trek actors nail their foreign language lines will be discussing the life of invented languages Thursday at the Smithsonian.

Events July 24-26: Animal Migrations, Belly Dancing and the Invention of Klingon

This week at Smithsonian, learn how animals find their way across continents, try out belly dancing and pick up a new language with the creator of Klingon

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Events July 20-22: Living Earth Festival, Movie Day, Book Signings at Air and Space

This weekend, celebrate Earth, have a movie day and check out some super cool planes at the Udvar-Hazy Center

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Teen Photographers Win Spot at National Portrait Gallery

Winners of the museum's Teen Portrait Competition discuss their portraits and the stories behind them

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The Swimsuit Series, Part 4: A Competitive Swimmer’s Musings

In Leanne Shapton's Swimming Studies "Bathing" chapter, there's a story behind every suit

“Parks and Recreation” heroine Leslie Knope would love to see this mural study from an Indiana post office on her visit to DC. Clearing the Right of Way by Joe Cox, 1938.

Five Things Leslie Knope Should See at the Smithsonian

As NBC's "Parks and Recreation" prepares to shoot its season five in D.C., we offer up five must-sees for the newest city councilmember of Pawnee, Indiana

The covered Kogod Courtyard provides the perfect setting for Thursday’s jazz concert with the Freddie Redd-Butch Warren Quintet celebrating the legacy of Thelonius Monk.

Events July 17-19: Virtual Caving, Air Force Strings and a Tribute to Thelonius Monk

This week at the Smithsonian: take a virtual tour beneath the earth's surface, see the Air Force Strings perform and honor the genius of Thelonius Monk

Contemporary artist Gavin Jantjes’s untitled work is a part of the “African Cosmos: Stellar Arts,” exhibit on display through December 9.

Events July 13-15: After Hours at the Museum of African Art, Cranes and Clouds, “Don Juan” Screening

This weekend, hit up the Museum of African Art after hours, create Korean art and view a screening of "Don Juan"

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The Battle in Our Backyard: Remembering Fort Stevens

Historian David C. Ward recounts the short but unprecedented Civil War attack on Washington, D.C. at the Battle of Fort Stevens on July 11, 1864

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Smithsonian Gets Google Mapped

Smithsonian and Google Maps launched an easy to use application Tuesday providing step by step directions inside 17 museums and the National Zoo

Duke Kahanamoku, pictured here circa 1915, helped popularize surfing on the mainland and won several Olympic medals for swimming.

Amy Henderson: Team USA!

Guest blogger and Portrait Gallery historian Amy Henderson reflects on the Gallery's Olympian collection

Works like this, Untitled by Jackson Pollock, can cause a fair amount of head scratching. So is it art? Find out Tuesday July 10.

Events July 10-12: Questionable Art, Crafty Mail, and the Battle of Shiloh

This week at the Smithsonian, debate the merits of contemporary art, craft your own stationery, and learn more about the Battle of Shiloh

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