Fine Arts

Maurice Sendak, "Diorama of Moishe scrim and flower proscenium (Where the Wild Things Are)," 1979-1983, watercolor, pen and ink, and graphite pencil on laminated paperboard.

See Maurice Sendak’s Little-Known Designs for the Opera and Ballet

A new exhibition at the Morgan Library & Museum explores how the 'Where the Wild Things Are' author pivoted to a career in set and costume design

P-R-Z-E-... aw, forget it. P-horse!

Didn't Make the National Spelling Bee? Play the Smithsonian Spelling Bee

We present a list of some of the toughest words to spell, pulled straight from the collections

The Kiss In the privacy of the narrow hallway under the fire stairs of the Mosque Theater, while other performers are on stage before 3,000 fans in the audience, Elvis is concentrating on his date for the day.

How Photographer Alfred Wertheimer Captured Elvis Presley's Kiss

"I think most of the time Elvis didn’t even know I was taking photographs," said the photographer, who died in 2014

A spirit medium pauses to light a cigarette.

Photos Celebrate the Lives of Gender Non-Conforming Spirit Mediums in Southeast Asia

The pioneering photographer's latest book documents the welcoming community of transgender individuals who serve as spirit mediums in Burma and Thailand

Kogod Courtyard, Smithsonian American Art Museum and National Portrait Gallery

Happy Holidays! The Smithsonian is Closed on Christmas Day

'Twas the Night Before Christmas' on the National Mall

The author of "Things Fall Apart," Chinua Achebe is one of the most widely read African authors.

Beyond Chinua Achebe: Five Great African Authors You Should Read Right Now

Two curators from the African Art Museum recommend authors who have joined Achebe in shaping the world's understanding of the African experience

Portrait of Edmonia Lewis by Henry Rocher

Google Doodle Sculpts a Tribute to Pioneering Artist Edmonia Lewis

Celebrate the first day of Black History Month by getting to know the 19th-century sculptor

Director Guillermo del Toro Shares the Monsters in His Closet With the Public

The filmmaker talks about artifacts from his collection that are featured in the LACMA's new exhibition, <i>At Home with Monsters</i>

What Brexit Would Mean for U.K.'s Arts, Sciences and Other Sectors

Exiting the European Union could have far ranging consequences for industries throughout the United Kingdom

"Chevalier de Saint-Denis," Thierry Poncelet.

You Too Can Own a Portrait of a Dog Dressed as a Person

Dog art auctions put the spotlight on man’s best friend

Mouth (for L’Oréal), New York, 1986; printed 1992.

How Irving Penn Turned Fashion Photography Into a Fine Art

A new show at the Smithsonian American Art Museum looks back at a photo giant who blurred the lines

The "Queer Threads" exhibition, which ran in early 2014, examined the diversity of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer experiences.

What it Took to Create the World’s First Gay Art Museum

Charles Leslie’s passionate half-century of homoerotic art collecting offers a mirror for the history of gay history itself

This Art Studio Nurtures Talent in People on the Autism Spectrum

New York City's Pure Visions Arts provides an art and exhibition space for around 40 creative people with autism

Someone Walked Off With a Picasso From a Miami Beach Art Festival

An $85,000 silver plate went missing late last week

Playing an Instrument Won’t Make Your Kid Smarter

Music can, however, boost children's creativity and teach them important life skills such as discipline and concentration--but so can other hobbies

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Doug Aitken is Redefining How We Experience Art

The artist uses video, music, mirrors, railroad cars, even entire buildings to create works that make every viewer a participant

Resurrection Bay, Alaska (1939), by Rockwell Kent

Art Chronicles Glaciers As They Disappear

The Whatcom Museum in Bellingham, Washington, is exhibiting 75 works of art pulled from the past two centuries—all themed around ice

The Peacock Room Comes to America: Exhibiting Freer’s Bibles

The Man Who Viewed the Bible as Art

The Washington Codex, now on display at the Freer gallery, became one of the earliest chapters in Charles Freer's appreciation of beauty and aesthetics

Fishing net at Alaska’s Gore Point

Artists Join Scientists on an Expedition to Collect Marine Debris

Now, they are creating beautiful works from the trash they gathered on the 450-nautical-mile journey in the Gulf of Alaska

Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill by Yousuf Karsh, 1941

The Day Winston Churchill Lost His Cigar

Thanks to a gift of over 100 photographs, the National Portrait Gallery celebrates Yousuf Karsh's iconic photography with an installation of 27 portraits

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