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At the Smithsonian / Exhibitions

The Smithsonian's Udvar-Hazy Center is the first museum in the world to employ the newest laser technology in its IMAX Theater. Its super sharp 4K laser system encased in two perfectly calibrated fridge-sized projectors is enhanced with a new 12 channel sound system with a sub-bass.

How the Big Screen IMAX Experience Just Took a Quantum Leap Forward

The Smithsonian’s Udvar-Hazy Center Airbus Theater is among the first to receive a cutting-edge technology makeover

What the new National Museum of African American History and Culture will look like when it opens.

Breaking Ground

New Exhibition Highlights the Monumental Milestones of African American History

Artifacts reveal the vibrant stories of everyday people, while also adding nuance to the landmark events taught in history classes

In Camille Utterback's 1999 Text Rain, viewers become part of the artwork.

In this Exhibition You Can Play with the Artworks, Or Even Be the Art

A dizzying array of wildly unorthodox works from video games to computer codes makes up this summer’s blockbuster “Watch This!” show

Would Elaine de Kooning have been a better known artist if she hadn't married the leading Abstract Expressionist of the 20th century? (Self-portrait, 1946)

Why Elaine de Kooning Sacrificed Her Own Amazing Career for Her More-Famous Husband’s

The free-thinking Abstract Expressionist, even while in her partner’s shadow, captured an era with skill and élan

Finding a Voice for Iranian Women

Artist Shirin Neshat uses Persian poetry to reveal the conflict between tradition and modernity

Azar Nafisi is the recipient of the 2015 Benjamin Franklin Creativity Laureate in the Humanities and Public Service.

Azar Nafisi on Why the Arts and Humanities Are Critical to the American Vision

The author of “Reading Lolita in Tehran” and recipient of a Smithsonian award, discusses why in education art matters as much as science

Duke Ellington with his orchestra.

What to Listen to and Watch for When Enjoying Jazz

For Jazz Appreciation Month, a guide to understanding the nuances, subtleties and surprises of America’s unique music

“I loved this sort of reference to a particular period in my upbringing as a kid," says the artist Nick Cave," and having these amazing, sort of outrageous Easter hunts."

There’s More to This Towering Pink Easter Bunny Than Kitsch

Evoking springtime and rebirth, African burial ritual, rhythm, and identity, the “soundsuit” by artist Nick Cave is packed with iconic themes

"Boogie Down" at the White House, Big D & Mingering, 1975

Journey to Mingering Mike’s Magical, Musical World

A new exhibition features the playful LP album covers of a man who built a make-believe musical empire filled with genius and joy

The Innovation Handi-hour will be held on the third floor of the Smithsonian American Art Museum on Wednesday, March 25, 2015, from 5:30-9 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door.

The Innovative Spirit - OLD

Innovation Handi-Hour Gives Creative Types the Chance to Dive-in Hands First

These artists blur boundaries between craft and manufacturing, using lasers, computers and 3D printers

The carriage that transported President Abraham Lincoln, Mary Lincoln, Major Henry Rathbone and his fiancée Clara Harris to Ford's Theatre is on view at the American History Museum through May 25, 2015.

The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln

This is the Carriage That Took Lincoln on his Fateful Trip to Ford’s Theatre

As the April anniversary of Lincoln’s last ride approaches, an historian recounts the president’s other horse and buggie moments

Etude 1, 1967- 1968, is a piece of Thermo fax paper with an image that looks like a four-leaf-clover, with four overlapping circles. Each circle has concentric inner circles composed of individual letters of the alphabet.

New Works by Nam June Paik Are Discovered at the Smithsonian American Art Museum

While inventorying the massive archival materials left by the artist, a researcher comes across forgotten works of art

Marian Anderson approved stamp art by Albert Slark, c. 2005. Canadian-born artist Albert Slark created this full-color oil portrait of Marian Anderson from a circa 1934 black-and-white photograph.

Previously Seen on a Tiny Postage Stamp, These Beautiful Portraits of African-Americans Go on View

The artists who made them bring enormous dedication and talent to the artwork that adorns the nation’s mail

An aerial view of the city of Washington, D.C, in 1861 as seen from a balloon.

How the Backwater Town of Washington, D.C. Became the Beacon of a Nation

As the Anacostia Community Museum delves into daily life in a city at war, author Ernest B. Furgurson recalls the nascence of a city on the verge

Lick and Lather, 1993, two self-portrait busts: one chocolate and one soap is currently on view at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden.

The World of Chocolate

The Art of Chocolate (and Soap)

Conservators went on a scientific journey to discover the best ways to preserve artist Janine Antoni’s landmark “Lick and Lather”

In the garden, Levisticum is a tall plant with dark leaves and greenish-yellow flowers. Under a microscope, however, it can morph into a cellular rainbow. This image was made using polarized light to enhance contrast. Waves in polarized light share an orientation, and special filters can block out any unpolarized waves and make the fine details easier to see.

New Exhibit Showcases the Power of Light in Our Everyday Lives

The open-source show “LIGHT: Beyond the Bulb” crosses disciplines to show the many ways photonics has improved our lives

Choose among these three cultural icons for the comedian who will be featured at the National Portrait Gallery.

Sponsor: National Portrait Gallery

Which of These Comedians Should the Portrait Gallery Put on Display?

This is no laughing matter for the Smithsonian museum

The 1354 painting, Dwelling in Seclusion in the Summer Mountains, by the artist Wang Meng is now on view at the Freer Gallery through May 31.

Why this 14th-Century Chinese Artist Is Having a Rebirth

The rare works of Wang Meng, an artist with a brilliance for brushstrokes, bring millions at auction

Cattleya aurantiaca

Orchidelirium, an Obsession with Orchids, Has Lasted for Centuries

The once-elusive flower’s striking beauty has inspired collectors and scientists to make it more accessible

Graphophone, recorded in October 1881. "There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in our philosophy. I am a graphophone and my mother was a phonograph." Voice of Alexander Graham Bell's father.

Until Now, There Was No Play Button for the Recordings Bell and Edison Made in their Lab

An exhibition on sound kicks off the American History Museum’s Year of Innovation, enabling visitors to hear some of the earliest recordings

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