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Artists

This summer, Smithsonian reporters took a behind-the-scenes tour of the Freer Gallery and shot exclusive photographs of the building in its preparatory state.

Take an Exclusive Sneak Peek Inside the Renovated Freer Gallery, Reopening in October

Charles Lang Freer gifted this meditative haven for art lovers to the nation and was James McNeill Whistler’s friend and patron

Highly social, narwhals travel in pods, often broken off by sex, and communicate via complex vocalizations that seem to be specific to their herds.

Does the Narwhal’s Majestic Tusk Have a Point?

A Connecticut dentist, turned curator of a new exhibition, has long worked to solve the secrets of the whale’s characteristic horn

Different collectors have different tastes. Practicing a variety of styles helps users find success.

Trending Today

New Video Game Parodies What it Means to Be an Art World Star

On Passpartout: The Starving Artist, you do everything from virtually impress collectors to dine on wine and baguettes

What Kind of Footage Do Historical Colorists Like Best?

According to the historians and art directors from Composite Films who worked meticulously on America in Color, these were some of their favorite subjects

Dream Of Motherhood by Pitseolak Ashoona (Inuit), 1969

Three Generations of Inuit Women Defy Exploitation by Visualizing Resilience and Love

A grandmother, a mother and a daughter, all took up pen and ink to tell their stories

Podnar shoots dry ice pellets, which sit at a frosty temperature of around negative minus-180-degrees Fahrenheit, at the object's surface

The Innovative Spirit fy17

Conservation of a Pair of Saint-Gaudens Goes al Fresco at the Freer

The beauty of dry ice cleaning is the efficient and environmentally safe process; but also the procedure was on view from the street

Maurice Sendak signing prints from "The Mother Goose Collection" in 1990.

Forgotten Children’s Book by Maurice Sendak Will Be Published in 2018

The “Where the Wild Things Are” author collaborated on the manuscript with long-time friend Arthur Yorinks

Triple-Face Portrait by Sylvia Plath, c. 1950-1951

The Whimsical, Chameleon-Like Figure Behind the Myth of Sylvia Plath

Today, visions of a life marked by mental illness endure, but the author had a light side—and a knack for savvy image control

Nicolas Party at work on sunrise, sunset, 2017 at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden

Muralist Nicolas Party Samples Great Artists of the Past Like a Visual DJ

The Hirshhorn’s installation, inspired by Barack Obama’s “sun will rise” promise of continuity, highlights fantasy landscapes, beauty of nature

Barbara Prey's watercolor is a depiction of MASS MoCA's newest wing, which once served as a textile mill.

The Story Behind the World’s Largest Watercolor Painting

The massive artwork marks the opening of the MASS MoCA’s new 130,000-square-foot wing, which makes it the largest contemporary art museum in the U.S.

Piri Thomas by Máximo Colón, 1972

Why Piri Thomas’ Coming of Age Memoir Still Resonates Today

“Down These Mean Streets” was an instant classic, a text of painful truths

Trending Today

Art Installation Recreates the Smell of Cities Around the World

The Pollution Pod project emphasizes the unequal air quality divide between rich and poor cities

Zelt 46—dithyrambisch (Tent 46—Dithyrambic) by Markus Lüpertz, 1965

It Takes Two Museums to Cover the Work of this Prolific German Neo-Expressionist

Europe’s celebrated Markus Lüpertz has a huge appetite for creativity. He’s also a poet, writer, set designer and jazz pianist

Firemen March 6 1985 by Donald Sultan, 1985

This Artist’s Worldview Drips With Unending Pessimism

“Man is inherently self-destructive, and whatever is built will be destroyed,” says painter Donald Sultan of his “Disaster Paintings”

The View From the Big Top

Aerialist and this year’s Folklife Festival performer Dolly Jacobs didn’t have to run away to join the circus; she lived it

Stephen Talty’s Guide to Culture

The detective novelist offers his picks for movies, tv shows and Twitter accounts to follow

Donna Mahan's "Safeguarding" was made with a castoff window from the residence.

Cool Finds

This Art Was Made from JFK’s Cape Cod Home

The Hyannis Port house was the stuff of family legend. Now it’s the source of new art

In 1971, Folkways Recordings released the album Raimon: Catalonian Protest Songs, and in the liner notes, Pete Seeger wrote: “Censors, in every corner of this world, tend to be shallow, literal-minded people. Raimon is a poet. There is no need to say more.”

This Catalan Folk Singer Refused to Bow to Oppression

The director of the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage recognizes the lifetime work of the singer activist Raimon

The world’s largest model world, the Unisphere was erected for the grand fair themed “peace through understanding.”

What the Unisphere Tells Us About America at the Dawn of the Space Age

A towering tribute to the future past—and one man’s ego

For Minneapolis art lovers, this huge painting needs no introduction—or title.

Cool Finds

Enormous Chicken Painting Comes Home to Roost

After years overseas, Doug Argue’s iconic portrait is back

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