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Artists

Bette Davis and Henry Fonda star in Jezebel, the 1938 hit set in antebellum-era New Orleans. See it at the American History Museum this Friday.

Events March 8-10: An Old School Southern Film, an International Women’s Day Celebration and a Classical Concert

This week, watch Bette Davis in the 1938 hit Jezebel, join performance art that honors African women and listen to one of the world’s best pianos

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Snowy Day, But Smithsonian D.C. Museums Open, Zoo Closes

Bad weather threatens the metro area, but the Smithsonian museums Will Open, National Zoo is Closed

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Women’s History Month at the Smithsonian

From a Confederate spy to a deepwater researcher, women are everywhere and the Smithsonian is telling their stories

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The Greatest R&B Singer Who Never Existed

How the make-believe alter ego of an imaginative teen in the 1970s won him the fame he always dreamed of 40 years later

Naseer Shamma, world-renowned ’ud (lute) player, performs at the Freer Gallery this with the Al-Oyoun ensemble Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

Events March 5-7: Understanding Contemporary Art, Québec Microbrews and Lute Player Naseer Shamma

This week, learn how to interpret contemporary art, taste some Canadian microbrews and listen to one of the world’s best flute players

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Transforming Raw Scientific Data Into Sculpture and Song

Artist Nathalie Miebach uses meteorological data to create 3D woven works of art and playable musical scores

This weekend is the 100th anniversary of the 1913 woman suffrage parade. Join the American History Museum in celebrating Women’s History Month with a family festival on Saturday.

Events March 1-3: A thriller film, a Women’s Suffrage Festival and Influential African American Women

This week, see Nicole Kidman melt down, celebrate women’s rights and learn about great African American women you’ve never heard of

On Wednesday, legendary Taiko drummer Kenny Endo performs a mix of traditional Japanese music and original jazz with Japanese flute player and drummer Kaoru Watanabe.

Events February 26-28: A Garden Scavenger Hunt, Japanese Flute and Drums and Author Taylor Branch

This week, get active in Smithsonian’s gardens, jam out to jazz on traditional Japanese instruments and meet the author of The King Years

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Oscar Redux: Life is a Cabaret; An Old Friend is Back

For the 40th anniversary of the Oscars that made Cabaret a classic, actor Joel Grey stops by the Smithsonian for a special donation and screening

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Cracking the Code of the Human Genome

The Story of How An Artist Created a Genetic Hybrid of Himself and a Petunia

Is it art? Or science? With DNA, Eduardo Kac pushes the limits of creativity and ethics

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The Renwick, the Grand Dame of Washington, Is Slated for Rehab

The historic 1859 art gallery, which has served many other purposes in its lifetime will undergo a two-year renovation

Birds were a popular part of Japanese art during the Edo period. Eagle hanging scroll by Kishi Ganku, ca. 1802.

Birds and Bards: Beautiful Japanese Images from the Edo Period

Everything from parrots to gossipy novels influenced art in Japan between 1603 to 1868

Jazz artist Michael “Bags” Davis pays tribute to trumpet legend Kenny Dorham (above, performing in Toronto in 1954) at Thursday night’s Take Five! jazz performance at the American Art Museum.

Events February 19-21: Native Voices, a Modern Silent Film and Trumpet Jazz

This week, watch films by American Indian youths, see Academy Award-winner “The Artist” and snap your fingers to some world-class jazz

Paul Cézanne’s Bathers, 1877-1878

“Freakish Absurdities:” A Century Ago, An Art Show Shocked the Country

The Armory Show provoked reactions of love and hate; today it is recognized as changing American art forever

Artist Lauren Boilini offers sketching lessons Friday night—no artistic experience required.

Events February 15-17: Sketching Lessons, Arabian Jazz and Lincoln’s Dream

This week, indulge your creative side, hear Arab music, and meet a children’s book author

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Poetry Matters: Phillis Wheatley, The Slave Girl Who Became a Literary Sensation

Enslaved at age 8, America’s first black woman poet won her freedom with verse

The sister-in-law of a Chinese farm owner in Zambia. China’s growing presence in Africa is documented in the 2010 film “When China Met Africa,” showing on Wednesday at the Freer Gallery.

Events February 12-14: Women in Sustainability, China’s Investment in Africa and an Emancipation Proclamation Theater Performance

This week, hear from a panel of sustainability rock stars, see a documentary on China’s presence in Africa and watch a Black History Month celebration

Leila Hatami in her latest film, The Last Step.

Events Feb 8-10: Foreign Film, Valentine’s Workshop and Russian Chamber Music

This weekend, catch Iranian star Leila’s Hatami’s latest, craft a little love and hear from the National Chamber Ensemble

Barack and Michelle Obama walk down Pennsylvania Avenue together on Inauguration day, 2013.

Bangs, Bobs and Bouffants: The Roots of the First Lady’s Tresses

Michelle Obama’s modern look has a long history

Syrian landscape. In “Up Close from Afar: Photographic Records of the Middle East,” two curators discuss how Western media’s depictions of the Middle East affect our perception of the region’s culture.

Events February 5-7: Tachyons, Middle Eastern Landscape and Ai Weiwei

Hear about the one thing in the world that may be faster than light, consider Western media’s depictions of the Middle East and discuss Ai Weiwei’s art

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