Exhibitions

Newsroom of the Smithsonian

View news releases below or see all of our publicly released upcoming exhibitions.

Photo of animal skull against white background
James Di Loreto, Brittany M. Hance, Phillip R. Lee and Rosa Pineda. Courtesy of Smithsonian
Rice’s Whale: Skull

The skull of the Rice’s whale skeleton that scientists studied and described to officially designate it as a new species of whale. In the field of biology, scientific recognition of a new species requires what is known as a holotype or type specimen.

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An organic, black piece of whale against a black background

A plate of baleen (left) and a plastic shard (right) found in the gut of the first Rice’s whale to be scientifically described.

Credit: James D. Tiller and Fred Cochard, Smithsonian.

Smithsonian To Host Symposium Focused on Endangered Rice’s Whale in Partnership With NOAA, Marine Mammal Commission
Museum Will Display Remains of the First Scientifically Described Rice’s Whale
11.09.2023
Natural History Museum Research News Exhibitions
White background photo with brown organic matter in hexagonal shape
James D. Tiller and Fred Cochard, Smithsonian
Rice’s Whale: Shard

A plate of baleen (left) and a plastic shard (right) found in the gut of the first Rice’s whale to be scientifically described.

Download (4.51 MB)
Photo of black, organic whale matter
James D. Tiller and Fred Cochard, Smithsonian
Rice’s Whale: Plate and Shard

A plate of baleen (left) and

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Exterior of sand colored building with two domes and a large, multicolor sculpture.
Georges Adéagbo’s “Create to Free Yourselves” Opens Nov. 18 at National Museum of African Art
Mixed-media Installation Focuses on Relationship Between Life and Purpose
11.03.2023
African Art Museum Exhibitions
Black and white image of Asteroid Bennu

This mosaic image of asteroid Bennu is composed of 12 PolyCam images collected Dec. 2, 2018, by the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft from a range of 15 miles (24 kilometers). The image was obtained at a 50-degree phase angle between the spacecraft, asteroid and the sun, and in it, Bennu spans approximately 1,500 pixels in the camera’s field of view. Date taken: Dec. 2, 2018. Instrument used: OCAMS (PolyCam).

Credit: NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona.

Smithsonian To Open First Public Display of Asteroid Bennu Sample Collected by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Mission
Arrival of Samples Is a Major Milestone in the Museum’s ‘Our Unique Planet’ Initiative
10.26.2023
Natural History Museum Exhibitions
"The Families Civil War" book cover

The museum hosts Holly A. Pinheiro Jr. for a book talk about his latest publication, The Families’ Civil War: Black Soldiers and the Fight for Racial Justice, Nov. 11.

Military and Culture Programs Take the Spotlight in November at the National Museum of African American History and Culture
10.24.2023
African American Museum Exhibitions Public Programs
Composite image of Lews photo and Vernon portrait
Smithsonian Adds Visionary Leaders Byron Lewis and Lillian Vernon to Landmark “American Enterprise” Exhibition
Business History Contributions To Be Highlighted in Exhibit’s Consumer Era Section
10.13.2023
American History Museum Exhibitions
Historic photo of the tunnel where the robbery of Train 13 took place

https://postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibition/tragedy-at-tunnel-13-exhibition/the-context

The holdup of Train 13 on October 11, 1923, took place in the Siskiyou Mountains just beneath treacherous Siskiyou Pass, where Tunnel 13 served as an integral connector on the Southern Pacific rail line for over 100 years. (Southern Oregon Historical Society 1977.117.14, #034468)

 

Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum Launches New Virtual Exhibition
Remembering the Tragedy at Tunnel 13 a Century Ago
10.04.2023
Postal Museum Exhibitions
Railway Car being loaded
National Postal Museum
Tunnel 13 tragedy: Rail car

https://postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibition/tragedy-at-tunnel-13-exhibition/the-context

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Black and white photo of train tunnel 13
Southern Oregon Historical Society
Tunnel 13

https://postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibition/tragedy-at-tunnel-13-exhibition/the-context

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DeAutremont brothers posing for the press
Southern Oregon Historical Society
Tunnel 13 tragedy: DeAutremont Brothers

https://postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibition/tragedy-at-tunnel-13-exhibition/the-arrests-and-trials

Download (8.17 MB)
Wanted poster
Southern Oregon Historical Society
Tunnel 13 tragedy: Wanted poster

https://postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibition/tragedy-at-tunnel-13-exhibition/the-investigation

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Telegram
National Archives and Records Administration
Tunnel 13 tragedy: Telegram

https://postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibition/tragedy-at-tunnel-13-exhibition/the-arrests-and-trials

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Dynamite detonator
National Postal Museum
Tunnel 13 tragedy: Detonator

https://postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibition/tragedy-at-tunnel-13-exhibition/the-crime

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Stamp honoring Ted Williams
© United States Postal Service
Hispanic Heritage Month Virtual Exhibition: Ted Williams
Download (3.13 MB)
Stamp honoring Juan Cabrillo
© United States Postal Service
Hispanic Heritage Month Virtual Exhibition: Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo
Download (1.17 MB)
Stamp Honoring Hispanic Americans
© United States Postal Service
Hispanic Heritage Month Virtual Exhibition: Hispanic Americans
Download (2.07 MB)
Stamp with sugar skull and Dia de los Muertos designs
© United States Postal Service
Hispanic Heritage Month Virtual Exhibition: Dia de los Muertos
Download (1.62 MB)
Postage stamp honoring Hispanic Americans

© United States Postal Service

Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum Launches New Virtual Exhibition
Complete Collection of U.S. Postage Stamps Honoring Hispanic Heritage Now Online
09.28.2023
Postal Museum Exhibitions
Painting of man cutting hair on the sidewalk

Credit: “Anthony Cuts under the Williamsburg Bridge, Morning” by Alison Elizabeth Taylor, first prize winner of the

2022 Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition, marquetry hybrid (wood veneers, oil paint, acrylic paint, inkjet prints,

shellac, and sawdust on wood), 2020. Collection of the artist. Copyright Alison Elizabeth Taylor. Courtesy of

Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery.

 

National Portrait Gallery Announces Jurors and Call for Entries for Next Triennial Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition
Selected Artworks Will Be Exhibited in Major Exhibition and Tour
09.27.2023
Portrait Gallery Exhibitions Public Programs
Sculpture of woman's torso and leg in profile

Simone Leigh, “Herm” (2023). Bronze, 98 x 30 x 28 inches (249 x 76 x 71 cm). Copyright Simone Leigh, Courtesy Matthew Marks Gallery.

Hirshhorn Museum Presents “Simone Leigh,” First Museum Survey Exhibition Dedicated to the Artist on Its National Tour
Installation Will Debut Three New Sculpture Alongside Artworks From Leigh’s U.S. Representation at 2022 Venice Biennale; On View Nov. 3–March 3, 2024
09.26.2023
Hirshhorn Museum Exhibitions
Portrait of Julie Packard by Hope Gangloff

Credit: Julie Packard by Hope Gangloff, acrylic on canvas, 2019. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; funded by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Board of Trustees. Copyright Hope Gangloff.

National Portrait Gallery Presents “Forces of Nature: Voices That Shaped Environmentalism”
On View Oct. 20–Sept. 2, 2024
09.21.2023
Portrait Gallery Exhibitions
Graphic banner promoting the Philanthropy INitiative
Smithsonian Examines Philanthropy at a Symposium and in an Exhibit
National Museum of American History Hosts “Power of Giving” Symposium on Philanthropy’s Role in Social Justice and Adds New Stories to “Giving in America” Exhibit
09.18.2023
American History Museum Exhibitions Public Programs

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