Arts & Culture | Smithsonian.com

Meet Sesame Street’s Global Cast of Characters

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:45:02 GMT

Over the course of the 40 years that the program has been on the air, Sesame Street has spawned versions in countries around the world

Jukebox: A Child Shall Lead Them - Feb09

Thu, 22 Jan 2009 07:00:00 GMT

Over the course of the 40 years that the program has been on the air, Sesame Street has spawned versions in countries around the world

Nights at the Museums

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 07:00:00 GMT

You don't have to be Ben Stiller to spend the night behind the scenes at a museum

ATM - Jukebox - Sing Like A Pirate - March09

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 07:00:00 GMT

You don't have to be Ben Stiller to spend the night behind the scenes at a museum

ATM - Jukebox - Odes To Joy - Apr09

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 06:00:00 GMT

You don't have to be Ben Stiller to spend the night behind the scenes at a museum

Owen Edwards on “In Vogue”

Wed, 22 Apr 2009 04:48:54 GMT

You don't have to be Ben Stiller to spend the night behind the scenes at a museum

ATM - Jukebox - For Pete's Sake - Apr09

Mon, 20 Apr 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Pete Seeger is still singing the ballads that popularized folk music and transformed the genre into a call for action

Lester Young Turns 100

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 10:03:32 GMT

Billie Holiday’s favorite musician, jazz great Lester “Prez” Young brought a hip, freewheeling sensibility to his saxophone playing

Museums With Their Own Niche

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 08:06:40 GMT

Subjects as wide-ranging as lunchboxes, roller skating, and Bigfoot have museums dedicated solely to their study and appreciation

Urban Legends About the Smithsonian

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 03:21:48 GMT

Ever since its inception, the Smithsonian has been the subject of wild rumors about the Hope Diamond, Noah’s Ark and more

The Full Brontë

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 08:56:35 GMT

The British countryside is home to the real sites behind Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and other works by the literary sisters

Leonardo’s Horse?

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:00:00 GMT

New research may shed light on a nearly century-old theory that a sculpture thought to be ancient Greek may be da Vinci’s work

ATM - Trailblazers - Oct09

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:00:00 GMT

With a steady hand, Xiangmei Gu wields paintbrushes and tweezers as the Smithsonian's only conservator of Chinese paintings

ATM - QA - Mark Newport - Oct09

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Costume designer Mark Newport talks about knitting outfits for superheroes, both famous (Batman) and unknown (Sweaterman)

The Last Page - UBI in the Knife and Gun Club - Oct09

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:00:00 GMT

The secret language of doctors and nurses

Teaching Cops to See

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:00:00 GMT

At New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art, Amy Herman schools police in the fine art of deductive observation

Motown Turns 50

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 06:49:02 GMT

For years, the recording industry excluded black artists. Along came Motown, and suddenly everyone was singing its tunes

Indelible Images - Double Play - Oct09

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:00:00 GMT

The famed Chicago Cubs infielders were immortalized in verse—as well as through Paul Thompson's lens

Hazel Scott’s Lifetime of High Notes

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 04:38:49 GMT

She began her career as a musical prodigy and ended up breaking down racial barriers in the recording and film industries

Dan Brown’s Smithsonian: Fact or Fiction?

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 05:13:29 GMT

She began her career as a musical prodigy and ended up breaking down racial barriers in the recording and film industries

A Depression-Era Playlist

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 08:06:42 GMT

Poet David Lehman provides a list of his favorite songs from the 1930s, including works by Irving Berlin, Harold Arlen and others

The Last Page - Home Sweet Homepage - Nov09

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Why surf the Web when you can live there?

Shades of Ansel Adams

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 06:00:00 GMT

As a new book shows, not everything in the photographer's philosophy was black and white

Presence of Mind - Historical Laughter - Nov09

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Those who don't have power tend to make fun of those who do. But what happens when the power shifts?

Decoding Jackson Pollock

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 08:03:28 GMT

Did the Abstract Expressionist hide his name amid the swirls and torrents of a legendary 1943 mural?

ATM - What's Up - Nov09

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Did the Abstract Expressionist hide his name amid the swirls and torrents of a legendary 1943 mural?

ATM - Q&A - Simeon Wright - Nov09

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Simeon Wright recalls the events surrounding his cousin's murder and the importance of having the casket on public display

ATM - Priceless - Nov09

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 06:00:00 GMT

For 50 years, John Marshall documented one of Africa's last remaining hunter- gatherer tribes in more than 700 hours of film footage

ATM - Object at Hand - Janice Lowry Diary - Nov09

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 10:02:38 GMT

Artist Janice Lowry's illustrated diaries record her history—and ours

ATM - From the Castle - FDR's Stamps - Nov09

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 06:00:00 GMT

FDR's Stamps

Innovators 37 Under 36

Fri, 05 Oct 2007 02:08:53 GMT

Take a look at 37 people under the age of 36 who are shaping the world through their talents in the arts and sciences

What's Up - December 2007

Mon, 26 Nov 2007 03:07:23 GMT

Asian stoneware, colorful acrylics and the Kennedys

What's Up - Febrary 2009

Thu, 22 Jan 2009 07:00:00 GMT

Asian stoneware, colorful acrylics and the Kennedys

What's Up - November2007

Mon, 29 Oct 2007 02:12:23 GMT

Chinese artworks, wartime bonds and sun gods

What's Up - October 2008

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Chinese artworks, wartime bonds and sun gods

What's Up - August 2008

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 06:55:47 GMT

Smithsonian exhibitions highlight the secrets of soil, lavish interiors and Chinese landscape paintings

What's Up - March 2007

Thu, 01 Mar 2007 05:00:00 GMT

Visual music, Macbeth and people wearing hats

What's Up - April 2008

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 06:00:36 GMT

Visual music, Macbeth and people wearing hats

What's Up - March 2008

Tue, 26 Feb 2008 05:52:41 GMT

Visual music, Macbeth and people wearing hats

What's Up - July 2007

Sun, 01 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT

Tiffany diamonds, Portugal and "Great Britons"

What's Up - October 2007

Wed, 26 Sep 2007 09:00:30 GMT

Dogs, masks and Mexican festivals

What's Up - November 2006

Wed, 01 Nov 2006 05:00:00 GMT

Topper, 1st Class and No Popcorn

What's Up - October 2006

Sun, 01 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT

Body language, new stripes and prime real estate

What's Up - January 2008

Thu, 20 Dec 2007 10:00:42 GMT

Body language, new stripes and prime real estate

What's Up - September 2006

Fri, 01 Sep 2006 04:00:00 GMT

The Tao of Tea, Beyond Pottery and Something in the Air

ATM - What's Up - December 2008

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 07:00:00 GMT

Lincoln's face, African alchemy, and Victory Mail are all on display at Smithsonian museums

ATM - What's Up - January 2007

Mon, 01 Jan 2007 05:00:00 GMT

Live Orchids, Japanese art and African masks

ATM - What's Up - February 2007

Thu, 01 Feb 2007 05:00:00 GMT

A list of events and exhibitions at the Smithsonian Institution

What's Up - June 2008

Tue, 27 May 2008 06:00:00 GMT

A list of events and exhibitions at the Smithsonian Institution

ATM - What's Up - Jun09

Tue, 19 May 2009 06:00:00 GMT

A list of events and exhibitions at the Smithsonian Institution

ATM - What's Up - Sept09

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Frontier photography, Japanese folk tales, indigenous art and more

What's Up - February 2008

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 09:22:08 GMT

Frontier photography, Japanese folk tales, indigenous art and more

ATM - What's Up - May09

Mon, 20 Apr 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Frontier photography, Japanese folk tales, indigenous art and more

What's Up - May 2008

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Frontier photography, Japanese folk tales, indigenous art and more

What's Up - July 2008

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Frontier photography, Japanese folk tales, indigenous art and more

What's Up - June 2007

Fri, 01 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT

Playing with words, painting on plexiglass and wearing teeth

What's Up - September 2007

Sat, 01 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT

Jim Henson, photojournalist Lola Alvarez Bravo and the heaviest bird that can fly

Night at the Museum: Lights! Camera! History!

Fri, 01 May 2009 06:31:31 GMT

Cast, crew and curators take us behind the scenes during the filming of Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

Dispatch From Cannes

Thu, 14 May 2009 04:03:07 GMT

A Smithsonian story on a baby orca leads writer and filmmaker Michael Parfit on a journey to the Cannes Film Festival

Last Minute Halloween Costumes with a Smithsonian Twist

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:45:57 GMT

The Around the Mall bloggers scoured the museum collections for ideas for your costume party

Real Places Behind Famously Frightening Stories

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 07:49:41 GMT

Discover old haunts that inspired thrills and chills in fiction and film

Second Time Around

Thu, 01 Feb 2007 05:00:00 GMT

Invented by Ben Franklin but lost to history, the glass harmonica has been resurrected by modern musicians

Object at Hand: Refined Palette

Sat, 01 Apr 2006 05:00:00 GMT

Scholars say this 19th-century artifact could have belonged to the celebrated American painter

Reds versus Whites

Thu, 01 Jul 1999 04:00:00 GMT

A masterpiece in porcelain replays old struggles between Bolshevik and Czarist opponents

Dream Weavers

Sat, 01 Nov 2003 05:00:00 GMT

In the Mexican village of Teotitlán, gifted artisans create a future from bright hand-loomed rugs

ATM - Object at Hand - Ship's Compass - Sept09

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 06:00:00 GMT

A WWII sailor's memento recalls the harrowing ordeal when his ship, the SS Alcoa Guide, was struck by a German U-Boat

Object at Hand: Spirals of History

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 06:02:40 GMT

Hand-carved elephant tusks tell the story of life in the Congolese colonies of the late 1800s

Die Hard Donation

Sun, 01 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT

Bruce Willis gives John McClane's blood-smeared undershirt to the Smithsonian. Yippee-ki-yay...

ATM - Pieces of Our Past - Nov 08

Thu, 23 Oct 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Smithsonian curators probe the meanings of telltale objects

Sitting Bull's Legacy

Mon, 12 Nov 2007 07:20:25 GMT

The Lakota Sioux leader's relics return to his only living descendants

Around the Mall Mar 96

Fri, 01 Mar 1996 05:00:00 GMT

Protecting museum treasures - paintings by the masters, antique furniture, the delicate wings of a tropical beetle - requires the strictest climate control, right? Maybe not, say these scientists

Libraries' Surprising Special Collections

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 07:00:00 GMT

Tucked away in libraries across the country are unexpected archives and world-class treasures

Return of a Giant

Mon, 01 Mar 2004 05:00:00 GMT

A fully restored VulcanBirmingham, Alabama's 100-year-old statueresumes it's rightful place in town

Roman Splendor in Pompeii

Mon, 16 Mar 2009 08:32:36 GMT

Art and artifacts reveal the elaborate maritime pleasure palaces established by Romans around the Bay of Naples

Forensic Science for Antiques

Fri, 16 May 2008 01:36:04 GMT

Revealing art secrets—and exposing forgeries

Lost & Found - Afghan Treasures - Sept 08

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Ancient gold artifacts from Afghanistan, hidden for more than a decade, dazzle in a new exhibition

Protecting the Priceless

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 09:22:57 GMT

How one retired Army Reserve Major taught soldiers to save artworks and antiquities during wartime

Object at Hand - Rhinestone Dress

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 06:50:39 GMT

Carol Channing can't forget the night her gown got ransomed

The Object at Hand Daredevil

Tue, 26 Feb 2008 05:55:56 GMT

Evel Knievel took risky behavior (and showboating) to new heights

The Object at Hand - Gettysburg Address - Dec08

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 07:00:00 GMT

Lincoln's timeless speech during the Civil War endures as a national treasure

The Object at Hand - Breuer Chair, 1926

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 09:13:01 GMT

Marcel Breuer's Bauhaus minimalism redefined a household basic

Q&A - Garth Brooks

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 09:12:35 GMT

Retired country star garth brooks donated a collection of mementos to the American History museum, including his trademark cowboy hat, an acoustic guitar, a gold record and a handwritten lyric sheet.

Looting Iraq

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 09:09:26 GMT

No one was prepared for the pillaging of Baghdad's Iraq Museum in 2003, but a fast-thinking Marine officer Col. Matthew Bogdanos, improvised an investigation—and helped recover thousands of stolen antiquities

Making History: Easy Rider - Jan09

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 07:00:00 GMT

The Road to Repatriation

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 09:40:43 GMT

The National Museum of the American Indian works with Native Tribes to bring sacred artifacts home again

ATM - The Object at Hand - Cetacean Model - Sept 08

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 06:00:00 GMT

An exact replica represents a particular North Atlantic whale

West African Gold: Out of the Ordinary

Thu, 01 Dec 2005 05:00:00 GMT

The inventive goldwork and royal regalia of Ghana's Akan people on display in a new exhibition are drawn, strikingly, from daily life

Mesopotamian Masterpieces

Fri, 01 Aug 2003 04:00:00 GMT

Exquisite art and artifacts from the world's earliest civilization are dazzling visitors to New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Object at Hand

Tue, 01 Apr 1997 05:00:00 GMT

Even as a bust, the real king of Siam turns out to be a more complex chap than the bald-headed caricature made famous by Yul Brynner and others

Kitchen Aid

Tue, 26 Feb 2008 07:29:28 GMT

A 1930s utensil evokes our love affair with chocolate

Art and Soul

Wed, 26 Sep 2007 08:59:50 GMT

Bluesman Robert Young wasn't just fooling around

Object at Hand: Lakota Sled - Gathering Rosebuds - Jan07

Mon, 01 Jan 2007 05:00:00 GMT

Did a Native American actress inspire one of Hollywood's most celebrated symbols?

Pack Rat

Tue, 01 Oct 2002 04:00:00 GMT

First Virgil Johnson gave up smoking. Then he gave up his breathtaking collection of tobacco-nalia

The Object at Hand

Sun, 01 Sep 1996 04:00:00 GMT

The circuitous route of Edmonia Lewis' masterwork, a controversial portrayal of Cleopatra at the moment of death, included stints as decor in a Chicago saloon and as a grave marker for a racehorse

Jewish Bluegrass

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 03:29:53 GMT

Lovers of the banjo, fiddle and mandolin blend cultural identity and religious faith to create a uniquely American sound

Jukebox: Hot Horns

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Hot Horns

A Creche Reborn

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 10:54:36 GMT

In rural Connecticut, a 300-year-old nativity scene is brought back to life by the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Extreme Running

Mon, 12 Nov 2007 09:00:12 GMT

Made popular by a recent James Bond film, a new urban art form called free running hits the streets

What Camera?

Tue, 01 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT

Look what photographer Robert Creamer can do with a flatbed scanner

Portugal's Soulful Sound

Fri, 01 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT

Often compared to American blues, fado is gaining global appeal

Being Funny

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 09:06:25 GMT

How the pathbreaking comedian got his act together

A Brief History of Chocolate

Thu, 14 Feb 2008 05:12:44 GMT

Uncover the bittersweet story of this ancient treat and watch a VIDEO

From the Castle: April 2008

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 06:06:04 GMT

Hello? Hello?

A Brief History of Pierre L’Enfant and Washington, D.C.

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 06:00:00 GMT

How one Frenchman’s vision became our capital city

The Drive-In Theater Turns 75

Fri, 30 May 2008 07:00:00 GMT

The continued attraction of viewing movies under the stars

Gregory Crewdson's Epic Effects

Tue, 27 May 2008 06:00:00 GMT

The photographer uses movie production techniques to create "in-between moments." But you'll have to supply the story line

Four for a Quarter - Photobooths - Sept08

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Photographer Nakki Goranin shows how the once ubiquitous photobooth captured the many faces of 20th-century America

ATM - Jukebox - September 08

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Watch an erupting underwater volcano

Bernini's Genius

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 06:00:00 GMT

The Baroque master animated 17th-century Rome with his astonishing sculpture and architecture

ATM - QA Tom Cavanagh - Sept09

Wed, 22 Jul 2009 09:00:06 GMT

Actor Tom Cavanagh discusses what it is like to go behind the scenes of the Smithsonian museums

The End of the Game, a Mystery in Four Parts

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 03:05:52 GMT

In a first-hand account of participating in an alternative reality game, one player gets caught up in the challenge

ATM - Art of the Game - Oct 08

Fri, 19 Sep 2008 01:23:31 GMT

At the Smithsonian American Art Museum, tech-savvy players gather clues in the alternate reality game "Ghosts of a Chance."

Making History: Faster Than a Speeding Bullet - Feb09

Thu, 22 Jan 2009 07:00:00 GMT

At the Smithsonian American Art Museum, tech-savvy players gather clues in the alternate reality game "Ghosts of a Chance."

Weave, Wobble and Roll: Feather Bowling

Wed, 18 Feb 2009 07:01:17 GMT

The unusual Belgian sport has a small but loyal following in Detroit

Can You Handle the Heat of Chili Peppers? - April09 Webpointer

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 06:21:57 GMT

Learn how to stuff a jalapeno pepper and to give your brownies a spicy kick with two recipes involving chili peppers

Voices from Literature’s Past

Fri, 20 Mar 2009 09:47:25 GMT

The British Library’s Spoken Word albums of recordings by British and American writers shed new light on the authors' work

ATM - Bone Cops - March09

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 07:00:00 GMT

Forensic anthropologists at the National Museum of Natural History find answers to a colonial cold case

A Painter of Angels Became the Father of Camouflage

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 03:47:15 GMT

Turn-of-the-century artist Abbott Thayer created images of timeless beauty and a radical theory of concealing coloration

ATM - The Object at Hand - Unmanned Aircraft - March09

Tue, 24 Feb 2009 07:00:00 GMT

The five-pound RQ-14A takes high-tech reconnaissance to new heights

ATM - QA - Nancy Knowlton - Sept 08

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 06:00:00 GMT

The renowned coral reef biologist leads Smithsonian's effort to foster a greater public understanding of the world's oceans

Hollywood on Exhibit

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 08:35:46 GMT

Movie memories come to life inside the filmmaking collections of these seven museums

ATM - QA Isaac Mizrahi - Apr09

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi's salmon skin dress is on display in a new exhibit at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum

The Writer's Eye

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Photographs by Pulitzer-Prize winning novelist Eudora Welty display the empathy that would later infuse her fiction

Flowers Writ Large

Fri, 22 May 2009 04:11:22 GMT

With his Botanica Magnifica, podiatrist-turned-photographer Jonathan Singer captures flowers on the grandest of scales

ATM - From the Castle - Big Snakes - May09

Mon, 20 Apr 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Scientists from the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute publish their amazing find of Titanoboa, the world's largest snake

Herman Leonard’s Eye for Jazz

Thu, 07 May 2009 10:13:53 GMT

In the 1940s and 50s, photographer Herman Leonard captured icons of the jazz world, including Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington

Q and A with Director Shawn Levy

Mon, 04 May 2009 03:49:50 GMT

The director of both Night at the Museum movies talks about the ups and downs of filming at the Smithsonian

ATM - Bringing the Wright Flyer to Life

Fri, 01 May 2009 06:30:16 GMT

In a movie first, curators and filmmakers collaborated to animate artifacts for Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

ATM - Q and A: Amy Adams

Fri, 01 May 2009 06:30:00 GMT

The actress discusses her role as aviatrix Amelia Earhart, filming at the Smithsonian and the magic of museums

ATM - From the Castle - Nov 08

Thu, 23 Oct 2008 06:00:00 GMT

A renovated National Museum of American History opens up American history and culture to millions of visitors

Cool Katz - Alex Katz

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 06:00:00 GMT

At 82, the pathbreaking painter known for stylized figurative works has never been in more demand

Roller Derby’s Sisterhood

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 02:10:34 GMT

Ithaca’s SufferJets may have ironic skate names and elaborate uniforms, but on the track, it’s all business

Jewish Songwriters, American Songs

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 06:50:44 GMT

Poet David Lehman talks about the brilliant Jewish composers and lyricists whose work largely comprises the great American songbook

Looking for Leonardo

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Are figures in a Florentine altar panel attributed to Italian artist Andrea del Verrocchio actually by Leonardo da Vinci?

Anne Truitt’s Artistic Journey

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 02:52:39 GMT

Balancing the two lives of a Washington, D.C. sculptor—1950s hostess and emergent artist

250 Years of Wedgwood

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 04:13:09 GMT

Two new exhibitions celebrate the enduring wares of ceramics designer and entrepreneur Josiah Wedgwood

Museum Day 2009 redirect

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 02:28:58 GMT

Receive FREE ADMISSION to museums and cultural institutions nationwide on Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009. Find a Museum Near You Now!

Big News

Thu, 20 Dec 2007 10:04:06 GMT

In matters of sheer magnitude, Robert Howlett got the picture

Forget Edgar Allan Poe? Nevermore!

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 08:05:28 GMT

Cities up and down the East Coast claim author Edgar Allan Poe as their own and and celebrate his 200th birthday

Q & A: Cynthia Saltzman

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 04:47:41 GMT

The author of Old Masters, New World discusses how 19th century American collectors acquired European masterpieces and what it meant for museums and our nation.

Botticelli Comes Ashore - Old Masters

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 02:32:56 GMT

With the purchase of Botticelli’s Death of Lucretia, Isabella Stewart Gardner took American collecting in a new direction

Hidden Depths

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Winslow Homer took watercolors to new levels. A Chicago exhibition charts the elusive New Englander's mastery

“No More Long Faces”

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Did Winslow Homer have a broken heart?

Larger than Life

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 06:15:03 GMT

Whether denouncing France's art establishment or challenging Napoleon III, Gustave Courbet never held back

Van Gogh's Night Visions

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 07:00:00 GMT

For Vincent Van Gogh, fantasy and reality merged after dark in some of his most enduring paintings, as a new exhibition reminds us

Incurably Romantic

Thu, 01 Feb 2007 05:00:00 GMT

For much of the 20th century, Britain's Pre-Raphaelite were dismissed as overly sentimental. A new exhibition shows why they're back in favor

Americans in Paris

Mon, 01 Jan 2007 05:00:00 GMT

In the late 19th century, the City of Light beckoned Whistler, Sargent, Cassatt and other young artists. As a new exhibition makes clear, what they experienced would transform American art

Portraits on the Plains

Mon, 01 May 2000 04:00:00 GMT

Armed with easel, palette and pencil, George Catlin went west in the 1830s to paint the real "Wild West"

Letters from Vincent

Thu, 20 Dec 2007 10:00:10 GMT

Never-before-exhibited correspondence from van Gogh to a protégé displays a thoughtful exacting side of the artist

Still Ahead of His Time

Thu, 01 May 2003 04:00:00 GMT

Born 200 years ago this month, Ralph Waldo Emerson had some strange ideas about the natural world. Recent research suggests they might even be true

Tribute: Famous Once Again

Thu, 01 Feb 2007 05:00:00 GMT

Longfellow reaches his bicentennial; here's why his poems became perennial

Hopper

Sun, 01 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT

Mystery. Longing. A whole new way of seeing. A stunning retrospective reminds us why the enigmatic American artist retains his power

Reboot

Sun, 01 Jul 2007 04:00:00 GMT

A photojournalist enchanted by computers takes another look at the soul of some old machines

Jazz Man

Thu, 01 Sep 2005 04:00:00 GMT

Louis Armstrong before he was Satchmo? A youthful Ella? For photographs of musicians great or obscure, just about everyone turns to Frank Driggs

A New Chapter in the Hope Diamond’s History

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 09:26:45 GMT

The National Museum of Natural History’s most famous gem gets a modern update

In Vogue

Mon, 20 Apr 2009 06:00:00 GMT

A painter by training, Edward Steichen changed fashion photography forever

At Moab, Music Among the Red Rocks

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 08:00:00 GMT

The Moab Music Festival features world-class music in an unparalleled natural setting

A Jazzed-Up Langston Hughes

Fri, 13 Mar 2009 09:45:59 GMT

A long-forgotten poem about the African-American experience is given new life in a multimedia performance

ATM - The Object at Hand - 1967 Buffet Crampon - Apr09

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Late in his career, jazz musician Benny Goodman favored a Parisian “licorice stick” as his instrument of choice

Julia Keefe’s Jazz

Thu, 09 Apr 2009 09:01:06 GMT

The young musician discusses the joys of improvisation and her new tribute to fellow American Indian artist Mildred Bailey

Letters - Nov09

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Readers Respond to the September Issue

Meet the Innovators

Thu, 08 May 2008 03:44:36 GMT

Readers Respond to the September Issue

Prototype Online: Inventive Voices

Tue, 26 Feb 2008 05:57:16 GMT

Sharon Rogone, a neonatal nurse-turned-inventor, talks about her first invention

Intelligent Designer - Jan09

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 07:00:00 GMT

Charles Harrison, former industrial designer at Sears, Roebuck and Company, created practical innovations that touched many lives

Russian Idol

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:00:00 GMT

Moscow-born Regina Spektor draws on classical music roots to create and perform pop songs of rare originality

High Scorer

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:00:00 GMT

Composer Nico Muhly wowed them at Carnegie Hall and the New York Public Library

Wild Woman

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:00:00 GMT

Playwright Sarah Ruhl speaks softly and carries a big kick

Keeper of the Keys

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:00:00 GMT

Pianist Jason Moran laces his strikingly original music with the soulful sounds of jazz greats

Stepping Up

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:00:00 GMT

Even as he travels the world, dancer and hip-hopper Marc Bamuthi Joseph has stayed close to his musical roots

Comedienne of Manners

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:00:00 GMT

Novelist ZZ Packer uses humor to point up some disconcerting signposts along America's racial divide

Chameleon

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:00:00 GMT

Playwright and performer Sarah Jones displays a genius for climbing into other people's skin

Show Stopper

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:00:00 GMT

The classically trained dance star Alicia Graf showed true grit overcoming a career-threatening ailment

Mounds vs. Vegans

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:00:00 GMT

In drawings and paintings, Trenton Doyle Hancock pits archetypes against each other

Roving Eye

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:00:00 GMT

Documentary filmmaker Rachel Grady opens our eyes to the complexities of overlooked places and people

One Man Band

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:00:00 GMT

The next Bob Dylan? Maybe. Sufjan Stevens' honest sound and stark lyrics speak volumes to a new generation. And he plays all the instruments

Mighty Mouth

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:00:00 GMT

Spoken-word artist Mayda del Valle brings to life "democracy writ large in poetry"

Crossing the Divide

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:00:00 GMT

Novelist Daniel Alarcón's writings evoke the gritty, compelling landscape of urban Latin America

Recasting Shakespeare's Stage

Mon, 01 Jan 2007 05:00:00 GMT

Designing a Globe Theatre for the 21st century

Man of Action

Mon, 12 Nov 2007 07:25:03 GMT

An eccentric photographer and a racehorse made history one day in 1878. The world would never look the same

Object at Hand - Chia Pet

Mon, 26 Nov 2007 03:06:26 GMT

For 26 years, marketing whiz Joe Pedott's green-pelted figures have been holiday-season hits

ATM - From the Castle - Ways We Serve - Aug09

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Ways We Serve

Around the Mall Dec 95

Fri, 01 Dec 1995 05:00:00 GMT

Alan Fern, director of the National Portrait Gallery, offers his insights on the art of reading a portrait

Turning a Page

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Smithsonian regents tap engineer, educator G. Wayne Clough as the Institution's next Secretary

Minding the "Milkstone"

Sun, 01 Apr 2001 05:00:00 GMT

When works of art are pollen and rice, and even milk, the Hirshhorn Museum gives them extra-special care

Across Africa, Finding Common Ground in Their Art

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 07:48:04 GMT

António Ole and Aimé Mpane came together to converse through artwork in a new insallation at the National Museum of African Art

Interview with G. Wayne Clough

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 01:48:53 GMT

Smithsonian Institution's 12th Secretary discusses his new role, his distinguished career in education and his favorite artifact

Object at Hand: Double Eagle

Tue, 27 May 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Few U.S. coins are rarer than the never circulated 1933 double eagle, melted down after the nation dropped the gold standard

Ivory Merchant

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 06:00:00 GMT

Composer Irving Berlin wrote scores of hits on his custom-built instrument

Portraits of Resistance

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 09:05:53 GMT

The inaugural show of the National Museum of African American History and Culture

A Storied Gallery

Fri, 01 Sep 2000 04:00:00 GMT

With its colorful history and a touch of whimsy, the Renwick is a singular experience

Olga Hirshhorn and The Art of Living

Wed, 01 Apr 1998 05:00:00 GMT

With its colorful history and a touch of whimsy, the Renwick is a singular experience

Sacks Appeal

Fri, 01 Dec 2006 05:00:00 GMT

Attention shoppers: just what you need one more seasonal ornament

Sculpting Her Vision

Mon, 12 Nov 2007 07:19:41 GMT

A photo gallery of Nora Naranjo-Morse's inspiring outdoor designs

Q&A - Jenny Holzer

Mon, 26 Nov 2007 03:06:48 GMT

The artist Jenny Holzer created For SAAM, a column of light and text, for the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM)

Sharing the Gift of Music

Sat, 01 Aug 1998 04:00:00 GMT

An endowment accompanying rare instruments lets them be heard in performances and on recordings

Grand Reopening: Speaking of Art

Sat, 01 Jul 2006 04:00:00 GMT

Two museums return home and invite visitors to engage in "conversations."

Casualty of War

Sun, 01 May 2005 04:00:00 GMT

A sculptor's provacative memorial acknowledges the high cost of conflict

From the Castle - Long Tails - Apr09

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 06:00:00 GMT

A sculptor's provacative memorial acknowledges the high cost of conflict

ATM - From the Castle - Smithsonian 2.0 - Sept09

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Smithsonian 2.0

Dancing Around Abraham Lincoln

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 06:01:52 GMT

Bill T. Jones, one of America’s foremost living choreographers, tackles Lincoln’s complicated legacy in his newest work

Interview: David Galenson

Wed, 01 Nov 2006 05:00:00 GMT

Pondering the nature of artistic genius, a social scientist finds that creativity has a bottom line

Celestial Sleuth

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 06:00:00 GMT

Astrophysicist Don Olson breaks down the barriers between science and art by analyzing literature and paintings from the past

At Home with the Darwins

Fri, 23 Jan 2009 10:57:25 GMT

Recipes offer an intimate glimpse into the life of Charles Darwin and his family

The Last Page - Darwin for Dads - Aug09

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 06:00:00 GMT

A daughter tries to help one member of an endangered species survive

Indelible: Happy New Year

Sun, 01 Jan 2006 05:00:00 GMT

To photographer Slim Aarons, the biggest stars were auld acquaintances

Dazzle by the Dozen

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 08:13:44 GMT

A 1947 portrait by the renowned Irving Penn broke the fashion mold and celebrated an elegance all too rare today

Morning In America

Tue, 01 Aug 2006 04:00:00 GMT

Space shuttle-watchers took their place in the sun, not yet awakened to the true risks of exploring the heavens.

Celebrity Portraitist Gerard Malanga

Tue, 14 Apr 2009 05:08:34 GMT

An associate of Andy Warhol, Gerard Malanga reflects on his subjects and his career as a photographer

Transformations in Harlem: the Photos of Camilo José Vergara

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 09:01:19 GMT

For decades, the photographer has documented the physical and cultural changes in Harlem and other American urban communities

Q and A: Frank Gohlke - Feb09

Thu, 22 Jan 2009 07:00:00 GMT

For decades, the photographer has documented the physical and cultural changes in Harlem and other American urban communities

The Beach

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 06:54:43 GMT

A new exhibition of oversized photographs by Richard Misrach invites viewers to have fun in the sun. Or does it?

Karsh Reality - Yousuf Karsh

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 07:00:00 GMT

Yousuf Karsh took a singular approach to fame and the famous

Indelible Images - Day of the Iguanas

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 06:00:00 GMT

On a morning in a Oaxacan market, photographer Graciela Iturbide made one of the most enduring images of Zapotec life

Indelible-Gaga Over a Gargoyle

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 09:17:47 GMT

From Margaret Bourke-White to Annie Leibovitz, photographers have scaled dizzying heights to frame the perfect prop

Indelible - Model Arrangement - May 08

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 06:00:00 GMT

In Milton Greene, Marilyn Monroe found a friend as well as a photographer who captured the range of her vibrant personality

ATM - Photo Find

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 06:42:44 GMT

With a rolleiflex camera, a pioneering botanist documented his fieldwork—and created art

Portraits of Her People

Fri, 01 Dec 2000 05:00:00 GMT

Historian, photographer and Macarthur "genius," Deborah Willis documents the black experience

Time and Again

Thu, 01 Jun 2006 04:00:00 GMT

In 1984, Peter Feldstein set out to photograph every last person in Oxford, Iowa. Two decades later, he's doing it again, creating a unique portrait of heartland America

When He Said "Jump..."

Sun, 01 Oct 2006 04:00:00 GMT

Philippe Halsman defied gravitas.

Fashion Faux Paw

Sat, 01 Oct 2005 04:00:00 GMT

Richard Avedon's photograph of a beauty and the beasts is marred, he believed, by one failing

Model Family

Sun, 01 May 2005 04:00:00 GMT

Sally Mann's unflinching photographs of her children have provoked controversy, but one of her now-grown daughters wonders what all the fuss was about

The Old Ballgames

Fri, 01 Apr 2005 05:00:00 GMT

Civil rights chronicler Ernest Withers also photogrpahed the glories of black baseball, including pioneering big leaguer Jackie Robinson

Tunnel Visionary

Thu, 01 Apr 2004 05:00:00 GMT

Intrepid explorer Julia Solis finds beauty in the ruins of derelict urban structures

Brooklyn Rooftop, 9/11

Mon, 01 Sep 2003 04:00:00 GMT

Photographer Alex Webb captured a moment that showed, he says, the "continuity of life in the face of disaster"

Subway Spy

Mon, 01 Nov 2004 05:00:00 GMT

Walker Evans' underground-breaking photographs resurface for the centennial of New York City's rapid transit system

Private Eye

Mon, 01 Mar 2004 05:00:00 GMT

Noted for her sensitive photojournalism in postwar magazines, Esther Bubley is back in vogue

Shooting Stars

Thu, 01 Jan 2004 05:00:00 GMT

Photographer Jack Pashkovsky disarmed Hollywood's royalty with his ardor and persistence

Shades of Merriment

Mon, 01 Apr 2002 05:00:00 GMT

Robert Capa, famous for his battle photographs, made friends along the way

Multiple Viewpoints

Mon, 01 Apr 2002 05:00:00 GMT

Photographer Edward Burtynsky's politically charged industrial landscapes are carefully crafted to elicit different interpretations

Stieglitz in Focus

Sat, 01 Jun 2002 04:00:00 GMT

A new exhibition at Washington's National Gallery of Art tracks the development of seminal photographer Alfred Stieglitz

Choosing Civility in a Rude Culture

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 07:00:00 GMT

Professor Pier M. Forni has devoted his career to convincing people to conduct their lives with kindness and civility

ATM - Q and A - Christo and Jeanne-Claude - Dec08

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 07:00:00 GMT

The artists discuss Running Fence, their 1976 fabric installation that ran through Northern California and subject of an upcoming Smithsonian exhibition

Dada

Mon, 01 May 2006 04:00:00 GMT

The irreverent, rowdy revolution set the trajectory of 20th-century art

Danger Zones

Thu, 20 Dec 2007 10:06:48 GMT

Warning: David Maisel's aerial landscapes may be hazardous to your assumptions

Salad Days

Wed, 26 Sep 2007 08:54:38 GMT

Karl Bissinger's 1949 photograph of the author and a few friends at lunch in a Manhattan restaurant garden invokes the optimism of youth

"It Felt Like a Real Discovery"

Sat, 01 Sep 2007 04:00:00 GMT

Six decades after the death of an unheralded New York City municipal photographer, a researcher stumbles upon his forgotten negatives

Indelible Images: Endless Summers

Fri, 01 Jun 2007 04:00:00 GMT

For almost 50 years, surfing legend LeRoy Grannis has been shooting the curl

Indelible: They Needed to Talk

Tue, 01 May 2007 04:00:00 GMT

And family friend William Eggleston, his camera at his side, felt compelled to shoot

Inelible: The Deciding Moment

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 04:00:00 GMT

A newly published scrapbook of Henri Cartier-Bresson's early photographs is changing some notions about how he worked

Indelible: Operatic Entrance

Thu, 01 Mar 2007 05:00:00 GMT

As Paris feted Queen Elizabeth II, photographer Bert Hardy found a circumstance to match her pomp

Indelible Images: Time After Time - Jan07

Mon, 01 Jan 2007 05:00:00 GMT

William Christenberry embraces the impermanent

Trunk Show

Mon, 29 Oct 2007 02:17:01 GMT

Even in 1992, Steve McCurry says, Kabul was full of surprises

Indelible Images: Married, With Camera

Mon, 26 Nov 2007 03:03:03 GMT

Portraitist Emmet Gowin's most enduring subject is his wife

More With Richard Misrach

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 06:50:11 GMT

The Photographer explains how a series of beach pictures were inspired by the events of September 11

Migrant Madonna

Fri, 01 Mar 2002 05:00:00 GMT

The Photographer explains how a series of beach pictures were inspired by the events of September 11

Training Wheels

Mon, 01 Jul 2002 04:00:00 GMT

The Photographer explains how a series of beach pictures were inspired by the events of September 11

A Fresh Look at Diane Arbus

Sat, 01 May 2004 04:00:00 GMT