Walk-in Tours
A variety of free, walk-in tours are offered in both galleries on most days. In addition, Highlights Tours of the Freer Gallery of Art are offered at 12:15 pm on weekdays and at 1:15 pm on weekends (except Wednesdays and federal holidays), unless other programs are taking place. Tours of the special exhibition, Garden and Cosmos: The Royal Paintings of Jodhpur, are offered most weekdays at 12:15 pm and weekends at 1:15 pm (except Wednesdays and federal holidays) from October 25th through January 4th.

Please click here for more information.

Renewing America's Promise—Inauguration 2009
at the Freer and Sackler Galleries
Celebrate Asia in America! Click here for a full list of special events January 18–20.

		Whistler and the Peacock Room Thursday, January 29, 2009, 1:15 pm The famed Peacock Room was once the London dining room of wealthy shipowner Frederick Leyland. Hear the intriguing story of Leyland, American artist James McNeill Whistler, and the controversial decoration of the Peacock Room. Explore other works by Whistler in the Freer's American art galleries, and find out how Whistler influenced Charles Lang Freer's own aesthetic sensibility and collecting.

		Arts of Japan Saturday, January 10, 2009, 2:15 pm Thursday, January 22, 2009, 1:15 pm Saturday, January 31, 2009, 2:15 pm Travel to Japan through the Freer Gallery's unparalleled collection of screens, paintings, lacquerware, prints, ceramics, and sculpture. Look closely at Japanese works of art and learn about their importance in Japanese history and culture, past and present. Meet at the Freer info desk.

		Arts of China Tuesday, January 20, 2009 - CANCELLED Tuesday, February 3, 2009, 1:15 pm, Freer Info Desk Chinese art has flourished from the Neolithic period into the twenty-first century. Discover the richness and diversity of Chinese art, from ceramics, lacquerware, painting, and calligraphy to ancient bronzes and jades.

		Surface Beauty Thursday, January 15, 2009, 1:15 pm Saturday, February 7, 2009, 2:15 pm Thursday, February 19, 2009, 6:45 pm In the late nineteenth century, museum founder Charles Lang Freer worked closely with American artists Dwight William Tryon and Thomas Wilmer Dewing to design his home in Detroit as "a dream of beauty--inside and out." Close examination of paintings by these artists and others reveals Freer's interest in creating a total aesthetic environment through decorative, visually interesting surfaces. Explore the ways Freer detected "points of contact" between these paintings and Asian art and how these connections shaped his personal collection and the museum he bequeathed to the Smithsonian.

		Sacred Arts of Asia Saturday, January 24, 2009, 2:15 pm Friday, February 6, 2009, 1:15 pm Friday, February 20, 2009, 1:15 pm Tuesday, February 24, 2009, 1:15 pm, Freer Info Desk Examine works of art originally created for worship in various Asian religious traditions. Learn how visual characteristics of these art forms reflect key principles and practices associated with each religion.

		Arts of the Islamic World Friday, January 2, 2009, 1:15 pm Saturday, January 17, 2009, 2:15 pm Saturday, February 7, 2009, 6:45 pm Friday, February 13, 2009, 11:15 am Wednesday, February 25, 2009, 6:45 pm See how a variety of artistic traditions have thrived since the advent of Islam in the late seventh century. Explore the Freer's collection of arts of the Islamic world, which were created across a vast geographic area, from southern Spain and North Africa to the islands of Southeast Asia.

		Arts of the Indian Subcontinent and Himalayas Friday, January 9, 2009, 1:15 pm Friday, January 23, 2009, 11:15 am Thursday, February 26, 2009, 1:15 pm, Freer Info Desk View and discuss the Freer Gallery's important collection of sculpture, paintings, and drawings created in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and Tibet. Discover how the arts of this region are closely intertwined with many religious traditions, including Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Jainism.

		Whistler and the Peacock Room Friday, February 27, 2009, 2:15 pm The famed Peacock Room was once the London dining room of wealthy shipowner Frederick Leyland. Hear the intriguing story of Leyland, American artist James McNeill Whistler, and the controversial decoration of the Peacock Room. Explore other works by Whistler in the Freer's American art galleries, and find out how Whistler influenced Charles Lang Freer's own aesthetic sensibility and collecting.

		Arts of Japan Monday, February 9, 2009, 1:15 pm Tuesday, February 17, 2009, 1:15 pm Saturday, February 21, 2009, 2:15 pm Saturday, February 28, 2009, 2:15 pm, Freer Info Desk Travel to Japan through the Freer Gallery's unparalleled collection of screens, paintings, lacquerware, prints, ceramics, and sculpture. Look closely at Japanese works of art and learn about their importance in Japanese history and culture, past and present. Meet at the Freer info desk.