March 2001 marked the sixtieth anniversary of the opening of the National Gallery of Art. A gift of Andrew Mellon to the American people, the original West Building, designed by famed American architect John Russell Pope, was constructed between 1937 and 1941.

In these photo essays you'll view comparative images that demonstrate the many ways, some subtle, some obvious, in which the National Gallery's West Building--and the environment that surrounds it--have changed through the years.