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Exhibition Programs

Special exhibitions at the Smithsonian American Art Museum are complemented by an array of programs themed specifically to each show. Offered for only a limited time, these programs reach out to everyone from scholars and students to families and visitors.

Upcoming events Friday August 7, 2009 Superheroes and Alter Egos 12:00 PM Grand Salon Renwick Gallery Mark Newport explores notions of gender, masculinity, and fatherhood by knitting oversized superhero costumes drawn from pop culture. Join Newport as he discusses his unique approach to portraying masculinity by using nontraditional materials. Come early to see his work in the new exhibition Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. Sunday August 9, 2009 Exhibition Highlights Tour 4:00 PM Meet in the F Street Lobby Smithsonian American Art Museum Join a docent-led, walk-in tour through two special exhibitions at the American Art Museum, Graphic Masters II and 1934: A New Deal for Artists. Thursday August 13, 2009 The Man Who Knew Too Much 6:30 PM McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Smithsonian American Art Museum The year 1934 was a good one for art and award-winning films. Hollywood captured the attention of a nation seeking a break from difficult times by watching movies. Join us for these memorable cinematic evenings. The Man Who Knew Too Much A family vacationing in Switzerland learns of an assassination plot. Before they can alert the authorities, their daughter is kidnapped by assassins who warn that she will be safe only as long as they remain silent. 1934. Directed by Alfred Hitchcock; starring Peter Lorre. 77 minutes. Sunday August 16, 2009 Exhibition Highlights Tour 4:00 PM Meet in the F Street Lobby Smithsonian American Art Museum Join a docent-led, walk-in tour through two special exhibitions at the American Art Museum, Graphic Masters II and 1934: A New Deal for Artists. Friday August 21, 2009 What’s New in the Grand Salon? 12:00 PM Grand Salon Renwick Gallery At first glance, works on display in the recently reinstalled Grand Salon may appear unrelated, but there’s a method to Robert Johnston’s groupings. A closer look will reveal themes in the works and relationships among the artists. Join Johnston, a member of the External Affairs staff at the American Art Museum, as he discusses individual artists and their works. Americans Abroad (Brooks, Shannon, Tanner, and Weeks) Friday, July 10, Noon A Few of The Ten Plus Some Others (Twachtman, Tarbell, Weir, and Ochtman) Friday, August 21, Noon Out of the Past (Cox, Ballin, Loeb, Macomber, and Walker) Friday, September 11, Noon Sunday August 23, 2009 Exhibition Highlights Tour 4:00 PM Meet in the F Street Lobby Smithsonian American Art Museum Join a docent-led, walk-in tour through two special exhibitions at the American Art Museum, Graphic Masters II and 1934: A New Deal for Artists. Sunday August 30, 2009 Exhibition Highlights Tour 4:00 PM Meet in the F Street Lobby Smithsonian American Art Museum Join a docent-led, walk-in tour through two special exhibitions at the American Art Museum, Graphic Masters II and 1934: A New Deal for Artists. Tuesday September 1, 2009 Sit 'n' Knit 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM First-floor Galleries Renwick Gallery Delight in the fiber art of Mark Newport, one of the four artists featured in Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. A local knitting and crocheting expert will be on hand with samples of work, tips, stories, and projects. Bring your own project and any questions you may have or just enjoy the company of other crafters this fall. Thursday September 10, 2009 Stand Up and Cheer 6:30 PM McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Smithsonian American Art Museum The year 1934 was a good one for art and award-winning films. Hollywood captured the attention of a nation seeking a break from difficult times by watching movies. Join us for these memorable cinematic evenings. During the Great Depression, the president appoints a theater producer as his Secretary of Amusement to be in charge of entertaining the country and helping people to forget their troubles. Shirley Temple sings “Baby Take a Bow” in one of her earliest roles. Black and white. 1934. Not Rated. 68 minutes. Friday September 11, 2009 What’s New in the Grand Salon? 12:00 PM Grand Salon Renwick Gallery At first glance, works on display in the recently reinstalled Grand Salon may appear unrelated, but there’s a method to Robert Johnston’s groupings. A closer look will reveal themes in the works and relationships among the artists. Join Johnston, a member of the External Affairs staff at the American Art Museum, as he discusses individual artists and their works. Americans Abroad (Brooks, Shannon, Tanner, and Weeks) Friday, July 10, Noon A Few of The Ten Plus Some Others (Twachtman, Tarbell, Weir, and Ochtman) Friday, August 21, Noon Out of the Past (Cox, Ballin, Loeb, Macomber, and Walker) Friday, September 11, Noon Sunday September 13, 2009 Sit 'n' Knit 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM First-floor Galleries Renwick Gallery Delight in the fiber art of Mark Newport, one of the four artists featured in Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. A local knitting and crocheting expert will be on hand with samples of work, tips, stories, and projects. Bring your own project and any questions you may have or just enjoy the company of other crafters this fall. Tuesday September 15, 2009 Sit 'n' Knit 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM First-floor Galleries Renwick Gallery Delight in the fiber art of Mark Newport, one of the four artists featured in Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. A local knitting and crocheting expert will be on hand with samples of work, tips, stories, and projects. Bring your own project and any questions you may have or just enjoy the company of other crafters this fall. Friday September 25, 2009 Gallery Talk with Kate Bonansinga 12:00 PM First Floor Lobby Renwick Gallery All the world’s a stage, and the work included in this year’s Invitational is no exception. Explore Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009 with Kate Bonansinga, curator of the exhibition, who illuminates the commonalities and shared inspirations of the exhibition’s four groundbreaking artists. Friday September 25, 2009 Staged Stories Artists’ Roundtable 6:00 PM McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Smithsonian American Art Museum While Christyl Boger, Mark Newport, Mary Van Cline, and SunKoo Yuh work in the traditional mediums of ceramics, fiber, and glass, their work is anything but traditional. Each artist incorporates theatrical elements in his or her work that unify Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. Exhibition curator Kate Bonansinga moderates a roundtable discussion with the four artists to highlight their work and methodologies and to discuss the curatorial perspective informing the exhibition. Artists’ Roundtable is made possible by the Smithsonian Women’s Committee Endowment for lectures in American craft. Please note this program is being held in The American Art Museum's McEvoy Auditorium Sunday September 27, 2009 Sit 'n' Knit 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM First-floor Galleries Renwick Gallery Delight in the fiber art of Mark Newport, one of the four artists featured in Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. A local knitting and crocheting expert will be on hand with samples of work, tips, stories, and projects. Bring your own project and any questions you may have or just enjoy the company of other crafters this fall. Wednesday September 30, 2009 Clarice Smith Distinguished Lectures 7:00 PM McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Smithsonian American Art Museum The Clarice Smith Distinguished Lectures in American Art brings outstanding artists,critics, and scholars to the museum to add to the ongoing national conversation about art. This annual series is made possible by the generosity of Clarice Smith. Lectures begin at 7 p.m. Free tickets, G Street Lobby, one hour prior. A reception follows each lecture. McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Artist William Wiley What’s It All Mean Wednesday, September 30 Critic Dave Hickey The Evils of Creationism: Art History according to Darwin Wednesday, October 21 Scholar Linda Nochlin Consider the Difference: American Women Artists from Cassatt to Contemporary Wednesday, November 18 Saturday October 3, 2009 Family Day - William Wiley 11:30 AM - 3:00 PM Kogod Courtyard Smithsonian American Art Museum Help us welcome artist William Wiley to the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Wiley will perform his own music for audiences of all ages. In between attending Improv for Kids workshops and playing the pinball machines, you can create pinball paintings and design your own buttons. Tuesday October 6, 2009 Sit 'n' Knit 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM First-floor Galleries Renwick Gallery Delight in the fiber art of Mark Newport, one of the four artists featured in Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. A local knitting and crocheting expert will be on hand with samples of work, tips, stories, and projects. Bring your own project and any questions you may have or just enjoy the company of other crafters this fall. Thursday October 8, 2009 The Gay Divorcee 6:30 AM McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Smithsonian American Art Museum The year 1934 was a good one for art and award-winning films. Hollywood captured the attention of a nation seeking a break from difficult times by watching movies. Join us for these memorable cinematic evenings. Mimi wants a divorce from her husband and enlists the assistance of her meddling aunt and a bumbling lawyer. The film was nominated for three Academy Awards® and won the first Oscar for Best Song for “The Continental,” an opulent twenty-two minute production number. Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire. 1934. Not Rated. 107 minutes. Sunday October 11, 2009 Sit 'n' Knit 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM First-floor Galleries Renwick Gallery Delight in the fiber art of Mark Newport, one of the four artists featured in Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. A local knitting and crocheting expert will be on hand with samples of work, tips, stories, and projects. Bring your own project and any questions you may have or just enjoy the company of other crafters this fall. Thursday October 15, 2009 Punball: Only One Earth 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM Meet in the G Street Lobby Smithsonian American Art Museum Enter the irreverent and whimsical world of William T. Wiley. Visitors will have the rare opportunity to play Wiley’s Punball:Only One Earth, on view in the exhibition. Friday October 16, 2009 The Woman behind the New Deal 7:00 PM McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Smithsonian American Art Museum Kirstin Downey’s biography is the first complete portrait of a devoted public servant who changed the landscape of American business and society during and after the Great Depression. Book signing to follow. McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Tuesday October 20, 2009 Sit 'n' Knit 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM First-floor Galleries Renwick Gallery Delight in the fiber art of Mark Newport, one of the four artists featured in Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. A local knitting and crocheting expert will be on hand with samples of work, tips, stories, and projects. Bring your own project and any questions you may have or just enjoy the company of other crafters this fall. Tuesday October 20, 2009 Gallery Talk with Joann Moser 6:00 PM Meet in the G Street Lobby Smithsonian American Art Museum Senior Curator Joann Moser leads a fascinating tour of the exhibition What’s It All Mean, revealing Wiley’s personal symbols and allusions. Wednesday October 21, 2009 Clarice Smith Distinguished Lectures 7:00 PM McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Smithsonian American Art Museum The Clarice Smith Distinguished Lectures in American Art brings outstanding artists,critics, and scholars to the museum to add to the ongoing national conversation about art. This annual series is made possible by the generosity of Clarice Smith. Lectures begin at 7 p.m. Free tickets, G Street Lobby, one hour prior. A reception follows each lecture. McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Artist William Wiley What’s It All Mean Wednesday, September 30 Critic Dave Hickey The Evils of Creationism: Art History according to Darwin Wednesday, October 21 Scholar Linda Nochlin Consider the Difference: American Women Artists from Cassatt to Contemporary Wednesday, November 18 Friday October 23, 2009 The American Scene in 1934 6:30 PM McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Smithsonian American Art Museum Realities and ideals of the Great Depression shaped the paintings American artists made for the Public Works of Art Project. Ann Prentice Wagner, the principal author of the exhibition catalogue 1934: A New Deal for Artists, shares her discoveries about the artists and the scenes they depicted. Book signing follows. McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Sunday October 25, 2009 Sit 'n' Knit 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM First-floor Galleries Renwick Gallery Delight in the fiber art of Mark Newport, one of the four artists featured in Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. A local knitting and crocheting expert will be on hand with samples of work, tips, stories, and projects. Bring your own project and any questions you may have or just enjoy the company of other crafters this fall. Thursday October 29, 2009 Punball: Only One Earth 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM Meet in the G Street Lobby Smithsonian American Art Museum Enter the irreverent and whimsical world of William T. Wiley. Visitors will have the rare opportunity to play Wiley’s Punball:Only One Earth, on view in the exhibition. Tuesday November 3, 2009 Sit 'n' Knit 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM First-floor Galleries Renwick Gallery Delight in the fiber art of Mark Newport, one of the four artists featured in Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. A local knitting and crocheting expert will be on hand with samples of work, tips, stories, and projects. Bring your own project and any questions you may have or just enjoy the company of other crafters this fall. Thursday November 5, 2009 Gallery Talk with Fern Bleckner 12:00 PM First Floor Lobby Renwick Gallery Join Renwick Gallery Deputy Chief Fern Bleckner as she reveals a behind-the- scenes perspective on the work of the four artists included in the show. Thursday November 5, 2009 Dorothea Lange: A Life beyond Limits 7:00 PM McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Smithsonian American Art Museum Linda Gordon, author of the first biography of photographer Dorothea Lange, shares her research and knowledge of Lange as a mother, artist, feminist, political activist, environmentalist, and photographer and chronicler of the Great Depression. Book signing to follow. McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Sunday November 8, 2009 Sit 'n' Knit 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM First-floor Galleries Renwick Gallery Delight in the fiber art of Mark Newport, one of the four artists featured in Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. A local knitting and crocheting expert will be on hand with samples of work, tips, stories, and projects. Bring your own project and any questions you may have or just enjoy the company of other crafters this fall. Sunday November 8, 2009 Korean Folktales 3:00 PM Grand Salon Renwick Gallery Learn about the fascinating tradition of Korean folktales with Young-Key Kim-Renaud, chair of the Korean Studies Department at the George Washington University. She elaborates on the history and significance of this rich art form in Korean culture that has inspired the work of SunKoo Yuh, one of the four featured artists in Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. Thursday November 12, 2009 Tower & Tower For the No Bull Salvage 5:30 PM McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Smithsonian American Art Museum This program presents two short films celebrating Wiley’s seventy-five foot bronze sculpture, Tower, made in cooperation with Lippincott, Inc. Wiley’s Tower (1991) is a conversation with the artist at the site of the extraordinary sculpture. Tower For the No Bull Salvage (2005) is a poetic exploration of the mystical symbols of the sculpture. Approximately 50 minutes. Thursday November 12, 2009 Punball: Only One Earth 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM Meet in the G Street Lobby Smithsonian American Art Museum Enter the irreverent and whimsical world of William T. Wiley. Visitors will have the rare opportunity to play Wiley’s Punball:Only One Earth, on view in the exhibition. Tuesday November 17, 2009 Sit 'n' Knit 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM First-floor Galleries Renwick Gallery Delight in the fiber art of Mark Newport, one of the four artists featured in Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. A local knitting and crocheting expert will be on hand with samples of work, tips, stories, and projects. Bring your own project and any questions you may have or just enjoy the company of other crafters this fall. Wednesday November 18, 2009 Clarice Smith Distinguished Lectures 7:00 PM McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Smithsonian American Art Museum The Clarice Smith Distinguished Lectures in American Art brings outstanding artists,critics, and scholars to the museum to add to the ongoing national conversation about art. This annual series is made possible by the generosity of Clarice Smith. Lectures begin at 7 p.m. Free tickets, G Street Lobby, one hour prior. A reception follows each lecture. McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Artist William Wiley What’s It All Mean Wednesday, September 30 Critic Dave Hickey The Evils of Creationism: Art History according to Darwin Wednesday, October 21 Scholar Linda Nochlin Consider the Difference: American Women Artists from Cassatt to Contemporary Wednesday, November 18 Thursday November 19, 2009 When Art Worked 7:00 PM McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Smithsonian American Art Museum Historian Roger Kennedy discusses the New Deal’s mobilization of artists, including filmmakers, painters, photographers, landscape designers, architects, and composers— those responsible for bringing the nation together during the Great Depression. Book signing to follow. McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level Saturday November 21, 2009 All Wiley—No Coyote 3:00 PM Kogod Courtyard Smithsonian American Art Museum Award-winning improv troupe Improv Now! brings humor and spontaneity to What’s It All Mean. Experience the troupe’s lively parodies, based on Wiley’s art. Sunday November 22, 2009 Sit 'n' Knit 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM First-floor Galleries Renwick Gallery Delight in the fiber art of Mark Newport, one of the four artists featured in Staged Stories: Renwick Craft Invitational 2009. A local knitting and crocheting expert will be on hand with samples of work, tips, stories, and projects. Bring your own project and any questions you may have or just enjoy the company of other crafters this fall. Thursday December 3, 2009 Punball: Only One Earth 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM Meet in the G Street Lobby Smithsonian American Art Museum Enter the irreverent and whimsical world of William T. Wiley. Visitors will have the rare opportunity to play Wiley’s Punball:Only One Earth, on view in the exhibition. Thursday December 17, 2009 Punball: Only One Earth 5:30 PM - 6:30 PM Meet in the G Street Lobby Smithsonian American Art Museum Enter the irreverent and whimsical world of William T. Wiley. Visitors will have the rare opportunity to play Wiley’s Punball:Only One Earth, on view in the exhibition.
See all calendar of events.

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