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Research Programs
National Art Inventories
What are the Inventories?
The Inventories of American Painting and Sculpture document more than 400,000 artworks in public and private collections worldwide. The Inventory of American Paintings includes works by artists who were active in America by 1914. The Inventory of American Sculpture has no cut-off date and includes works from the colonial era through contemporary times. These online databases are supplemented by a photographic collection of over 80,000 images. The photographs are available for study purposes in our Washington, D.C., office. Digital images are in the process of being added to the online database. Search the art inventory databases online via SIRIS (the Smithsonian Institution Research Information System).
Report Artworks
We have compiled the Inventories from exhibition and collection catalogs; reports received from individuals, collectors, and family members; and data gathered from special surveys-including the Save Outdoor Sculpture! (SOS!) program.
Daily we add and update records in the Inventories, so we welcome your additions and corrections. If you know of an artwork not yet listed in the inventories database, please send us a report.
- Guidelines for Reporting Works (pdf, 16k)
- Painting Report Form: Online form or PDF (12k)
- Sculpture Report Form: Online form or PDF (10k)
- Conservation Treatment Notification Report Online form or PDF (15k)
Contact Us
Please send us your comments and suggestions. If you have questions, need assistance in database searches, or want to make an appointment to use our in-house resources, let us know. Contact us by email at artref@si.edu or call us at (202) 633-8380.
Written queries can be addressed to
Research and Scholars Center
Smithsonian American Art Museum
MRC 970, PO Box 37012
Washington DC 20013-7012
Visit our office in the Victor Building at 750 Ninth Street N.W., Room 3100, Washington, D.C. 20001-4505. Office hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., except federal holidays.
