Gallery Experience: From the Archives

Take a midday break and explore a treasure trove of archival materials from past exhibitions. It’s your chance to see where Joseph Hirshhorn purchased many of the works that became part of the permanent Museum collection, some of which are currently on view in Revolutions: Art from the Hirshhorn Collection, 1860-1960.

This program is presented in partnership with Smithsonian Libraries and Archives.

 

Want to make more of your visit?
Come early or stay afterward for a Guided Tour of the Hirshhorn collection.

• 11:30 AM–12:30 PM: Guided Tour: Hirshhorn Highlights

• 12:30–1:30 PM: Gallery Spotlight: Portraits and Modern Beginnings

 

About the Exhibition

Revolutions highlights works from the early half of the Museum’s collection. During this time, two world wars were fought, new technologies appeared, groundbreaking scientific discoveries were made, and cities rapidly expanded. In response, artists in both Europe and North America invented dramatically novel approaches to art-making. This period saw the development of abstraction in Western art, the increased use of nontraditional materials, and the rise of Conceptualism—the notion that the idea behind an artwork is more important than the art object. Many artists used their work to comment on social and political issues; others looked inward, making art that dealt with personal expression or the problems of form itself. Revolutions is primarily organized chronologically, but also opens dialogues across history, with select contemporary artworks installed in conversation with modern masterworks to demonstrate how ideas and approaches formulated from 1860 to 1960 remain critical today.

 

If you have questions or a request for access services or accommodations that can make your experience more inclusive, please contact hirshhornexperience@si.edu. One to two weeks’ advance notice is recommended but not required.