Celebration highlights include a spotlight on the National Gallery’s permanent collection of American masterworks, exhibitions, and year-round programming 

As part of A250, the “Across the Nation” partnership program brings masterpieces from the National Gallery’s collection to 10 partner museums nationwide

Washington, DC—The National Gallery of Art has announced plans for America’s 250th anniversary (A250) commemoration. Anchored by the museum’s American galleries – which will be expanded to include additional historic artworks – and two special exhibitions, among other installations, its A250 program celebrates American art and artists from the 18th century to today. These presentations will be accompanied by community programs, including a block party at the National Gallery the weekend of June 6, 2026, and complementary digital content.

“As the nation’s art museum, it is our great honor to commemorate 250 years of America,” said Kaywin Feldman, director of the National Gallery of Art. “Through a dynamic slate of presentations and programs, the National Gallery of Art highlights the American artists, stories, and movements that have shaped our nation’s cultural heritage. We look forward to engaging audiences across the country in a meaningful reflection on the past, present, and future of American creativity.”

As part of the National Gallery’s A250 celebrations, the “Across the Nation” partnership program, which launched in February 2025, brings key works from the nation’s art collection to 10 museums across the country. This program creates unprecedented access to the nation’s masterworks by placing them directly in communities across the United States. “Across the Nation” is currently underway at partner institutions in Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Utah, and Washington. 

Programming highlights for the National Gallery’s A250 commemoration follow below.

Special Installation: Celebrating American Art 
Opening March 20, 2026, West Building, Main Floor

The National Gallery will spotlight its historical American galleries starting in spring 2026. These galleries, which comprise a major section of the institution’s West Building, provide a compelling journey through the rich history of American art from the colonial era through the early 20th century. The National Gallery is home to numerous iconic works of American art, including John Singleton Copley’s Watson and the Shark (1778), Gilbert Stuart’s portrait of George Washington (circa 1821), and Thomas Cole’s series The Voyage of Life (1842), as well as masterworks by Winslow Homer, Cecilia Beaux, and John Singer Sargent, among other artists. Collectively they reflect the breadth of American artistic expression during this time period. Several of the American galleries will be reimagined through the addition of historic sculptures, such as Hiram Powers’s The Greek Slave (model 1841–1843, carved 1846), Bessie Potter Vonnoh’s bronze sculpture Day Dreams (model 1898, cast late 1906/early 1907), and Andrew Ellicott Warner's silver Presentation Candelabrum for Commodore Stephen Decatur (1816/1817), creating conversations across media between works from the same period The overall installation celebrates the nation’s cultural and historical contexts and will be accompanied by interactive digital tools and activities, and programming to engage audiences of all generations. 

Exhibitions

The National Gallery will also present exhibitions and installations from its permanent collection that shed light on the stories of American artists and their subject matter in dynamic ways, anchored by the following projects: 

Dear America: Artists Explore the American Experience 
March 14–September 20, 2026, West Building, Ground Floor

Dear America: Artists Explore the American Experience will comprise 115 works on paper reflecting on the nature of the American experience. Centered around the themes of lands, people and community, and freedoms, the exhibition will examine how artists have interpreted these concepts from the 19th century to the present day. The presentation will feature prints, drawings, and photographs by Ansel Adams, Ruth Asawa, Richard Avedon, Thomas Hart Benton, Margaret Bourke-White, LaToya Ruby Frazier, Charles Gaines, Robert Indiana, Tom Jones (Ho-Chunk Nation), Jacob Lawrence, Roy Lichtenstein, Sally Mann, Ed Ruscha, Alfred Stieglitz, Andy Warhol, Carleton Watkins, Juan Sánchez, Victoria Sambunaris, Carrie Mae Weems, and many others. 

American Icon: The US Flag in Art
June 6–December 6, 2026, East Building, Concourse

American Icon: The US Flag in Art will spotlight over 30 works from the late 1800s to today that illustrate changing uses and interpretations of the American flag. The exhibition will include works in various media by Jasper Johns, Gordon Parks, Childe Hassam, Dorothea Lange, Faith Ringgold, and other artists.

Onsite Programming

Block Party on June 6, 2026

The National Gallery will throw its largest ever public program on June 6, 2026: a block party spanning the West Building, East Building, and Sculpture Garden. The museum’s campus will feature indoor and outdoor artmaking, food, music, film screenings, and more.

Projects Beyond the Walls of the Museum

West to East

The National Gallery’s West to East web series will span all its digital platforms, introducing compelling stories, photography, and short documentaries that will explore how artists across America have been inspired by their communities and the places they call home. The video storytelling journey, produced in collaboration with award-winning RAVA films, debuted in 2023 with a short documentary about the work of Marie Watt (Seneca Nation of Indians) in the Pacific Northwest. A second video about Rick Lowe’s practice in Houston’s Third Ward was added in February 2024 and accompanied his exhibition at the Venice Biennale. Seven more films will follow, with each one featuring contemporary artists from different regions of the US as they explore connections between their work, their communities, and the nation. The next film is about artist Charles Ross. Scheduled to air in January 2026, it was previewed at the 2024 Santa Fe International Film Festival, where it won “Best New Mexico Short–Jury Award.”

Stories complementing the videos will feature dynamic essays penned by renowned writers from 10 regions of the country. Stunning photography by the award-winning team of Jenn Ackerman and Tim Gruber, who regularly contribute to the New York Times, National Geographic, and the Wall Street Journal, will bring each region and essay to life. The National Gallery has published a total of eight essays about the Southwest and Midwest. Regions to come will include the Southeast, US territories, Northeast, West Coast, West, South Central, Alaska and Hawaii, the Mid-Atlantic, and Pacific Northwest.

“Across the Nation” National Lending Program

“Across the Nation” enables Americans throughout the country to experience masterpieces from the nation’s art collection at their local museums. For their “Across the Nation” presentations, partner museums selected works that bring new perspectives to their own collections and complement public programs and interests in their respective communities. These works will remain on view through early 2027. 

Museums with loans now on view: 

• The Anchorage Museum (Anchorage, AK) is exhibiting paintings by Georgia O’Keeffe, Mark Rothko, and Nancy Graves.
• Denver Art Museum (Denver, CO) is presenting a painting by Rembrandt van Rijn alongside a portrait of Rembrandt painted by his studio assistants, offering a new perspective on the artist.
• The Whatcom Museum (Bellingham, WA) is featuring works by leaders of the impressionist and post-impressionist movements, including Henri Matisse, Auguste Renoir, and Paul Cezanne.
• The Utah Museum of Contemporary Art (Salt Lake City, UT) is presenting a large-scale wall drawing by Sol Lewitt, marking the second time the work has ever been on view.
• Boise Art Museum (Boise, ID) is exhibiting paintings by Mark Rothko, Berthe Morisot, and Thomas Eakins.
• The Flint Institute of Arts (Flint, MI) is exhibiting three paintings that span the breadth of art history with works by Sandro Botticelli, Hans Memling, and Andy Warhol.
• The Mint Museum (Charlotte, NC) is presenting three paintings by Alma Thomas, Georgia O’Keeffe, and Edgar Degas.
• The Nevada Museum of Art (Reno, NV) is presenting a new iteration of the exhibition Dorothea Lange: Seeing People, which was organized and curated by the National Gallery, where it was originally exhibited in 2023–2024. The exhibition is on view through February 2026.
• The Figge Art Museum (Davenport, IA) is exhibiting 10 historical masterworks from Northern Europe dating from 1537 to 1700 by artists Lucas Cranach the Elder, Anthony van Dyck, Frans Hals, Louis Vallée, and others.
• The New Britain Museum of Art (New Britain, CT) is presenting a historical painting by Robert Duncanson with one by Winslow Homer.

More information about these programs can be found at: nga.gov/america250.