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Accessibility and Inclusion

Everyone is welcome at the National Gallery of Art. We are committed to making our collection, buildings, and programs accessible to all audiences.

Arriving & Parking

The 6th Street entrance to the West Building and the 4th Street entrance to the East Building have ramps to accommodate wheelchairs and strollers, and elevators at these entrances provide access to galleries and public areas. To provide an address for MetroAccess Paratransit, please use 201 6th Street NW for the West Building or 150 4th Street NW for the East Building.

We have limited parking set aside for vehicles bearing appropriate tags or placards for visitors with disabilities on the 4th Street Plaza outside of the East Building. 

See more info about getting here.

Wheelchair Access

Visitors may borrow wheelchairs at all entrances on a first-come, first-served basis for use within the East and West Buildings. The two buildings are connected by an underground moving walkway. All public spaces and facilities are accessible by elevator. If you require assistance, please ask a security officer.

Visitors who need assistance standing for long periods are asked to bring a wheelchair or use one of the limited number of wheelchairs the National Gallery has made available.

Please note: for elevator access throughout the East Building, there are two available elevators outside of Tower 1 and Tower 2. For elevator access from the East Building Ground, Mezzanine, Upper Levels, or Towers to the Concourse Level or West Building, please use the elevator outside of Tower 2. A larger elevator, located in Tower 1, is also available and provides access to all levels of the East Building

Service Dogs

Service dogs are permitted in the East and West Buildings as well as in the Sculpture Garden.

Accessible Programs and Events

See more programs

For Visitors Who Are Blind or Have Low Vision

Audio Tour Braille Transcript

A Braille transcript of the East Building audio tour is available on request at the Information Desk in the atrium of the East Building. Braille transcripts of the West Building Featured Selections and Kids West Building audio tours are available on request at the information desk in the West Building Rotunda.

Audio Tour Large Print Transcripts

Large print transcripts of audio tours are available on request. Transcripts for the East Building Tour: Featured Selections available at the Information Desk in the atrium of the East Building. Large print transcripts of the West Building Featured Selections and the Kids West Building audio tours are available at the information desk in the West Building Rotunda.

For Visitors Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing

Assistive Listening Devices

East Building auditoriums and the West Building Lecture Hall are equipped with listening enhancement systems. The receivers and neck loops necessary to use these systems can be borrowed from Information Desks in the East Building (near the entrance) or West Building (6th Street and Constitution Avenue entrance).

Portable assistive listening devices
Assistive listening devices are also available for use on any public program with three weeks’ advance notice. Please contact us at (202) 842-6905 or via email.

Closed Captioning

Website
All videos on our website can be played with closed captioning.

In the National Gallery
Films shown in conjunction with special exhibitions are closed captioned. A closed caption button is located at the entrance to every film viewing space within special exhibitions. A closed caption button is also located at the entrances to East Building auditoriums for all films related to special exhibitions.

Transcripts

A transcript is available for each track of our online audio tours.

Additional Resources