Marvel at the Variety of Art in the National Portrait Gallery

I’d heard there were some pretty iconic portraits on display at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC. I was under the impression that it was mainly a collection of presidential portraits. But it’s so much more than that. I marveled at not only the styles of art, but of the people who were featured. If there’s one art museum you need to visit in the nation’s capital, this is the one.

And not to confuse you, but the building that houses the National Portrait Gallery also houses the Smithsonian American Art Museum (also known as SAAM). That means there are more than just portraits of famous people – there are also works of art that aren’t portraits.

Plan your visit to the National Portrait Gallery and SAAM with these helpful tips. Oh, and just like the majority of the museums in Washington, DC, this one’s free, too.

Getting to the National Portrait Gallery and SAAM

Like many of the museums in Washington, DC, I recommend parking outside of the district and taking the metro. The GREEN and the RED lines service the Gallery PL-Chinatown metro stop, which is the closest stop to the National Portrait Gallery. You can enter the museum from either F-Street or G-Street.

In advance of your visit, I recommend downloading the Sm[ART]ify app (available in the App Store or Google Play). I discovered it part-way through my visit and tried it out. It’s awesome. You can use your phone to look at any piece of art, and the app will give you all the information about the piece. Use it to learn about the artist, the painting and more. You can even save the information as a FAVORITE to revisit it after you leave the museum.

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On the first floor is a large atrium in the center of the building. There’s a nice garden area with lots of small tables to sit and study, enjoy a bite from the Cafe Courtyard or escape from the busy streets of the nation’s capital. The Cafe Courtyard is open Wednesday-Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

As noted, there are really two different museums in this one building. If you look at the PDF map online, you’ll notice the rooms dedicated to the National Portrait Gallery and the ones dedicated to the SAAM.

Getting Started on Your Tour

Regardless of which entrance you used to start your visit, you can begin by exploring the art on the first floor. Depending on when you visit the National Portrait Gallery, you’ll find different works of art on the display. There are multiple areas on the first floor that are dedicated to Special Exhibitions. During my visit, there was one on Watergate (think President Nixon). But as of this writing, that has since changed to something new.

The west side of the building is part of the SAAM. They have a Special Exhibit area, which housed some European art, sculptures, artifacts and more. The map shows the Experience America exhibit, but as of this writing, the website indicates that this exhibit is temporarily closed.

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The east side of the building is dedicated to the Out of Many: Portraits from 1600-1900 exhibits. There are more than 180 objects in the collection, featuring Indigenous Americans, European colonists, clergymen, soldiers, writers, performers, scientists, and others who helped shape the country. You’ll recognize people like Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, Sojourner Truth and Frederick Douglass.

Don’t miss out on the museum’s gift shop. During my visit, I bought a fantastic book, Change Sings: A Children’s Anthem by Amanda Gorman. It was not only a colorful work of visual illustrations by Loren Long, but the words are inspirational and was the perfect gift for my teenage daughter.

Art and Sculptures of America’s Presidents

If your purpose in visiting the National Portrait Gallery is to see iconic portraits of U.S. presidents, you’ll love the second floor. The presidents are organized into six historic time periods. Five of them lead off with the president that set the tone for that era. This includes Washington, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

The sixth chapter doesn’t have a single president, but focuses on the more recent presidential histories. Through the exhibit, you can not only admire the art, but use the time to learn more about each person. Be sure to read the text on the walls, or interact on the various touch screens. You can learn more about the person, but also about the history of the world that took place at the same time.

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The presidential portraits aren’t necessarily the ones you envision a portrait would look like. For example, the one in the photo above of President John F. Kennedy is a little more abstract than the detail-oriented portraits of some of the others. Be sure to enjoy the different styles of art, including the busts or sculptures on display as well.

Near the America’s Presidents exhibit is the Struggle for Justice. I really enjoyed this exhibit as well. It was an opportunity to learn about those throughout history – including modern times (recent years) – of people who worked for change.

“Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle”

Martin Luther king, jr

You’ll see the story behind people like Martin Luther King, Jr., Barbara Jordan, Thurgood Marshall, Dustin Lance Black, and several more. Read about each of them to learn how we can seek to improve the world we live in today by following their examples.

Portraits of Americans from the 20th Century

If I were to ever have a portrait painted of me, I would want it to look like this one from LL Cool J. However, I don’t think I have that “Bad A$$” look he conveys, so that will probably never happen. But I really enjoyed seeing his portrait and several others from more modern Americans.

Along the hall on the third floor are some smaller rooms. Each one features a grouping of various Americans. I don’t remember all of the people featured in the portraits, photographs, or sculptures. However, the include people like LL Cool J (as mentioned above), Bill and Melinda Gates, and one I surely wouldn’t forget – the crew of Apollo 11. Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins are all together in a single painting, along with other highlights of their mission to the moon.

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Some of the other featured icons include Jane Addams, Douglas MacArthur, Albert Einstein.

Continue exploring portraits of icons in the sports world by visiting the art on display on the mezzanines of the third and fourth floors. There are two separate collections to enjoy: Champions (sports) and Bravo! (musicians). You’ll see portraits and sculptures of Elvis Presley, Bill Shoemaker, Billie Jean King, Mia Hamm, Yogi Berra, Ethel Merman, Lionel Hampton and many more. If you don’t know who some of these people are, then you should pay a visit to the National Portrait Gallery.

Art Collections of the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM)

On the east end of the building, there’s a library of sorts, filled with art. Each area is catalogued so you can walk through all the alcoves and rooms. The art on display varies. As you can glimpse from the photo above, there are paintings, sculptures, statues and more. There are small stairways spaced throughout the gallery so you can move easily between the floors.

The art is grouped into different categories, including:

• Early America
• The Early Republic
• Western Art
• Landscapes
• Impressionism
• Gilded Age
• Modernism
• Contemporary Art and more

One of my favorite pieces is the Preamble of the Constitution, organized on license plates from the various U.S. states, in alphabetical order. For example, the opening line reads, “WE TH | P PUL | OF TH | U NI | DIDD | ST8S“. I loved the simplicity of it, and the creativity.

The Details

Address: 8th St NW & G St NW, Washington, DC 20001

How long to spend: Plan on anywhere from 1-2 hours so you can take in all the art on display.

Cost: There is no cost to visit the National Portrait Gallery or SAAM.

Hours: Open Tuesday through Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Closed on Mondays.

Website: https://npg.si.edu/

Phone: (202) 633-8300

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