Film
Hirshhorn’s The Exhibit Premieres With Inflatable Banana and Lots of Cringe
The Exhibit: Finding the Next Great Artist is filled with awkward silences and art-world jargon.
Smithsonian Institution
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Smithsonian to House Repatriated Yemeni Artifacts
The National Museum of Asian Art will temporarily store the 77 cultural relics as looting and destruction of antiquities continues in the war-torn country.
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Harmful Pesticides in Museum Collections Complicate Repatriation Efforts
Tribes and museums are grappling with the dilemma of sacred Indigenous objects and remains contaminated by toxic pesticides and preservatives.
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The US Could Get Its First National LGBTQ+ History Museum
But the upcoming midterm elections could ultimately decide the fate of the fledgling museum.
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500+ US Museums Will Be Free on September 17
Museum Day 2022 is a chance to get out there and show the special or weird institution in your state that you care — for free.
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The Smithsonian Will Return 29 Benin Bronzes to Nigeria
Provenance research is still being conducted on the ten remaining bronzes in the collection.
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Smithsonian Adopts Landmark Policy on Ethical Restitution
Previously, the Smithsonian held that its museums were entitled to retain an artifact so long as its provenance rested on solid legal ground.
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House Passes Bill to Study a National Asian Pacific American Museum
“Unfortunately many remain unaware of the crucial role we’ve played throughout our history,” said Congresswoman Grace Meng, who sponsored the bill.
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Smithsonian Announces Landmark Decision to Repatriate Benin Bronzes
The institution says it will return most of the 39 artifacts in its collection to Nigeria for eventual display at the Benin City National Museum.
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The Smithsonian Museums Are Dropping Their Mask Mandate This Friday
Other major museums, like the Metropolitan Museum of Art, still require visitors to be masked indoors.
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Smithsonian to Exhibit 120 3D-printed Statues of Women in Sciences
It will be the "largest collection of statues of women ever assembled together," the institution said.
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Smithsonian Offers Jeff Bezos Unusual Naming Rights with $200M Donation
A written agreement between the two sides lacks a “Morals Clause,” barring the museum from removing the billionaire’s name if scandal hits.