Led by regional historian Hayden Mathews, step into a world of elegance and holiday splendor in a journey through the historic Brandywine Valley, where the legacy of the du Pont family comes to life in grand estates filled with seasonal displays. Spanning Pennsylvania and Delaware, the region is home to some of the most opulent mansions and gardens in the country, each with a connection to the du Pont family, who shaped the cultural and economic landscape of the region and created a heritage of architecture, art, and horticulture.
First practiced in the Greco-Roman era, encaustic painting remains popular with artists today. Study fusing and carving in wax as well as capturing vibrant pigments using heated beeswax.
Just in time for the upcoming season, this workshop is an opportunity to create small hanging artworks that can be individualized in many ways to fit any gift-giving occasion.
Few national cinemas offer as compelling a mirror to social transformation as Italy’s. In the decades following World War II, Italian filmmakers shaped a legacy of innovation, reflection, and artistry that still resonates on the global stage. In a four-part series, art historian Jennie Hirsh explores pivotal moments in Italian cinema, from the birth of Neorealism to the bold experimentation of contemporary filmmakers, and how they captured—and questioned—their time. This session focuses on 1970s and 1980s filmmaking and the legacy of Fascism.
Ponder the possibilities that the contemplative season of Advent provides inspired by Henry Ossawa Tanner’s painting The Annunciation and a poem by Wendell Berry. Designed for writers of all levels, and for the curious, the workshop led by Mary Hall Surface invites you to look outwardly at art and to look inwardly through writing. These reflections can become creative fertile ground for memoir, poetry, and more.
Smithsonian Chamber Music Society audiences are privy to the unparalleled experience of being able to hear two magnificent quartets of instruments—one made by Antonio Stradivari, the other by his teacher Nicoló Amati—in this popular four-concert series on Sundays. This concert features music composed by J. S. Bach.
Ages 5 to 10. Celebrate the holiday season with traditions from around the world.
During the early years of the Great Depression, Americans experienced economic decline on a scale that was without precedent in the nation’s history. Historian Edward O’Donnell explores the causes and impact of this era in an examination of the key aspects of President Roosevelt’s New Deal, including the philosophical and political ideas behind it.
In 1734, the Duke of Parma (and soon-to-be King of Naples) had most of the extensive art collection established by his family moved from Parma to Naples. Filippo Borbone, who became Duke of Parma in 1748, was determined to hold on to what works were left. The collection eventually would become the National Gallery of Parma. Italian Renaissance art expert Rocky Ruggiero delves into the museum’s artworks, including important pieces by Correggio as well as La Scapigliata by da Vinci. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1/2 credit)
