All upcoming 60th Anniversary programs

View iconic masterpieces and learn the stories behind their creation as lecturer Paul Glenshaw leads an engaging tour of three museums focused on several of the great works featured in his popular Art + History series for Smithsonian Associates. Start the tour at the National Gallery of Art followed by a brisk outdoor walk and lunch at a nearby restaurant. Enjoy the afternoon at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery and American Art Museum. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1/2 credit)

In 1888 William T. Hornaday, chief taxidermist at the Smithsonian Institution, set off to hunt some of the very last remaining American bison to create a museum display before they vanished forever. Yet far from hastening its extinction, he became integral to saving the species. Wildlife filmmaker Steve Nicholls examines how such a once-abundant creature could stand on the brink of extinction and how a few influential individuals such as Hornaday helped save the bison.

Learn how to see beauty in the natural world and render it in stunning watercolor paintings, using various watercolor techniques to represent the metallic shell of a beetle, the soft, fuzzy wing of a moth, and the delightful colors of a butterfly.

The prehistoric art painted on the walls and ceilings of the caves at Altamira in Spain and Lascaux and Chauvet in France offer tantalizing clues about the origins of humankind and the development of abstract thought. Historian Justin M. Jacobs analyzes recurring motifs and patterns in Paleolithic cave art, examines why and how such images were created, and revisits some of the leading theories about their meaning.

View iconic masterpieces and learn the stories behind their creation as lecturer Paul Glenshaw leads an engaging tour of three museums focused on several of the great works featured in his popular Art + History series for Smithsonian Associates. Start the tour at the National Gallery of Art followed by a brisk outdoor walk and lunch at a nearby restaurant. Enjoy the afternoon at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery and American Art Museum. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1/2 credit)

In the fall and early winter of 1903, two innovative and courageous engineering teams were racing toward a once-unimaginable goal: to be the first to fly. One was a pair of brothers, Orville and Wilbur Wright; the other was Dr. Samuel Langley, secretary of the Smithsonian, and his brilliant assistant, Charles Matthews Manly. We know who won—but do we know why? Writer and filmmaker Paul Glenshaw tells the story of the epic competition.

Not all birds fly to tropical climates for the winter. Naturalist Matt Felperin shares valuable tips on how to make the most of winter birding in the mid-Atlantic region, where species from songbirds to swans to shorebirds find seasonal homes in temperate North America. You’ll be ready to put on your snow pants and parka and enjoy one of the most rewarding and magical times for birding.

Florence and Venice were both rich, confident, and magnificently beautiful cities—powerhouses of Renaissance creativity. Yet they were vastly different in their character and artistic, intellectual, and political aspirations. Art historian Nigel McGilchrist explores the tale of these two cities and the artists they nurtured, in particular the contrasting geniuses of Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Titian. (World Art History Certificate elective, 1 credit)

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 Saturdays. The concert features music composed by Schubert, Mozart, and Bruckner.

While Romare Bearden worked in many mediums from oil and watercolor to printmaking, he is best known for his mixed-media collages and photomontages. After looking at Bearden’s works of art, students try their hand at creating Bearden-inspired mixed-media compositions.