Renwick Gallery

Introduction

The Renwick Gallery is a branch of the Smithsonian American Art Museum dedicated to contemporary American craft and decorative art, often called the Louvre of American craft. The building was designed by architect James Renwick Jr. and completed in 1859 as the original Washington city art gallery, one of the earliest French Second Empire style buildings in the United States, with a red sandstone facade and tall mansard roof that converse elegantly with the eastern facade of the White House across the street. In the 1860s it served as a federal War Department warehouse and housed the private collection of William Corcoran before the Smithsonian took it over in 1972 and reimagined it as a craft museum. Recent Renwick Wonder exhibitions have stunned visitors with large-scale installations such as Gabriel Dawe thread rainbows, Janet Echelman suspended net sculptures, and Patrick Dougherty stick-built rooms, seamlessly bridging traditional craft and contemporary experimental art, making it Washington most surprising free art temple.

✨ Highlights

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