National Museum of Women in the Arts to Reopen

After a major renovation, the National Museum of Women in the Arts in DC will reopen to the public on October 21, 2023.

The National Museum of Women in the Arts (NMWA) in DC— the world's first major museum solely dedicated to championing women artists—will reopen to the public on October 21, 2023 following a major renovation. Visiting groups will find the transformed museum will now feature new exhibition spaces, re-envisioned public programming areas, improved amenities and increased accessibility.

In addition to an expansive reinstallation of the collection, NMWA will present an inaugural exhibition, The Sky's the Limit, featuring powerful monumental sculpture and immersive installations by contemporary women artists, in an innovative presentation not possible prior to the renovation. The Sky's the Limit presents artworks by 12 artists, including Petah Coyne, Cornelia Parker, Mariah Robertson, Shinique Smith, Joana Vasconcelos and Ursula von Rydingsvard. Sculptures will be suspended from the ceiling, arc across walls and project outward from corners, inspiring close encounters with artworks.

Additional exhibits opening alongside The Sky's the Limit include Remix: The Collection, In Focus: Artists at Work, Hung Liu: Making History, Impressive: Antoinette Bouzonnet-Stella, and Holding Ground: Artists' Books for the National Museum of Women in the Arts.

NMWA's $67.5 million project, designed by Baltimore-based architectural firm Sandra Vicchio & Associates, is the museum's first full renovation since it opened in 1987. It honors the legacy of the 1908 Classic Revival structure while improving its interior spaces, façade and infrastructure. Updates include gallery spaces enlarged by more than 20% to showcase historic and contemporary artworks and installations; a new Learning Commons, featuring an Education and Public Programs Studio for hands-on workshops as well as an improved Research Library; an updated, state-of-the-art Performance Hall; and more efficiently designed museum collections storage and conservation areas.

Learn more by visiting National Museum of Women in the Arts.

Courtesy of Groups Today.

Photo Credit to Cameron Robinson, Courtesy of National Museum of Women in the Arts. 

Photo Caption: National Museum of Women in the Arts, exterior, 13th Street and New York Avenue sides, evening, 2019; Photo by Cameron Robinson.