The Smithsonian Institution's Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden had its beginnings in 1966 when Latvian-born Joseph H. Hirshhorn donated his huge collection of contemporary and modern art. The museum officially opened 1974, and was then the recipient of additional works bequeathed by Hirshhorn in 1981 at his death.
Hirshhorn was a prodigious collector and a wealthy man, and developed a taste for modern art as well as a personal relationship with many of the artistic luminaries of his day, among them Willem de Kooning, Pablo Picasso, Arshile Gorky, Stuart Davis, Edward Hopper, Milton Avery, Raphael Soyer, Larry Rivers, and Andy Warhol. His collection grew to include 19th and 20th century sculpture, and he acquired major works by masters such as Auguste Rodin and Constantin Brancusi, as well as contemporaries including Alexander Calder, Henry Moore, and Alberto Giacometti.
As such, the museum is a treasure trove of contemporary art of a wide range and has since expanded its collections with international modern and contemporary art in all media.
Current and Upcoming Exhibitions
- Black Box: Ori Gersht
- December 22, 2008 to April 12, 2009
- Strange Bodies: Figurative Works from the Hirshhorn Collection
- December 11, 2008 to early 2010
- Directions-Terence Gower, Public Spirit
- November 5, 2008 to March 22, 2009
- Ways of Seeing: Guiseppe and Giovanna Panza
- October 23, 2008 to January 7, 2009
- The Panza Collection
- October 23, 2008 to January 11, 2009
- Dan Graham: "For Gordon Bunshaft"
- May 30, 2008
Attraction Information
- Hours:
- Museum: 10am-5:30pm, Monday-Sunday
- Sculpture Garden: 7:30am-dusk, Monday-Sunday
- Admission:
- Free
- Metro Stop:
- Blueline, Orangeline, Yellowline or Greenline to the L'Enfant Plaza Station
- Exit near intersection of 7th St Sw and Maryland Ave Sw
- Start out going North on 7th St Sw towards Independence Ave Sw
- Turn left onto Independence Ave Sw
- View Metro Map
- Contact:
- Location: Independence Avenue at Seventh Street SW, Washington, DC 20004
- Phone: 202-633-1000
- Website: www.hirshhorn.si.edu
