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Dumbarton Oaks curator cracks the case of broken Byzantine seal

October 16, 2018–February 28, 2019 | See how one tale has transformed over time, captivating medieval and modern audiences alike with its enduring messages. Art is miraculous!

Orientation Gallery | Examines the transplantation of Italian gardens in the United States and explores the relationships between popular images, landscape design, and cultural identity

An installation of mixed media sculpture and works on paper, all inspired by natural forms and materials, by noted Washington artist Martha Jackson Jarvis.

February 20 – September 2, 2018 (museum) / December 16, 2018 (garden)

Rare Book Reading Room and Gallery

The Dumbarton Oaks Museum is known for its specialized collections of Byzantine and Pre-Columbian art. Although far-reaching in scope and wide-ranging in stylistic expression, the objects are unified by a rare beauty and refined craftsmanship, the result of the discerning eye of the collectors and founders of Dumbarton Oaks, Mildred and Robert Woods Bliss.

This online resource commemorates the fiftieth anniversary of Philip Johnson’s Pre-Columbian pavilion at Dumbarton Oaks. Johnson’s architectural masterpiece opened in 1963 and is now seen as a seminal building in his late 1950s’ shift from International Style modernism to Postmodern classicism. Despite this recognition, the Johnson wing has been little discussed or studied. This anniversary year provides an excellent opportunity to commemorate the Pre-Columbian collection’s impressive housing—arguably a work of art in its own right.