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National Museum of Women in the Arts

Current Exhibitions

Close-up detail of an abstract painting with very thick and gestural brushstrokes of mostly orange paint.

Featured Current Exhibition

Sep 18, 2026, to Jan 17, 2027
Between 1940 and 1970, millions of African Americans left the Southern United States in what became known as the Second Great Migration, as they sought greater freedom, economic opportunity, and escape from Jim Crow segregation and racial terror. Hundreds of thousands of migrants arrived in California, where many carried quilts as well as their quilt-making traditions. Featuring nearly 80 artworks by more than 70 individuals with ties to the San Francisco Bay Area, Routed West threads the needle between Black people’s historical movements and their quilts to tell stories of collective care, resilience, and creativity.
View Exhibition: Routed West: Twentieth-Century African American Quilts in California
A vibrant, hand-quilted cotton textile features a combination of blue, orange, yellow, and red patchwork.
Sherry Ann Byrd (pieced 1990, Richmond, California) and Irene Bankhead (quilted 1990, Oakland, California), Cultural Merger at Crossroads, USA, 1990; Cotton, cotton/polyester blend, and rayon; hand-pieced and quilted; 95 x 75 ½ in.; Bequest of the Eli Leon Living Trust, BAMPFA‬; Courtesy of Sherry Ann Byrd; Photo by Kevin Candland

All Current Exhibitions

  • Marlo Pascual: Making Something Out of Something

    Jul 24, 2026, to Feb 28, 2027
    Visionary artist Marlo Pascual (b. 1972, Nashville; d. 2020, Philadelphia) created works that amuse, confuse, and provoke viewers by dramatically recontextualizing anonymous vintage photographs and found objects. Drawn entirely from the collection of the National Museum of Women in the Arts, this exhibition introduces visitors to Pascual’s uncanny and compelling work and champions her legacy.
    A detail shot of a black-and-white image of a person’s face printed on plexiglas that has been shattered in the center.

    Marlo Pascual, Untitled, 2014; Laser-cut digital C-print on Plexiglas, 55 x 40 in.; National Museum of Women in the Arts, Gift of Tony Podesta Collection, Washington, D.C.; Image courtesy of the artist and Casey Kaplan, New York

  • Burnished: Pueblo Pottery at NMWA

    May 8 to Sep 27, 2026
    NMWA presents a new look at Pueblo pottery from the American Southwest in this exhibition drawn from the museum’s groundbreaking, and growing, collection. Twenty-four elegantly shaped clay ollas, seed jars, and bowls feature mesmerizing surfaces and pristinely sculpted motifs. Burnished affirms the continuing impact of Pueblo women potters as well as NMWA’s longstanding commitment to collecting and exhibiting their work.
    A round ceramic vase with a short neck decorated with intricate geometric and floral patterns painted in red, pink, blue, yellow, and purple.

    Lisa Holt and Harlan Reano, Jar, 2025; Natural clay with acrylic paint, 16 x 14 in. diameter; National Museum of Women in the Arts, Bequest of Sandra A. Kruzman; © Lisa Holt (Cochiti), Harlan Reano (Santo Domingo)

  • Remix: The Collection

    Oct 21, 2023, to Jan 16, 2028
    Remix showcases familiar collection favorites as well as never-before-exhibited recent acquisitions. Artworks are grouped around themes, in some cases anchored by a medium and in others by an idea, that resonate among global artists across time, including photography, fiber works, the colors red and purple, nature, domesticity, and more.
    A horizontal canvas combines collaged paper, such as a scrap of a U.S. map, comic strip, and pictographs; cloth swatches; scrawled and dripped paint; and phrases like “It takes hard work to keep racism alive” and “Oh! Zone.” The work’s title appears in red paint right of center.

    Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Indian, Indio, Indigenous, 1992; Oil and collage on canvas, 60 x 100 in.; National Museum of Women in the Arts, Museum purchase: Members' Acquisition Fund; © Estate of Jaune Quick-to-See Smith; Courtesy of the Estate of Jaune Quick-to-See Smith and Garth Greenan Gallery, New York