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National Museum of Women in the Arts

Upcoming Exhibitions

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

Featured Upcoming Exhibition

Feb 27 to Jul 26, 2026
Making Their Mark: Works from the Shah Garg Collection illustrates women artists’ vital role in abstraction, showcasing work by some of the most important artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. Drawn entirely from the contemporary art collection of Komal Shah and Gaurav Garg, the exhibition considers historical contributions, formal and material breakthroughs, and intergenerational relationships among women artists over the last eight decades.
View Exhibition: Making Their Mark: Works from the Shah Garg Collection
A painting featuring colorful geometric forms. Bowling-pin shaped forms with blue, red, pink, and yellow patterns line the lower half of the composition. A large abstract yellow form and black-and-white chevron stripes fill the background.
Charline von Heyl, Dunesday, 2016; Acrylic on linen, 62 x 60 in.; Shah Garg Collection; © Charline von Heyl; Courtesy of the artist and Petzel, New York; Photo by Ian Reeves

All Upcoming Exhibitions

  • Shirley Gorelick: Figuring It Out

    Mar 27 to Jun 28, 2026
    Through the 1960s and 1970s, Shirley Gorelick (b. 1924, Brooklyn; d. 2000, Washington, DC) created soulful portrayals of her circle of close friends. Nearly 40 paintings, drawings, and prints by the artist reveal her bold realist aesthetic. Her partnerships in the 1970s with New York’s pioneering women-run galleries also position her as an inspiring feminist role model for a new generation.
    Two depictions of the same woman are shown in a room with an orange-tiled floor. One stands with a hand on her hip, while the other sits on a striped chair draped in green fabric. Both cast shadows on the plain wall behind them.

    Shirley Gorelick, The Bensons II, 1979; Acrylic on canvas, 71 x 71 in.; National Museum of Women in the Arts; Gift of Jamie Gorelick and Steven Gorelick

  • 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)

  • Routed West: Twentieth-Century African American Quilts in California

    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 more than 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.
    A vibrant, hand-quilted cotton textile features a combination of blue, orange, yellow, and red patchwork.

    Sherry Ann Byrd (piecework) and Irene Bankhead (quilting), Untitled (Medallion), 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 Laverne Brackens; Photo by Kevin Candland

  • Women to Watch 2027: A Book Arts Revolution

    Apr 11 to Aug 15, 2027
    Women to Watch 2027: A Book Arts Revolution is a dynamic exploration of contemporary artists’ books, works of art in book form. The exhibition encourages audiences to rethink the nature of book arts, featuring works that incorporate a wide variety of materials and formats. This is the latest edition of the museum’s hallmark exhibition series highlighting national and international artists at key stages in their careers. The series is developed through a unique collaboration between the museum and its global network of outreach committees.
    A person with curly brown hair, a white cable knit sweater, and a blue skirt reads a booklet on a black table, in front of an art work of grey and beige cloths installed on the wall.

    Attendees at the May 2024 NMWA Nights. Photo by Derek Baker for NMWA.

  • Gwen John: Strange Beauties

    Jul 30 to Nov 28, 2027
    Gwen John: Strange Beauties is the artist’s first major retrospective in more than 40 years, revealing new perspectives into her work. In bringing together John’s celebrated oil paintings with rarely seen drawings and watercolors, this exhibition illuminates her working practices, artistic breadth, and enduring legacy.
    Against a loosely painted purple-pink background, a girl with light skin tone and long light-brown hair stands with her hands clasped, looking directly out at the viewer.

    Gwen John, La Petite Modèle, ca. 1915-20; Oil on canvas, 29 1/4 x 26 in.; National Museum of Women in the Arts, Gift of Wallace and Wilhelmina Holladay; Photo by Lee Stalsworth