Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery
The National Portrait Gallery presents portraits of people of remarkable character and achievement - artists, politicians, scientists, inventors, activists and performers - whose lives form the nation's identity and help visitors understand who Americans are and what they can aspire to be. Through the visual arts, performing arts and new media, the collection features poets and presidents, visionaries and villains, and actors and activists alike.
The Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery tells the multifaceted story of the United States by presenting portrayals of individuals who have shaped the nation's history and culture. Authorized and founded by Congress in 1962, it opened to the public in 1968 with the mission to acquire and display portraits of individuals who have made significant contributions to the history, development, and culture of the people of the United States. Through the visual arts, performing arts, and new media, the Portrait Gallery presents poets and presidents, visionaries and villains, actors and activists whose lives form our national identity. As the nation's only complete collection of presidential portraits outside the White House, America's Presidents lies at the heart of that mission.
