Related Events & Exhibitions

In addition to daily performances and activities on the National Mall, the Smithsonian Folklife Festival recommends events and exhibitions relating to our programs at other Smithsonian museums and venues around Washington, D.C. All events are free unless otherwise noted.

Upcoming Events

The Potomac River, with a single rower heading upriver, and the buildings of the Kennedy Center in the background.

March 22–April 22, 2023

RiverRun Festival
Kennedy Center
kennedy-center.org

Spanning World Water Day to Earth Day, RiverRun invites hundreds of extraordinary talents from around the world—musicians, actors, dancers, authors, filmmakers, chefs, and visual artists—to converge in Washington, D.C. RiverRun will carve an artistic path through the stages, grand halls, and terraces of the Kennedy Center as well as the studios and green spaces of the REACH.

Computer model image of visitors in a museum gallery, examining a digital tabletop display.

June 9, 2023

Opening Day
Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum
capitaljewishmuseum.org

The first museum of its kind dedicated to celebrating the history of the Jewish experience in the nation’s capital will open the doors to its new home at 575 Third Street, NW, in Washington, D.C. The museum engages visitors in humanities-based exhibitions and programs that explore themes of immigration, cultural identity, civics, social activism, and more.

Exhibitions

Prayer carpet detail with repeating niche design in deep blue, orange, and red.

On view until July 1, 2023

Prayer and Transcendence
The George Washington University Museum and The Textile Museum
museum.gwu.edu

In the Muslim faith, carpets create physically and spiritually “clean” spaces during the daily ritual of prayer. Drawn from five collections, this exhibition introduces the purpose and iconography of classical prayer rugs from across the Islamic world, as well as design comparisons from the Jewish tradition.

Marvin Gaye on stage in a pink jacket and silvery shirt, hands both raised, and sweat on his brow.

On view until November 2023

Spirit in the Dark: Religion in Black Music, Activism and Popular Culture
National Museum of African American History and Culture
nmaahc.si.edu

Spirit in the Dark examines Black religious life through a selection of photographs from the Johnson Publishing Company, publisher of Ebony, Jet, and Negro Digest. The images in the exhibition spotlight noteworthy individuals and uplift objects from the museum’s collection, many on display for the first time. Together they reflect diverse aspects of the Black religious experience and testify to the role religion has played in the struggle for human dignity and social equality.

Black and white photograph of Sister Rosetta Tharpe singing and holding a guitar.

On view until February 2024

Music HerStory: Women and Music of Social Change
National Museum of American History
library.si.edu

From our earliest musical encounters to the formation of complex social identities, the American musical landscape wouldn’t be what it is today without the countless contributions of women changemakers, groundbreakers, and tradition-bearers. Women’s leadership in music and social change is central to the American story. Music HerStory explores these contributions through unique media collections from across the Smithsonian.

Digital illustration of Black faces, a compass rose, and a galaxy formation.

On view until March 2024

Afrofuturism: A History of Black Futures
National Museum of African American History and Culture
nmaahc.si.edu

Investigating Afrofuturist expression through art, music, activism and more, this exhibition explores and reveals Afrofuturism’s historic and poignant engagement with African American history and popular culture. From the enslaved looking to the cosmos for freedom to popular sci-fi stories inspiring Black astronauts, to the musical influence of Sun Ra, OutKast, Janelle Monae, P-Funk, and more, this exhibition covers the broad and impactful spectrum of Afrofuturism.

Painting of multi-armed goddesses sitting cross-legged in a mountainous painted landscape.

On view indefinitely

The Art of Knowing in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Himalayas
National Museum of Asian Art
asia.si.edu

The Art of Knowing brings together highlights from our collections to explore religious and practical knowledge across time, space, and cultures. Featuring stone sculptures, gilt bronzes, and painted manuscripts from India, Nepal, Tibet, Bangladesh, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Cambodia, and Indonesia, this exhibition illuminates the critical role of visual culture in conveying Buddhist and Hindu teachings from the ninth to the twentieth centuries.

Illustration of a Black mother and child sitting against a tree among wildflowers, next to a blue river. White text in the sky reads: Everyone deserves clean air and water.

On view May 19, 2023

To Live and Breathe: Women and Environmental Justice in Washington, D.C.
Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum
anacostia.si.edu

Women have led the environmental justice movement. Women are often the ones who notice patterns of disease in their communities, fight to protect their families and neighbors, and bear the burden of health disparities. In this exhibition, explore how local women of color draw on a long history of activism and advance environmental justice efforts not only in D.C., but across the country and beyond.