The National Gallery of Art (NGA) in Washington, DC, has been closed since Saturday evening (4 October) and will remain shuttered while the shutdown of the US federal government continues. The NGA—the seventh-most-visited art institution in the world according to The Art Newspaper’s most recent survey of global museum attendance, with nearly 4 million visitors in 2024—receives the bulk of its funding from the federal government. In its congressional-funding request for fiscal year 2025, it sought over $215m in government funds.
Meanwhile the Smithsonian Institution, which manages 21 museums in the Washington, DC, area and in New York City—as well as the National Zoo—will keep all its facilities open through 11 October. A note on the institution’s website states: “If the government shutdown continues past 11 October, the Smithsonian will close to the public.” The Smithsonian receives around 53% of its funding (which totaled $1.09bn in fiscal year 2024) via appropriations determined by the US Congress. It has been repeatedly targeted by the administration of President Donald Trump since he returned to power in January.
Since the start of the shutdown on the morning of 1 October, hundreds of thousands of federal employees across dozens of departments have been furloughed. Many historic sites managed by the National Park Service are operating at reduced capacity, while others have closed entirely. “As a general rule, if a facility or area is locked or secured during non-business hours (buildings, gated parking lots, etc), it should be locked or secured for the duration of the shutdown,” reads a contingency plan released by the Department of the Interior.
Neither Republicans nor Democrats in Congress seem prepared to compromise in order to end the government shutdown. Meanwhile, White House representatives have claimed that they are working with federal agencies to identify workers who can be laid off if the shutdown continues.
In addition to the Smithsonian museums that will remain open through 11 October, art-loving visitors to and residents of Washington, DC, still have a wealth of fantastic options. The Phillips Collection near Dupont Circle has a world-class permanent collection and recently opened a solo exhibition devoted to the local artist Rik Freeman (until 19 February 2026) at its satellite location in Southeast DC; the museum is also offering $10 admission to federal workers.
The National Museum of Women in the Arts, located just a few blocks from the White House, has a historic exhibition of works by Dutch and Flemish artists from the 17th and 18th centuries (until 11 January 2026). On the other side of the White House, the George Washington University Museum and the Textile Museum house exceptional collections of artefacts related to Washington, DC’s history and the evolution of textile art.
The National Building Museum is offering free admission to federal workers with valid identification. It is currently hosting the exhibition Coming Together: Reimagining America’s Downtowns, which examines how US cities are rethinking their central business districts in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Rubell Museum's DC location is currently hosting a solo exhibition by Basil Kincaid and a group show chronicling artists' inventive uses of materials.
In one of the city’s Maryland suburbs, Glenstone houses an exceptional private collection of contemporary art including current displays devoted to Alex Da Corte, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Charles Ray and others. And in suburban Virginia, the Gillespie Gallery at George Mason University is hosting Before the Americas, an exhibition that was originally due to open at Washington, DC's Art Museum of the Americas that was abruptly cancelled amid Trump's crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion programmes (the show features 45 works by artists from the African diaspora in the Americas).