National Gallery of Art Closes Amid Government Shutdown

The National Gallery of Art (NGA) in Washington, DC, has closed temporarily and suspended all activities due to the ongoing government shutdown that commenced on September 29. As a federally funded cultural institution, the NGA is among the various sites impacted by the current deadlock over government spending, as lawmakers from both parties debate healthcare issues.

As the shutdown progresses into its second week, hundreds of thousands of government employees across vital agencies have been placed on furlough.

<pFounded by a Congressional mandate in 1937, the NGA operates as a private nonprofit entity in collaboration with the federal government, receiving significant funding from Congress annually. In 2024, the museum was allocated $209 million to cover salaries, special exhibitions, and operational expenses. It additionally seeks private sponsorship to finance programming and acquisitions.

The museum remained operational until Saturday, October 4, by utilizing funds from the previous fiscal year. A statement on the NGA’s official website indicates that “all programs are canceled until further notice.” As of October 6, emails to the NGA press contact were not being monitored.

The NGA is slated to unveil a major exhibition on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art on October 18. Entitled The Stars We Do Not See: Australian Indigenous Art, this exhibition is set to be the largest display of Australian Indigenous art outside of Australia itself.

Although the NGA has closed at the start of the second week of the shutdown, the Smithsonian Institution has pushed back its expected closure date by an additional five days. Initially, it was stated that its 21 museums and zoo could remain operational until Monday, October 6, but they will now continue to operate until Saturday, October 11, if the shutdown persists.

Should the Smithsonian close, a spokesperson informed Hyperallergic that “all non-excepted government employees are required to be furloughed.”

National Park Service sites are also impacted during the government shutdown, with various locations, including the African Burial Ground in Manhattan, now closed. However, some private cultural organizations in Washington, such as the George Washington University Museum, remain operational.

The longest shutdown in U.S. history occurred from December 2018 to January 2019, lasting for 35 days. During that time, the NGA reportedly incurred a loss of over a million dollars in revenue, according to certain estimates. The Smithsonian reportedly lost millions during its closure in the 2019 shutdown. The Smithsonian, a trust instrumentality of the U.S. government, received a higher appropriation compared to the NGA, amounting to $1.09 billion in the previous year.