Murals That Matter: Activism Through Public Art
August 28, 2020 – December 31, 2020 The National Building Museum, in partnership with the P.A.I.N.T.S. Institute and the DowntownDC Business Improvement District (BID), is pleased to present Murals That Matter: Activism Through Public Art.…
Look Here
July 1, 2023 – September 4, 2023 This year we are thrilled to present the seventh Summer Block Party installation Look Here by Suchi Reddy. The installation fills the Museum’s colossal Great Hall while…
A Better Way Home: The Housing Affordability Breakthrough Challenge
October 21, 2022 – January 15, 2024 Home and community matter most. Yet in so many neighborhoods across the country, rising housing costs and interest rates have put homeownership out of…
What’s Already There: Sustainable Architecture from Brussels
“What’s Already There: Sustainable Architecture from Brussels” explores six examples of inventive adaptive reuse.
mLab
June 17th – August 22nd, 2022 In conjunction with the award, Arup’s m/Lab will be on display at the Museum from June 17 through August 22, 2022, showing how the tool enables…
The Playhouse
A theater experience by day and a performance space by night featuring Folger Theatre’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Notre-Dame de Paris: The Augmented Exhibition
Notre-Dame de Paris: The Augmented Exhibition is an augmented reality immersion into the history and restoration of the revered cathedral.
The Wall/El Muro: What Is a Border Wall?
November 6, 2021 – July 3, 2023 The Wall/El Muro: What Is a Border Wall? examines the border wall from the perspective of architecture and design. By focusing on the built…
Sukkah City x DC
Inspired by the theme ‘welcoming a stranger,’ the sukkah designs explore social justice issues, the changing landscape, and the traditions of Sukkot.
The Towers of the WTC: 51 Years of Photographs by Camilo José Vergara
A selection of 52 images by the renowned urban documentarian to commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attack on New York City.
Justice is Beauty: The Work of MASS Design Group
April 9, 2021 – March 7, 2023 Can a well-designed school enhance learning? Can the floor plan of a hospital improve health outcomes? Can a memorial promote healing within society?…
Gun Violence Memorial Project
April 9, 2021-March 7, 2023 “You hear those numbers all the time, but you never tie names to them. I wanted you to see who my son was.” -Pamela Bosley,…
Alan Karchmer: The Architects’ Photographer
April 9, 2021-August 14, 2023 Any prominent work of architecture is likely to be seen more widely through photographs than in person. These images have a profound influence on how…
Animals Collected
April 20, 2019 – August 28, 2023 Play Video Lions and tigers and … griffins? Oh, my! The National Building Museum is home to 320,000 objects related to the built…
Lawn
Lawn is an immersive installation in the Great Hall, and the centerpiece of the 2019 Summer Block Party.
HOOPS
This exhibition of photographer Bill Bamberger’s work celebrates the power of basketball to transcend place and build community.
Secret Cities
Dive into the design, construction, and daily life of the Manhattan Project secret cities in the U.S.
Flickering Treasures
Flickering Treasures invites visitors to travel in time through a survey of Baltimore’s movie-going past from 1896 to the present, using photography, oral histories, and architectural fragments.
Around the World in 80 Paper Models
Drawing from a magnificent 4,500-piece collection recently donated to the Museum, the architectural paper models represent buildings, cultures, and countries. Open through April 1, 2018.