The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery announces a multipart collaboration with Ground Shift Studio in celebration of the nation’s 250th anniversary. The collaboration will unfold over a series of public programs in June and July 2026 and will feature vinyl imagery that resembles chalk drawings of portraits in the museum’s permanent collection.
The festivities will begin with a participatory Chalk the Block event Thursday, June 18, from 3 to 6 p.m., in collaboration with Chalk Riot, a component of Ground Shift Studio, and the DowntownDC Business Improvement District (BID). Visitors can draw their portraits in chalk on the museum’s F Street sidewalk while they listen to the sounds of DJ Harry Hotter. Following the outdoor program, museumgoers can also contribute to a communal chalkboard in the Portrait Gallery’s interior courtyard from 5 to 8 p.m. These activities will coincide with the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s jazz performance series, Take 5: Jazz at SAAM Thursday, June 18, from 5 to 8 p.m. and Thursday, July 9, from 5 to 7 p.m. in the museums’ shared Kogod Courtyard.
On summer weekends from June 20 through July 19, site-specific art activations in the courtyard will invite visitors to partake in unique photo ops and experience portraits and themes from the Portrait Gallery’s collection in a new way. Also on view from June 26 through July 19, will be a large-scale mural designed by Ground Shift Studio on the museum’s outdoor steps at G and Eighth streets. Visitors can learn more about the portraits of leading historical figures featured in the mural via QR codes linking users to the museum’s recently launched Bloomberg Connects digital guide.
Events and Art Activations
Chalk the Block
Thursday, June 18
3–6 p.m.
F and Eighth Street Steps
The National Portrait Gallery and Chalk Riot invite artists of all ages to gather outdoors on the museum’s F Street sidewalk for a fun-filled afternoon of chalk games and portraiture, joined by DJ Harry Hotter and an ice cream cart from the DowntownDC BID.
Visitors can stay for more chalk fun indoors during the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s Take 5: Jazz at SAAM concert series in the Kogod Courtyard from 5 to 8 p.m., presented as part of the Smithsonian’s Our Shared Future: 250 and Solstice.
Art Activations
Weekends only, June 20–July 19
Kogod Courtyard
National Portrait Gallery
Visitors can interact with site-specific art activations in the Kogod Courtyard on Saturdays and Sundays from June 20 through July 19. Activations will include floor art and large frame cutouts with backdrops of some of the museum’s most famous portraits. Visitors can tag their photos @smithsoniannpg using the hashtag, #myNPG.
Outdoor Mural by Ground Shift Studio
June 26–July 19
Mural installation: June 22–25; times to vary between 7 a.m. and 11 a.m.
*Contact the museum’s press office for the latest installation schedule.
G and Eighth Street Steps
Enjoy a large-scale mural on the steps of the National Portrait Gallery, inspired by the museum’s collection for the occasion of America’s 250th anniversary. Tag your photos @smithsoniannpg, #myNPG.
Chalk Art Activities with Ground Shift Studio
Thursday, July 9, 5–7 p.m.
Kogod Courtyard
Visitors can enjoy site-specific art activations based on portraits and themes in the Portrait Gallery’s collection. These activities coincide with the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s Take 5: Jazz at SAAM concert series, presented as part of the Smithsonian’s Our Shared Future: 250.
National Portrait Gallery
The Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery tells the multifaceted story of the United States through the individuals who have shaped American culture. Spanning the visual arts, performing arts and new media, the Portrait Gallery portrays poets and presidents, visionaries and villains, actors and activists whose lives tell the nation’s story.
The National Portrait Gallery is at Eighth and G streets N.W., Washington, D.C. Smithsonian Information: (202) 633-1000. Connect with the museum at npg.si.edu and on Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube.