A Guide to Group Visits
The following information will help groups of all ages prepare for guided and self-guided tours.
You can request group tours using our online form.
History of the Freer and Sackler Galleries
Information about the galleries' history
Choosing a school tour
How do I choose a tour?
What will my students see during their tour?
School tour descriptions
Adult and university tours
List of tours
Making a reservation
Reservations for group tours
Self-guided tours
Groups with special needs
Teachers
Resources
Chaperones
Assignments
The day of your visit
Students
What they should know before their visit
Respecting other cultures
Museum manners
General Information
Contact information
Metro
Parking
Bus parking
Security
Lunches and bags
Accessibility
Choosing a School Tour
How do I choose a tour?
- Identify what is currently on display by going to http://www.asia.si.edu/exhibitions/default.htm for a complete list of current exhibitions. Make note of the date an exhibition closes when scheduling your visit.
- After you have reviewed our latest exhibitions, look at the school tour descriptions to choose a tour. Note that there are size limits and age recommendations for school tours.
What will my students see during their tour?
Students are likely to see only a handful of objects during their tour. Gallery teachers are encouraged to spend more time with fewer objects in the hope that students will examine objects closely. They will use these objects to discuss a few general concepts relating to the tour theme.
School Tour Descriptions
All tours last approximately one hour.
Arts of Buddhism
Recommended for grades 6-12
Limit: 30 students
Location: Freer gallery
How are beliefs and cultural and artistic traditions of India, China, and Japan expressed through Buddhist art? Students immerse themselves in the world of Buddhist art by tracing the origins and rise of Buddhism through powerful and beautiful images crafted across Asia, such as a narrative stone sculpture that dramatically depicts the life of the Buddha and freestanding wooden temple guardian sculptures from Japan.
Arts of China
Limit: 40 students
Recommended for grades 3-12
Location: Freer and/or Sackler galleries
What are important artistic traditions from China and what do they tell us about Chinese culture over the centuries? Students discover the diverse artistic and cultural traditions of one of the world's oldest civilizations by examining works such as ritual bronze vessels used by ancient kings, calligraphy (the art of beautiful writing), brush paintings in ink and color, and exquisite ceramics.
Arts of India and the Himalayas
Limit: 20 students
Recommended for grades 6-12
Location: Freer and/or Sackler galleries
How do the artistic expressions of India and the Himalayan region reflect religious beliefs and culture? Students observe artistic approaches and uncover meaning by looking closely at such visually arresting works as Hindu bronze sculptures, Buddhist stone sculptures, and stunning paintings from the north Indian Mughal and Rajput courts.
Arts of the Islamic World
Limit: 20 students
Recommended for grades 6-12
Location: Freer and/or Sackler galleries
How are religious beliefs, cultural traditions, and artistic choices expressed through the diverse arts of the Islamic world? Students open their minds by actively observing, discussing, and exploring religious and/or secular art-such as Arabic calligraphy, lavishly illuminated and illustrated manuscripts, glittering glasswork, and breathtaking metalwork-primarily from West Asia (the Middle East) and North Africa.
Arts of Japan
Limit: 40 students
Recommended for grades 3-12
Location: Freer gallery
What are the unique characteristics of Japanese art and how do they reflect important cultural values? Students discover the world of Japanese art and explore its close connection to cultural beliefs by examining artworks such as lavishly painted screens, dramatic Buddhist temple sculptures, paintings of urban life, and beautifully crafted tea ceramics.
Sacred Arts of Asia: Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam
Limit: 40 students
Recommended for grades 6-12
Location: Freer and/or Sackler galleries
How are beliefs, culture, and artistic choices expressed through the art of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam? Students delve into the artistic expressions of three major religious traditions and discover the richness of the artworks and the belief systems that inspired them, examining Hindu bronze deity sculptures, Buddhist stone sculptures, Koran folios (pages), and other works.
Art Brings Writing to Life!
Limit: 60 students
Recommended for grades 3-12
Location: Freer and/or Sackler galleries
How can art be used to inspire creative and meaningful writing? In this unique tour, students engage in fun poetry and prose writing activities using the Freer and Sackler collection as inspiration. See how working with art-American paintings or works from Japan or China, for example-can be simple, enjoyable, and effective!
East Meets West
Limit: 30 students
Recommended for grades 6-12
Location: Freer gallery
What is the relationship between East Asian art and turn-of-the-century American art? Students compare and contrast turn-of-the-century American art and East Asian art by looking closely at both bold works by American artists, including James McNeill Whistler, and examples of East Asian art-such as Japanese paintings, prints, and screens depicting urban life-that inspired them.
Highlights
Limit: 60 students
Location: Freer and/or Sackler galleries
Highlights tours are interactive experiences designed as introductions to the collections. Students examine Asian and/or turn-of-the-century American art. Please select a theme from the list below:
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Animals
Recommended for grades K-12
What do artistic depictions of important animals from Asia tell us about culture and beliefs? Students learn about the wide variety of real and imagined animals in Asian traditions-such as the Chinese dragon-by looking closely at examples of the animals in diverse artwork of the collections and exploring their significance.
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Nature in Asian Art
Recommended for grades K-12
What do images of flowers and plants in Asian art communicate about cultural ideas of the natural world and human relationships with nature? Students will "blossom" during this tour in which they see and discuss depictions of Asian flowers and plants and unlock the profound meaning behind these depictions, looking at a variety of stunning artworks from the collections.
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Discovery, Trade, and Exchange
Recommended for grades 4-12
What are some ways in which cultural exchange is expressed through art in Asian and/or American collections in the Freer & Sackler galleries? Students explore the unexpected by looking at the cultural and artistic connections between artworks as seemingly different as late 19th-century American paintings and Japanese woodblock prints of urban life or metalwork from Syria and Chinese blue-and-white porcelain. This tour can be connected with curriculum on the Silk Road.
*Due to ongoing gallery installations, some tours and objects might not be available.
Adult and University Tours
All tours last approximately one hour.
Freer Highlights
Limit: 60 participants
Explore the rich and diverse collections of the Freer Gallery of Art. Learn about the history of the museum and its outstanding holdings of Asian and late nineteenth-century American art. Exceptional works from China, Japan, Korea, South and Southeast Asia, the ancient Near East, and the Islamic world are on view. The Freer also houses the world's most extensive collection of paintings, prints, and drawings by American artist James McNeill Whistler, including his famous Peacock Room. Museum founder Charles Lang Freer's understanding and appreciation of art and its history shaped his personal collection and his vision for the first Smithsonian museum devoted to the fine arts. Discover how he viewed Asian and American art from the perspective of a collector and a connoisseur in the late nineteenth century.
Special Exhibition
Limit: Varies
Participate in an in-depth tour of one of the museum's temporary exhibitions on view in the Freer Gallery of Art or Arthur M. Sackler Gallery.
Arts of Japan
Limit: 40 participants
Travel to Japan through the Freer Gallery's unparalleled collection of screens, paintings, lacquerware, prints, ceramics, and sculpture. Look closely at Japanese works of art and learn about their importance in Japanese history and culture, past and present.
Arts of China
Limit: 45 participants
Chinese art has flourished from the Neolithic period into the twenty-first century. Discover the richness and diversity of Chinese art, from ceramics, lacquerware, painting, and calligraphy to ancient bronzes and jades.
Arts of the Indian Subcontinent and the Himalayas
Limit: 15 participants
View and discuss the Freer Gallery's important collection of sculpture, paintings, and drawings created in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and Tibet. Discover how the arts of this region are closely intertwined with many religious traditions, including Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Jainism.
Arts of the Islamic World
Limit: 15 participants
See how a variety of artistic traditions have thrived since the advent of Islam in the late seventh century. Explore the Freer's collection of arts of the Islamic world, which were created across a vast geographic area, from southern Spain and North Africa to the islands of Southeast Asia.
Arts of Buddhism
Limit: 45 participants
The religious arts of Buddhism in the Freer Gallery's collection reflect a variety of Buddhist traditions. Compare Buddhist objects and discover how the religion was transformed as it spread from India across the vast continent of Asia.
Sacred Arts of Asia
Limit: 45 participants
Examine works of art originally created for worship in various Asian religious traditions. Learn how visual characteristics of these art forms reflect key principles and practices associated with each religion.
Whistler and the Peacock Room
Limit: 30 participants
The famed Peacock Room was once the London dining room of wealthy shipowner Frederick Leyland. Hear the intriguing story of Leyland, American artist James McNeill Whistler, and the controversial decoration of the Peacock Room. Explore other works by Whistler in the Freer's American art galleries, and find out how Whistler influenced Charles Lang Freer's own aesthetic sensibility and collecting.
Surface Beauty (American art collection)
Limit: 30 participants
In the late nineteenth century, museum founder Charles Lang Freer worked closely with American artists Dwight William Tryon and Thomas Wilmer Dewing to design his home in Detroit as "a dream of beauty--inside and out." Close examination of paintings by these artists and others reveals Freer's interest in creating a total aesthetic environment through decorative, visually interesting surfaces. Explore the ways Freer detected "points of contact" between these paintings and Asian art and how these connections shaped his personal collection and the museum he bequeathed to the Smithsonian.
*Due to ongoing gallery installations, some tours and objects might not be available.
Making a Reservation
Reservations for Group Tours
Group tours are available with four weeks' advance registration, subject to availability. Group tours are offered from 10:15 a.m. to 2:15 p.m. daily, except Wednesdays and federal holidays.
To submit a tour request, please use the online Tour Request form. If you are unable to submit the form, print and fax it to 202.312.1930.
We will make every effort to accommodate your request. Tour requests are handled on a first-come, first-served basis and depend on the availability of docents, gallery size, and other factors.
Please note: submitting a Tour Request form does not guarantee a tour.
Confirmation
We will send written confirmation two to three weeks before your tour is scheduled to take place. A docent will contact you approximately one week before the tour to discuss objectives and confirm logistical information.
Please note: submitting the Tour Request form does not guarantee a tour.
Cancellations
Weekdays
All Tours: 202.633.1012
Weekends (after 10:00 am)
Tours in the Freer: 202.633.2834
Tours in the Sackler: 202.633.2843
Self-guided Tours
Groups who are unable to schedule a reserved tour may tour exhibitions and galleries on their own. To ensure space availability, self-guided groups are asked to make reservations four weeks in advance by completing the online Self-Guided Groups form. We ask that self-guided groups register at the information desk when they arrive at the museum.
To avoid congestion in the galleries, we encourage self-guided groups to plan their visits for the afternoons or Wednesday mornings. Only pencils are allowed in the galleries. Photography for personal use (with or without flash) is allowed, except where indicated otherwise by signage. Generally, we permit photography of the permanent collections but not of loan objects or special exhibitions.
Groups with Special Needs
Please indicate any special needs on the Tour Request form. We offer the following services (please check for availability):
- Tours in some foreign languages (please specify in tour request).
- Specially designed tours for visually impaired visitors.
- Sign-language interpreters.
Teachers
On-line Resources
Asian Art Connections: Resources for Educators
Our biannual educational newsletter features temporary exhibitions and includes one or more featured object, reproductions, exhibition information, curriculum connections, classroom activities, book reviews, and
more. Asian Art Connections is free of charge. To add your name to the educational mailing list, please write to Asian Art Connections: Resources for Educators at fsgeducation@si.edu
Chaperones
There must be at least ONE CHAPERONE PER 10 STUDENTS. It is the responsibility of the chaperone, not the docent, to monitor the group. Chaperones should not bring reading materials or stray from the group. They should have the following information:
- A list of the students for whom they are responsible.
- A schedule of the trip and where to meet the docent and the bus.
Assignments
- Assignments are NOT PERMITTED on guided tours.
- If you are a self-guided group and you have planned an activity, you may use PENCILS in the galleries.
- Pens are not permitted.
The Day of Your Visit
- Divide your students into groups of 15.
- Arrive at least 10 to 15 minutes before your tour. LATE ARRIVALS WILL RESULT IN SHORTER TOURS.
- Meet your docent at the designated information desk (this information will be provided in your confirmation letter).
Students
What They Should Know Before Their Visit
A day or two before your tour, remind your students of their field trip and how it relates to what they have been studying. Below are some basic questions that all students should be able to answer prior to their visit.
- What is a museum?
- What is the Smithsonian Institution? Visit http://www.si.edu/
- What type of museum is the Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and from what part of the world does most of its collection come?
- What is the subject of their tour?
- What countries will be discussed during the tour and where are they located on a map?
Respecting All Cultures
During their tour, students may encounter objects from cultural and religious traditions with which they are unfamiliar. Please set a tone of respect for this experience by explaining that learning about works of art can help us understand the cultural and religious traditions of the world. Teachers are encouraged to remind students that what might be unfamiliar to one child is important to another.
Museum Manners
- Be respectful of the objects by leaving bags at school, walking and not leaning on cases.
- Be considerate of classmates and other visitors by using a quiet voice and keeping clear of entryways.
- Do not bring food, beverages or gum into the building.
- Use your eyes, not your hands, to examine objects.
- Remember, all questions are good! Just raise your hand.
General Information
Contact Information
For questions about tours that are not answered here:
202.633.1012
asiatours@si.edu
For general inquiries about the galleries (M-F, 10:00 - 5:00):
202.633.4880
publicaffairsAsia@si.edu
For general Smithsonian information:
202.633.1000 (TTY 202.633.5285)
www.si.edu
Metro
Metro is the most efficient means of traveling to the National Mall.
Parking
Free on-street parking for cars and vans on the national Mall along Jefferson and Madison drives is limited, and regulations are enforced, including the 3-hour maximum. Parking on the Mall begins at 9:30 am. There is a commercial parking garage at L'Enfant Plaza.
Bus Parking
The United States Park Police, 202.426.6841, discourages bus parking on the Mall and recommends the following areas:
- Constitution Ave.—15th to 23rd streets on the north side heading west.
- Independence Ave.—After 15th Street on the right for one block, heading west toward the Washington Monument.
- Jefferson Drive—4th & 3rd streets, either side, one-way heading east.
- West Basin Drive and Ohio Drive—In West Potomac Park, between the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials.
- Ohio Drive—In East Potomac Park, between the Jefferson Memorial and Hanes Point.
- Buses should drop off and pick up visitors to the Museum on the Mall side of the building (Jefferson Drive).
Security
Visitors must present their belongings for inspection when entering the museum.
Lunches and Bags
- When possible, please leave bags and lunches on the bus.
- If you must bring lunches, please place them in clear plastic bags so they can easily pass inspection.
- There are no eating facilities at the Freer Gallery of Art or the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. It is not permissible to eat in the Enid A. Haupt Garden.
- For dining options on the Mall go to: http://www.si.edu/dining/default.htm
Accessibility
- Please indicate any accessibility concerns, needs, or questions on the Tour Request form.
- A handicap accessible entrance to the Freer Gallery is located on Independence Avenue at 12th Street, SW.
- The Sackler Gallery's main entrance is accessible.