Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES)

Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES)
Name	Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service
Formation	1971
Headquarters	Washington, D.C.
Parent organization	Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES) SITES is the national exhibition-creation and touring arm of the Smithsonian Institution, producing and circulating traveling exhibitions and educational programs to museums, cultural centers, and community venues across the United States and internationally. Founded in 1971, SITES collaborates with Smithsonian museums, curators, artists, and external partners to translate collections, scholarship, and public history into modular exhibitions that reach diverse audiences beyond Washington, D.C. The program integrates curatorial practice from institutions such as the National Museum of American History, National Air and Space Museum, National Museum of Natural History, and the National Portrait Gallery with outreach networks including the Institute of Museum and Library Services and regional museum alliances.

History

SITES grew out of mid-20th-century initiatives to expand access to collections associated with the Smithsonian Institution and federal cultural policy trends exemplified by the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Early collaborations involved curators from the National Museum of African American History and Culture and the Anacostia Community Museum, responding to community-focused movements tied to events like the Civil Rights Movement and the Farm Security Administration exhibitions legacy. Through the 1970s and 1980s SITES developed standardized shipping crates and modular panels influenced by logistics practices at institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art, while aligning touring practices with standards promoted by the American Alliance of Museums and state humanities councils. The 1990s and 2000s saw expansion of digital components and loans from collections at the National Gallery of Art and the Smithsonian American Art Museum, and programmatic partnerships with the Library of Congress and international bodies like the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Recent decades have emphasized inclusive narratives shaped by curators from the National Museum of the American Indian and community advisors involved with exhibitions about the Tuskegee Airmen, Harlem Renaissance, and the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

Mission and Programs

SITES’ mission centers on broadening public access to Smithsonian research and collections through traveling exhibitions, educational resources, and professional development for host venues. Programmatic offerings include interpretation toolkits used by the National Museum of African Art, teacher workshops modeled after initiatives at the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, and learning modules aligned with outreach practiced by the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden and the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. SITES supports capacity building for small institutions akin to offerings by the American Alliance of Museums and state museum associations, and coordinates loans and content development with curators from the National Museum of Natural History, Freer Gallery of Art, and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery.

Exhibition Development and Touring Model

Exhibition development follows a project-based model drawing on curators, conservators, registrars, exhibit designers, and educators with provenance practices comparable to those at the National Archives and Records Administration, the Smithsonian Libraries, and the New-York Historical Society. SITES creates scalable exhibits that travel to venues including historical societies like the Massachusetts Historical Society, cultural centers such as the Japanese American National Museum, and science centers akin to the Exploratorium. Logistics are coordinated with freight partners and insurance frameworks used by the Transportation Security Administration for artifact transport, and conservation protocols reflect standards endorsed by the International Council of Museums and the Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts. Touring seasons consider calendar partnerships with festivals such as the Smithsonian Folklife Festival and civic commemorations like the Bicentennial of the United States.

Collections and Notable Exhibitions

SITES does not function as a collecting museum but curates loans from Smithsonian repositories and partner institutions including the National Museum of the American Indian, National Museum of African American History and Culture, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, and the National Museum of American History. Notable exhibitions have showcased subjects related to the Apollo 11 program, the Gilded Age, the Great Migration, and thematic projects featuring artists and figures such as Georgia O'Keeffe, Langston Hughes, Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, and the Tuskegee Airmen. Exhibitions have also explored scientific topics linked to specimens and research from the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and the National Zoo, and cultural histories connected to collections at the National Museum of Asian Art and the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum.

Partnerships and Community Engagement

SITES partners with a wide network: Smithsonian museums and research centers, state humanities councils, tribal museums including those represented at the National Congress of American Indians, and municipal cultural agencies similar to the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. Community engagement strategies mirror collaborative approaches used by the Anacostia Community Museum, the International Museum of Women, and the Lower East Side Tenement Museum, incorporating public programming, oral histories, and co-curation with local stakeholders. International collaborations have involved institutions like the British Museum, the Canadian Museum of History, and programs associated with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute.

Funding and Governance

Funding and governance combine federal appropriations to the Smithsonian Institution, underwriting from private foundations such as the Ford Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, corporate sponsorship, and fee-for-service arrangements with host venues. Oversight is provided within the Smithsonian administrative framework alongside units such as the Office of the Regents and the Smithsonian Institution Archives, while program evaluation employs metrics and grant reporting formats used by the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Governance practices integrate legal and ethical guidance reflecting policies from the National Historic Preservation Act and standards advocated by the American Alliance of Museums.

Category:Smithsonian Institution