Seeing U.S.

Seeing U.S. is an ongoing research project that aims to explore and share fuller histories of American art through a reexamination of our permanent collection. 

The first phase of this project, conducted between 2022 and 2024, brings works from the collections of partner institutions the Howard University Gallery of Art and the David C. Driskell Center into conversation with works from our permanent collection. These dialogues help The Phillips Collection build a more inclusive story about the peoples, cultures, and landscapes of the United States. The research has identified artists who have been marginalized in the traditional narratives of American art. Seeing US draws from these margins to expand our understandings of how a diverse cadre of artists imagine America and engage a breadth of work that spans time, place, genre, and media. 

This website presents short entries on selected works of art, video interviews of artists, and in-depth essays that explore aspects of the research to date. The Seeing U.S. research project will result in an exhibition at The Phillips Collection scheduled for 2026 in recognition of the 250th anniversary of the United States of America. 

Research for this project was made possible by the Terra Foundation for American Art

Seeing U.S. Staff

Adrienne L. Childs, Project Co-Director
Camille Brown, Project Co-Director
Rebecca Shipman, Terra Research Fellow (2022-23)

Advisory Committee