In planning our weekend in DC (first visit in 8 years), all in the name of art, I made time to visit the Hirshhorn for the first time! I had heard that their sculpture collection was worth seeing, and I knew that artist Mark Bradford's Pickett's Charge was installed there. In preparing for the our trip, I checked out their website to make our visit the best it could be. Free admission but I learned that to visit the Kusama installation, you need to pick up timed passes starting at 9:30am. We arrived on Sunday morning just after 9:30 and got in line for the free passes, obtaining two for 11:30. That gave us time to scope out museum building, currently draped in Nicolas Party's Draw the Curtain, and the sunken Sculpture Garden which includes works by celebrated sculptors Mark di Suvero, Henry Moore, Auguste Rodin, Barbara Hepworth, and Anthony Caro, among others. Walking in the Mall entrance, we saw an awesome site awaiting...the fountain plaza surrounded by the museum cylinder designed by Gordon Bunshaft (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill). This is a must-see for architecture buffs! Inside we experienced Pickett's Charge by Mark Bradford, which one has to see to understand it and to appreciate how much work went into it. The Marcel Duchamp exhibition was very interesting and enlightening for his influence on the art of his day. Laurie Anderson's The Weather exhibition is not for everyone! My husband was quite intrigued by her insights and expression of the state of our world. Me not so much, but I found her paintings quite engaging. Then it was time to see the Kusama exhibit One With Eternity. Opening with a timeline of Yayoi Kusama's life and career (recommended for those who are experiencing Kusama for the first time), we enjoyed the three installations: Pumpkin, Phalli's Field Infinity Room, and My Heart Is Dancing into the Universe Infinity Mirrored Room. It took about 50 minutes from our 11:30 entrance until we exited the space. Be advised that you have only 30 seconds in Phalli's Field and about 60 seconds to walk through the Universe space. Definitely worth it...if you love Kusama! All in all, the Hirshhorn was a varied and completely interesting experience!!

I was a little thrown by the museum. I thought that the museum opened at 11:30am and it opens at 10:00am. Then they told me I had to have timed tickets for the special exhibition for Yayoi Kusama that I came all the way down from New Jersey to see. I was lucky that someone gave back their tickets and I was able to get one of the tickets. It was an excellent exhibition that should not be missed. There was so much interactive art and exhibits that you can be part of especially her mirror room and the glowing lantern room that you felt like you were in a surrealist dream. It takes time to walk through it but still it was worth the time. I also walked through the Lauren Anderson surrealist exhibition of interactive films and the flag waving demo. It was a strange but fun exhibition, and it showed her creativity. The flag waving sculpture was a little creepy though. Still, it was interesting to see the art of both women. I would try to visit each.

The museum provides enjoyable exhibits inside and out. We were fortunate enough to arrive on a rainy afternoon in DC and take refuge in the Laurie Anderson installation "The Weather". Slow down and really take in the visual magnitude of "Four Talks". Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed our visit! We were even lucky enough to find some affordable ponchos for sale in the gift shop to continue our tour of the mall in the rain.

Our timed tickets for the One with Eternity exhibit were for 2+ hours after we arrived at 10am. There were two other exhibits inside the Hirshhorn. The Marcel Duchamp exhibit on the third floor was incredibly Boring. All were small items spread out through the large rooms. Each was well documented, if you were interested in the piece. The multimedia art of Laurie Anderson on the second floor was exceptional. We then enjoyed the limited but interesting sculpture gardens outside. The restaurant was closed and the small bar inside does not serve carbonated beverages or sandwiches. Just costly specialty drinks. Seating was limited inside, maybe seating for twenty, where we spent another hour waiting to get in. When we finally went downstairs to the Yayoi Kusana exhibit, we found ourselves in a line for the eternity mirror room which allows two adults with two children max into the mirrored room for thirty seconds. With entry and exit time, it would have taken 90 minutes before we were in the adorable Dalmatian mirror room. Being handicap, standing for that long in a single file line with no seating available was not an option. But at least it was possible to slip by this exhibit, but the next line wound through a single door that we couldn’t squeeze by. At this point, we turned around and left. What a waste of our time. They needed better crowd control with 75% less people to make it enjoyable. Some art doesn’t lend itself to mass exhibitions and this was certainly one. It would be worth a short wait, but spending 2+ hours in line to see one exhibit reflected poorly on SI.EDU.

I hesitate to write a negative review about a museum that is free, hut in this case I think it is warranted. The museum is undergoing massive renovations. Only a tiny fraction of their permanent collection is on display. The problem s that none of that is disclosed on their website. Going there is mostly a waste of time. My wife and I fortunately are going to be staying in Washington long enough to see everything that we want. But anyone who goes to this museum at the sacrifice of doing other things will have been severely cheated.

I started my visit by going around the Building and looking at the outside exhibits. The CAR with a big brown stuff over it is interesting. The rest are boring! Inside the Museum, I started at the Third Floor, visiting each room and hallways. There are very few exhibits that did not peak my interest. The Picket Fence Exhibit (around the walls) is colorful but some sections are peeling off! The above is true at the Second Floor, few and amateur-looking exhibits. Overall, I finished my visit here in 10 minutes. Felt like I wasted my time here!

As this is a Smithsonian modern art museum, most all of it is pretty trippy. But it's also pretty high quality, and well worth the visit if you take the time to immerse yourself. Another smaller museum that wasn't very crowded, so you can take your time and relax. The sculpture garden has famous artist's pieces such as the artist Rodin.

There is always something interesting to see or see again at the Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden. There are many little paths to take with unexpected pieces of art to be found. It is generally a peaceful place to think and reflect.

The Hirshhorn looks like a very cool place - the architecture sets it apart from all the other museums on the mall. Unfortunately, its under construction right now and there's just not that much to see inside. i spent less than an hour there and saw what there was to see. I actually enjoyed the sculpture garden outside the museum more than the museum itself.

We went as a family of 5 because of the Kusama exhibit and it was well worth it. Great museum that isn't too large and can easily be managed. Friendly staff helps with questions. The sculpture garden is wonderful and very enjoyable.