It was on this day in 1941 that the National Gallery of Art opened to the public. The museum was the brainchild of Andrew W. Mellon (no relation to Thorton), who served as Secretary of the Treasury during the Coolidge administration. Mellon would also donate numerous paintings to the Gallery.

The museum expanded in 1978 with the dedication of the east building, designed by I.M. Pei. The original building became known as the West Building.

The history of the museum is detailed here.

Current exhibitions can be found here.

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