Collections storage remains temporarily closed to the public. Please check back for updates.
One of museum founder Charles Lang Freer’s primary goals for his collection was to provide an opportunity for uninterrupted study of the objects and to encourage study of the Far East. Since 1923, when the Freer Gallery of Art opened to the public, successive museum directors have carried out Freer’s wishes, expanding them to include the collections of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery after it opened in 1987.
Criteria for Collections Storage Appointments
In considering requests for access, the museum must balance competing considerations such as the need to safeguard the collections and other demands on the staff. While we aim to fulfill all reasonable requests, preference is given to scholars, students, artists, and staff of other museums. Projects for study must be specific, and visitors must limit themselves to the material requested. Casual browsing and impromptu requests cannot be accommodated. All visitors to collection storage areas will be accompanied at all times by a Collections Department staff member. Researchers must be at least 18 years old. Visits or tours for children ages 12–17 must have an adult chaperone, and children under the age of 12 are usually not allowed access.
Although collections storage remains temporarily closed, you can contact the following staff below to answer specific questions not addressed above.
For appointments in the storage areas of the Freer Gallery of Art, please contact:
Christina Popenfus, popench@si.edu
For appointments in the storage areas of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, please contact:
Brian Abrams, abramsb@si.edu