{"id":840775,"date":"2026-09-08T16:42:10","date_gmt":"2026-09-08T16:42:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/840775\/"},"modified":"2026-09-08T16:42:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T16:42:10","slug":"where-to-find-a-hidden-smithsonian-gem-showcasing-some-of-the-worlds-coolest-art-wtop-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/840775\/","title":{"rendered":"Where to find a \u2018hidden\u2019 Smithsonian gem showcasing some of the world\u2019s coolest art \u2013 WTOP News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Follow WTOP\u2019s Matt Kaufax as he explores hidden gems, local landmarks and unique stories across the D.C. area every week.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/wtop.com\/local\/matt-about-town\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">New episodes of WTOP&#8217;s &#8220;Matt About Town&#8221;\u00a0<\/a>segment are released each Tuesday and Thursday.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>2:58This \u2018hidden\u2019 Smithsonian exhibit has some of the world&#8217;s coolest art<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you take the time to head up to the third floor of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, you\u2019ll find an underrated wing \u2014 and all its hidden treasures \u2014 that often flies under the radar.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In today\u2019s episode of \u201cMatt About Town,\u201d\u00a0we\u2019re shining a light on the Luce Foundation Center, which functions as a sort of open storage environment for unique Smithsonian pieces. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Housed in the same building as the National Portrait Gallery, the singular history of the Luce Center is part of a larger, extraordinary story.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the 19th\u00a0century, the building functioned as the headquarters of the U.S. patent office, with Greek revival style architecture on stunning display. It was constructed during the Civil War and has connections to larger-than-life historical figures like President Abraham Lincoln.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Its evolution from patent office to rare art collection is a fascinating deep dive!\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hear \u201cMatt About Town\u201d first every Tuesday and Thursday on 103.5 FM.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMatt About Town\u201d is now also on YouTube. Follow\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@WTOPNewsDC\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" title=\"\">@WTOPNewsDC<\/a>\u00a0and<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@TheMattAboutTown\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" title=\"\">\u00a0@TheMattAboutTown<\/a>\u00a0to subscribe and get the latest episodes wherever you are!\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you have a story idea you\u2019d like Matt to cover,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/wtop.com\/matt-about-town\/2026\/09\/where-to-find-a-hidden-smithsonian-gem-showcasing-some-of-the-worlds-coolest-art\/mailto:matt.kaufax@wtop.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" title=\"\">email him<\/a>, or chat with him on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/mkaufax\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" title=\"\">Instagram<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@themattabouttown\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" title=\"\">TikTok<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"single-page__signature bottom\">Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up <a href=\"https:\/\/wtop.com\/newsletter-signup\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"single-page__signature bottom\">\u00a9 2026 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.<\/p>\n<p>                            <script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><script async src=\"\/\/www.tiktok.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Follow WTOP\u2019s Matt Kaufax as he explores hidden gems, local landmarks and unique stories across the D.C. area&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":840776,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[228,226,227,229,88],"class_list":["post-840775","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-design","tag-entertainment"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/840775","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=840775"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/840775\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/840776"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=840775"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=840775"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=840775"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}