Image: The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens, San Marino
The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens has launched ‘This Land Is …,’ a multiyear initiative examining the relationship between land, American identity and national history. Centered on the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 2026, the programme brings together exhibitions, collection displays, garden spaces, publications and public events at the institution’s campus in San Marino, California.
The initiative’s central exhibition, ‘This Land Is …,’ runs from June 14, 2026, through January 11, 2027. It presents diverse perspectives on the relationship between nature and nation, considering how ideals of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” are intertwined with place. The exhibition forms part of a wider programme titled ‘Reflections for America at 250,’ which approaches the American story through the lens of land.
The Huntington’s library, art and botanical collections provide the foundation for the initiative. Alongside the exhibition, the programme includes the landscape project Oak Meadow, a new gathering space linking the Virginia Steele Scott Galleries of American Art, the MaryLou and George Boone Gallery, and The Rose Hills Foundation Conservatory for Botanical Science. The landscape combines California native plants with North American species adapted to Southern California’s climate, as well as iconic American trees.
The institution describes the ellipsis in the title as an invitation to consider land as both a geographical and metaphorical space of promise, struggle and belonging. The title also references Woody Guthrie’s 1940s folk song ‘This Land Is Your Land.’ In a statement on the initiative, Huntington president Karen R. Lawrence said the institution intends to explore land as “both common and contested ground,” adding that the unfinished title suggests that visitors have a role in shaping what comes next.
‘This Land Is …’ is part of a programme that also includes the permanent collections installation ‘Borderlands,’ which places works from The Huntington’s American art holdings in dialogue with contributions from contemporary artists, and the institution’s ‘Reimagined American Art Galleries.’ The initiative’s public and educational programming is designed to support civic reflection and cross-generational discussion about American history through the subject of land.
A companion publication, ‘This Land Is …: Field Notes on American Ground,’ extends the exhibition’s themes through contributions from writers, historians, scientists, humanities scholars and artists. Edited by Josh Garrett-Davis, The Huntington’s H. Russell Smith Foundation Curator of Western American History, and Linde B. Lehtinen, Philip D. Nathanson Senior Curator of Photography, the volume includes work by Lonnie G. Bunch III, Natalia Molina, Claudio Saunt, Terry Tempest Williams, Jamaica Kincaid, Lisa See, Kiku Hughes, Julie Fiveash, Sandy Rodriguez and Mercedes Dorame. It is illustrated with historical documents, photographs and artworks, including a foldout of one of The Huntington’s 1776 printings of the Declaration of Independence.
Launched in fall 2025, ‘This Land Is …’ continues across The Huntington’s galleries, gardens and public programmes through 2027. The exhibition remains on view in San Marino through January 11, 2027.
