The Smithsonian will turn the exterior of its Castle into a moving digital canvas this month with a new commission by Refik Anadol Studio. Titled Smithsonian Dreams, the 20-minute immersive light-and-sound projection will animate the red sandstone façade in real time on July 17 and 18, 2026, with shows scheduled for 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. both nights at the Castle in Washington, D.C.
The project is framed by the Smithsonian as a large-scale public artwork drawing on the institution’s own holdings and research. According to the announcement, Smithsonian Dreams uses 200 years of collections and research from the Smithsonian’s open-data program, extending Anadol’s data-driven practice to one of the most visible landmarks in the federal museum complex. The event is free and requires no reservations.
Anadol has built an international reputation for works that translate data into immersive environments, and the Smithsonian announcement places this commission within that broader body of work. The institution notes that he previously used his signature algorithmic approach for Unsupervised at the Museum of Modern Art in 2022. Smithsonian Dreams continues that line of experimentation while shifting the context from a museum gallery to a historic exterior seen by the public after dark.
The programming extends beyond the projection itself. The Arts and Industries Building will be open from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. during the event, with food and drinks available for purchase. The Smithsonian is also scheduling an artist talk with Anadol in conversation with National Museum of Asian Art director Chase F. Robinson on Saturday, July 18 at 6:30 p.m. Free passes are required for the talk.
The project lands at a moment when museums are increasingly using digital art, projection, and public-facing technology to reach audiences beyond their gallery walls. In this case, the Smithsonian is not simply hosting an artist intervention; it is using its own open collections data as material for the work, making the institution’s archives part of the artwork’s subject and engine.
For the Smithsonian, the commission also underscores a broader institutional strategy: activating historic buildings as sites for contemporary art and public gathering. For Anadol, it is another high-profile example of how algorithmic and AI-assisted image-making can be scaled up to the monumental. With only two nights of projections planned, Smithsonian Dreams is likely to draw attention from both the art world and a broader public audience interested in where digital art, heritage architecture and institutional archives meet.
