I could spend all day in this museum. I am particularly interested in folk and outsider art and this is really the only option for that in the city but it’s a fantastic collection. In particular I could spend 3 hours alone at The Throne of the Third Heaven of the Nations' Millennium General Assembly. The portrait half of the museum is lovely too, but I am more interested in the American art side until you get to the higher levels of the portraits. The building itself is also a work of art. It’s just so stunning. And the room with the…I don’t know what to call it, it’s not archives but there are shelves and shelves and drawers of things to look at and explore with miniatures and sculptures and small paintings. It’s an incredibly intimate chance to interact with art.

We had a tour that began an hour before opening time. But that hardly mattered: soon the gallery was filled with others enjoying the same space and exhibits. My favorite was the room with portraits and busts of Washington and Lincoln that I'd never seen before.

Love this place, I have been to Washington four times and I have gone each time. A good portion is rotating exhibits and some of the collection feels like visiting an old friend. I love the courtyard in the middle although it is most special on a cold day. I like the variety and I like what the portraits make me think about. If I can describe a msueum as confident I would do so. A change to my eye was the inclusion of many more Indigenous pieces since my last visit, a welcome addition!

Fine museum. Well worth taking a few hours to visit - the special exhibitions can be riveting. One note of caution: the cafe is astonishingly expensive and the food poor quality for the cost. Museum of Art cafeteria is a fantastic alternative - highly recommended.

We enjoyed our visit here to the National Portrait Gallery and American Art Museum. The portraits downstairs of the famous Americans were excellent, andthe associated biographies were well done. The section on American Presidents was also well done. It was nice that it wasn't crowded. No admission cost.

Only had time to make it through the Presidential portraits and a fraction of other displays but it was well done. Everything was logical on how it was displayed in various rooms and there was a good flow to the art. I'm not a huge art fan but the works that are in here are impressive. I would return in the future to see more.

We wanted to visit somewhere different from the usual tourist mainstays of DC and this was a lovely place to visit. The portraits of prominent Americans fascinated all ages in my family from teen to boomer. We were there for 2.5 hours and still didn’t absorb everything. Definitely worth a return visit.

The National Portrait Gallery shares its building with the Smithsonian American Art Museum. I enjoyed the Portrait Gallery more -- probably because I am more interested in history than art and was able to learn more from the portraits. Museum is small enough to be very doable in a few hours. Free to enter. Cafeteria in the middle of the building is very pleasant.

I only had enough time to see the Presidents exhibition and really wish I could have gone through the entire gallery as well as the Smithsonian American Art Museum, which resides in the same building. In addition to the iconic portraits there is also thoughtful commentary on the history of each presidency. It wasn't very crowded and is a great place to visit if you appreciate art and history.

A bit away from the National Mall, this museum offers a permanent collection of portraits of people in American History, and temporary exhibitions. The inner patio is quite impressive. The building is a bit confusing in its structure. There was a temporary exhibition on American imperialism. Quite interesting and well documented.