The Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream will open a new exhibition Saturday, Sept. 19, offering the public a rare look at art and design from the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
Titled “Shaping American Identity: The Art of the U.S. Department of the Treasury,” the exhibition marks the center’s first anniversary. It runs through Jan. 18, 2027, and will be housed in the center’s special exhibit gallery at 1503 Pennsylvania Ave. NW in Washington.
The Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream sits in a restored historic building complex on Pennsylvania Avenue, steps from the White House and directly across from the U.S. Treasury. That location adds meaning to the exhibition, placing Treasury art within view of the department that created it.
The exhibition shows how the Treasury built a visual identity for the nation, drawing on classical ideals while reflecting American history, achievements and ambitions. Visitors can explore a rare selection of paintings, sculptures, posters and prints from Treasury collections.
Highlights include an 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition Presentation Frame and silver certificates from the 1896 Educational Series. The exhibition pairs those bank notes with the exact oil paintings commissioned to design them, giving guests a side-by-side look at the artwork behind the currency.
Coin enthusiasts will find familiar favorites, including the U.S. $20 Double Eagle and the Buffalo nickel. The gallery also features original American war bond posters created by some of the country’s best-known illustrators. Norman Rockwell, N.C. Wyeth and James Montgomery Flagg are among the artists the Treasury commissioned over the years, and their work is on display.
The exhibition asks visitors to consider how these designs have shaped daily life. From the money in your wallet to the posters that once rallied a nation, the artwork connects to the ways people work, play and pursue their goals.
The center will also host an in-depth tour of the exhibition at noon Thursday, Sept. 24. Curator Jason Vaughan will lead the tour and offer special insight into the artwork, sculptures and currency on display.
A collaboration between the Milken Center and the U.S. Department of the Treasury, with participation from the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the United States Mint and Freedom 250, the exhibition is open to the public and free to visit, with reserve tickets available online.
The Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream works to illuminate pathways to opportunity so all people can pursue a life of meaning and fulfillment. Its programming often connects history and culture to the broader idea of opportunity in America. It is part of the Milken Institute, a global nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank whose work focuses on accelerating measurable progress toward a meaningful life, with attention to finance, health and philanthropy.
