Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden - distinctive cylindrical building

The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden occupies a distinctive circular, hollowed-torus building designed by Gordon Bunshaft and opened in 1974. Its modernist, doughnut-shaped form set it apart architecturally among Smithsonian museums on the National Mall. The museum’s collection focuses on modern and contemporary art and includes an adjacent outdoor sculpture garden for large-scale works. The building’s design and program make the Hirshhorn a unique locus for postwar and contemporary visual arts in Washington.