AOC employees are responsible for the care and preservation of more than 300 works of art, architectural elements and landscape features.

Browse the collection below or learn more about our artists, collections and subjects.

Wade Hampton Statue

This statue of Wade Hampton was given to the National Statuary Hall Collection by South Carolina in 1929.

War and Peace

Marble allegorical statues "War" and "Peace" flank the East Central Front entrance to the U.S. Capitol. Plaster models may be seen in the vestibule area outside the east door of the U.S. Capitol Rotunda.

Washington's Farewell Address, 1796

In his farewell address at the end of his second term as president, George Washington urged America, "Observe good faith and justice toward all nations.

Washington's Inauguration, 1789

George Washington was sworn in as the nation's first president on April 30, 1789, on the balcony of Federal Hall in New York. The mural depicts (from left to right) Robert R.

Washington, 1800

Only the north (Senate) wing of the U.S. Capitol Building was ready for the Congress by 1800. As construction continued on the rest of the building, this wing accommodated the Senate, the House of Representatives, the Supreme Court, the Library of Congress, and the district courts.

Washington, 1814

In August 1814, during the War of 1812, invading British troops burned the U.S. Capitol and other buildings in Washington. That fall, Congress met in the Patent Office building (now the National Portrait Gallery/Smithsonian American Art Museum).

Washington, 1815

Only the north (Senate) wing of the U.S. Capitol Building was ready for the Congress by 1800. As construction continued on the rest of the building, this wing accommodated the Senate, the House of Representatives, the Supreme Court, the Library of Congress, and the district courts.

Washington, 1829

The U.S. Capitol Building and Grounds were first completed by Charles Bulfinch in 1829. This image shows the building's East Front.

Washington, 1867

The expansion of the nation led to the growth of the Congress, and by 1850 the Capitol Building was much too small. Over a period of 17 years, the present House and Senate wings were added to the old building and the low central dome was replaced with a cast-iron dome better suited to the enlarged Capitol.

Weaving

The craft is shown as a family operation, with children carding the wool, a young woman spinning it, and an older woman operating a loom.

Westward the Course of Empire Takes Its Way

Emanuel Leutze's mural celebrates the western expansion of the United States. A group of pioneers and their train of covered wagons are pictured at the continental divide, looking towards the sunset and the Pacific Ocean. The border depicts vignettes of exploration and frontier mythology. Beneath the central composition is a panoramic view of their destination"Golden Gate," in San Francisco Bay. The mural's title is a verse from the poem 'On the Prospect of Planting Arts and Learning in America' by Bishop George Berkeley (1685-1753).

Will Rogers Statue

This statue of Will Rogers was given to the National Statuary Hall Collection by Oklahoma in 1939.