The National Portrait Gallery is an art gallery in Washington, D.C., administered by the Smithsonian Institution. Its collections focus on images of famous individual Americans including the famous "Lansdowne" portrait of George Washington; the Hall of Presidents; and its extensive selection of portraits of remarkable Americans from all walks of life.

The gallery was closed for extensive renovations and expansion in January 2000. The renovated museum later reopened on July 1, 2006 with a new, glass-enclosed courtyard designed by Foster + Partners, the architecture firm of renown architect Norman Foster.

The National Portrait Gallery isn't really an art gallery - but rather a history museum. It shares a building with the Smithsonian?s American Art Museum in the National Historic Landmarked Old Patent Office Building, now renamed the Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art and Portraiture, located just south of Chinatown in the Penn Quarter district of downtown Washington.