The six provocative sculptures are meant to start a conversation, and you only have one more week to check them out. Teresa Durkin of the Trust for the National Mall and Marcel Acosta of the National Capital Planning Commission explain what makes this exhibit so special.

For over a century, the monuments on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. have inspired us to witness, remember, revere. But now we’re invited to ring, to sing, to swing. 

“Beyond Granite” shows that the National Mall can host more than sepulchral statues and war memorials in marble and granite. It can be vibrant and inclusive and contemporary. Above all, the Mall can try out new ideas to see what resonates with the people to whom it belongs.

These new monuments look very different from the familiar imposing white monoliths or bronze presidents in thoughtful repose.

“That's the genesis of Beyond Granite. Behind the six art pieces you see in today's exhibition, there are many other stories that could be told in temporary form over time.”

“To have a playground on the National Mall, in the location where you’re in sightline of the Washington Monument and the World War II Memorial — it’s really in the very heart of everything — is astonishing.”

Washington could become more than a static monument to the past; it could grow into a living mural of the American spirit, capturing the stories of American ingenuity, innovation, creativity and resilience.

Now, [Marian Anderson’s powerful performance is the inspiration behind “Pulling Together,” the inaugural exhibition in the “Beyond Granite” project, which will host a series of temporary displays on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

The month-long exhibit, "Beyond Granite: Pulling Together," explores new ways for underrepresented communities to make their imprint on one of the country's most high-profile venues, where space for permanent monuments and museums is limited and costly.

A curated outdoor exhibition reminds us what the National Mall could be

In the shadow of the Washington Monument, six temporary installations tease out who and what should be commemorated, and how art can help us remember.

El programa Beyond Granite está trabajando para traer unas instalaciones de arte temporal al National Mall con el objetivo de contar más de la historia estadounidense.

A playground telling a story of desegregation in D.C., a sonic memorial to the AIDS crisis and a blooming statue of barrier-breaking singer Marian Anderson are among six temporary art installations debuting this week on the National Mall.

A UVA professor’s work will be on display in Washington DC starting Friday, August 18.

A rendering of The Soil You See… shows an iconic monument featuring a red-colored human fingerprint. The piece contains the names of the Crow chiefs who signed treaties with the U.S. government, a legal and political relationship that dates to 1825.

Beyond Granite: Pulling Together, premiering Aug. 18 on the National Mall, seeks to engage with this question of which stories, people, and histories are left out of our monuments. Beyond Granite also explores how to reveal more of the truths that lie beyond the marble facades spread across the Mall’s 700 acres.

“As the National Mall becomes a canvas for stories that long deserved recognition, “Beyond Granite: Pulling Together,” etches its own indelible mark on the fabric of American memory.”

The National Mall is a place of imposing monuments, but also of memories of monumental events…

Later this month, the National Mall will become the site of six temporary art installations — the first time the Mall’s federal overseers have hosted an art exhibit there.

A University of Virginia professor and artist is giving previously unheard voices a national audience as part of a new national exhibition.