Which neoclassical building in Washington D.C. is the main building of the National Gallery of Art?

The neoclassical main building of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., is the West Building.

The West Building is the original structure of the National Gallery of Art and was designed by architect John Russell Pope. Built in pink Tennessee marble, it opened in 1941 and presents a monumental neoclassical interpretation of classical architecture. Its central rotunda and dome were inspired in part by the Pantheon in Rome.

The building was created for the National Gallery’s founding collection and contains European paintings and sculpture from the medieval era through the nineteenth century, along with American works from before the twentieth century. Its plan is organized around a long axis with skylit sculpture halls and formal garden courts.

Visitors sometimes confuse the West Building with the East Building, which was designed by I. M. Pei and opened in 1978. The East Building has a geometric modernist design and focuses largely on modern and contemporary art. The two buildings are connected underground, but the West Building is the gallery’s original neoclassical centerpiece.