History of SPI

Established in 2001, the Smithsonian Photography Initiative is web-based and dedicated to a program of interactive exhibitions, publications and educational activities via its website, www.photography.si.edu. SPI exists to broaden public understanding and appreciation of photography at the Smithsonian; enhance the Smithsonian’s public programming and educational outreach efforts in photography; and use innovative technologies to create new opportunities for research and scholarship about the cultural impact of photographs.

During its first two years, SPI collaborated with Smithsonian curators and archivists to determine the project's vision, content and technical requirements. SPI's staff conducted field research, surveyed relevant online projects, and completed an extensive review of the Smithsonian's photographic collections. Plans for exhibitions, online projects, visual literacy curricula, and related subjects soon followed.

SPI published its first book, At First Sight: Photography and the Smithsonian, in 2003 with Smithsonian Books. This volume features a broad range of unusual photographs culled from collections throughout the institution and includes writings by Smithsonian experts in science, history, and the arts.

In August 2006, SPI launched its website, presenting selections from the art, history and science collections of the Institution’s nineteen museums, nine research centers, and the National Zoo. Organized by museum and discipline, the Smithsonian’s collections of photographs document the marvelous and the mundane, the historic and everyday. A selection of nearly 2,500 of these images are available on www.photography.si.edu. The SPI website has received favorable press and won several awards during its first year, including the Interactive Design Award (Applied Arts Magazine, January 2007); SXSW Web Award, art category (March 2007); and Webby, cultural institution (May 2007).

SPI continues to fulfill its mission by presenting innovative programs that investigate the power or photography. In 2008, SPI launched click! photography changes everything with the purpose of stimulating an unprecedented dialogue about the ways photography enables people to document and actively interact with the world.