The National Gallery of Art (NGA) in Washington, DC, has received a landmark $116 million donation from the Mitchell P. Rales Family Foundation to permanently endow its Across the Nation lending programme. Launched in spring 2025, the initiative has already reached around 900,000 visitors at ten partner institutions, including the Anchorage Museum and the Mint Museum, by loaning works from the NGA's collection at no cost—covering transport, installation, insurance, and marketing. The next cycle will run from autumn 2027 to 2029, with new partners to be announced.
This gift, the largest to endow programming in the NGA's history, ensures the programme's perpetuity and expands access to the nation's collection nationwide. It arrives as US art institutions face financial strain from lower post-pandemic attendance, shifting donor habits, and federal funding cuts under the Trump administration—the NGA itself closed its diversity office after a recent executive order. The donation underscores a strategic model for collection-sharing and collaboration among museums, while honoring the US's 250th anniversary.