The New Chancery Building

The new Chancery of the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, dedicated in June 2000, houses a unique permanent collection of contemporary American art. The collection was assembled under the auspices of the U.S. Department of State’s Art in Embassies Program, which was inaugurated in 1964 to provide “windows through which the people of foreign countries can see American works of art of all kinds and periods.” Program curator Virginia Shore worked closely with a range of artists, purchasing, commissioning, or arranging for the donation of the works in this collection, some of which are highlighted here.