10 Years of Phillips after 5

Phillips after 5 just celebrated 10 years of artful evenings! Keith Costas, The Phillips Collection’s Director of Special Events, shared some of his favorite moments with us.

Did you know:

  • When we first started Phillips after 5 we did it every Thursday in August—that’s three in a row!
  • It was originally called “Artful Evenings.”
  • We’ve had 130 Phillips after 5s, with 93,333 total attendees.
  • Each event requires a dozen volunteers from staff.
  • Before we went to a ticketed reservation system there was a line all the way to Q Street and in front of the Embassy of India.
  • There have been countless marriage proposals.

Programming Highlights

  • “Vampires vs. Zombies”: Dancers from The Washington Ballet at THEARC performed excerpts from Michael Pink’s Dracula and Michael Jackson’s Thriller!
  • “Seeing Red”: Redheads got in free during the exhibition Van Gogh Repetitions
  • Silent disco and punk band Loud Boyz for a Berlin theme during the exhibition featuring German artist Markus Lüpertz
  • Speed friending to celebrate Valentine’s Day
  • Tiny sailing regatta for a boating theme in the exhibition Renoir and Friends
  • Food Truck Fiesta: every August Phillips after 5 we have food trucks stationed around the museum

Most moving and meaningful

  • April 2011: After the Tsunami in Japan we partnered with the Red Cross to raise money for the victims and set up a quiet gallery with some of our Japanese works of art for remembrance and reflection.

Check out a few of our favorite shots over the years

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