John Singer Sargent, Sir Neville Wilkenson on the Steps of a Venetian Palazzo, 1905, Joseph F. McCrindle Collection, courtesy National Gallery of Art.

>> Lots is happening at the National Gallery of Art this month. Join your friends for a picnic and Jazz in the Garden from 5 to 8:30 p.m. every Friday in June in the Sculpture Garden. Then beginning June 10, two new exhibitions open at the Gallery. A comprehensive collection of works by American artist George Bellows, which spans the artist’s 30-year career of paintings, drawings, and lithographs that show the transition from the Victorian Era to the modern era in American culture. In The Tower: Barnett Newman, see a series of paintings and drawings that signal a shift in the artist’s style and subject during the 1940s. Also at the Gallery, The McCrindle Gift: A Distinguished Collection of Drawings and Watercolors opens on June 17 and displays 71 drawings by artists spanning five centuries from the donation of one of the Gallery’s major beneficiaries. Then on June 24, fruits, fabrics, and feasts feature heavily in classic 17th-century Dutch form in Elegance and Refinement: The Still-Life Paintings of Willem van Aelst.

>> National Geographic Live offers a series of evening lectures throughout June. On Sunday, June 10, photographers and Big Cat Initiative founders Dereck and Beverly Joubert screen their new film The Unlikely Leopard at 5:30 p.m. in the Grosvenor Auditorium ($25). Tuesday, June 12 brings An Evening of Exploration and Discovery with speakers from the annual Explorer’s Symposium reporting on their work at 7 p.m. ($20). Archeologists propose new theories on the Easter Island statues in their talk on The Statues That Walked on Thursday, June 21 at 7:30 p.m. ($38).

>> The first weekend in June marks the 34th Annual Celebration of Textiles at The Textile Museum with a family festival including weaving and spinning demos, sheep shearing, performances, and hands-on activities for kids. Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday 1 to 5 p.m., Free. Also Saturday, June 17 is Worldwide Knit in Public Day and the Textile Museum will be open to anyone with a ball of yarn and a set of needles. Drop by from 1 to 4 p.m. for free access to the garden to finish those socks or head inside to start on that winter sweater in the cool air conditioning. Come back on June 30 for Knitter’s Open House from 1 to 4 p.m. to work on projects and meet other knitters (free).

>> Also on June 2 and 3, the nine “off the Mall” museums in the Dupont-Kalorama Museums Consortium (DKMC) welcome visitors to explore their collections for free in the 29th Annual DKMC Museum Walk Weekend. Bring your cameras for this year’s theme Documenting Dupont and submit your best shots of the neighborhood to the Washington City Paper’s Walk Weekend Photo Contest. Get the full list of participating venues, their hours, and the full weekend activity schedule right here.

>> Girl Scouts Rock The Mall for three days starting June 8! Bring your Girl Scout to the Newseum for a scavenger hunt for Women in the News (price is included with standard admission). Youth and Scout groups can explore news-related careers as Junior Reporters and interact with history to learn reporting secrets ($20/participant and includes admission to the Newseum; minimum 10 kids per group). In addition, the Newseum’s Inside Media series offer lectures and interviews by renowned journalists and political insiders including President Reagan’s former Chief of Staff Ken Duberstein on the President’s Tear Down This Wall!! speech 25 short years ago (free with admission) and A Conversation with Bob Woodward on the 40th Anniversary of Watergate at 7 p.m. June 13 ($10 for nonmembers).

>> The National Museum of American History screens two classic Clint Eastwood flicks plus a documentary on the Hollywood icon who just celebrated his 82nd birthday. In the new Warner Bros. Theater, catch The Outlaw Josie Wales at 2 p.m. Saturday, June 23 followed by The Eastwood Factor, narrated by Morgan Freeman, at 6 p.m. On Sunday, June 24, see Pale Rider on Sunday, at 1 p.m. Pre-screening discussions begin one hour before each showing. Free.

>> Celebrate World Ocean Day at the Museum of Natural History with an afternoon of activities on Friday, June 8. From 1 to 5 p.m., explore the Sant Ocean Hall with experts, catch a film about otters, view the 2012 Coastal America Student Ocean Art Contest winners, learn about Galapagos coral reef research, and hear from Youth Ocean Leaders.

>> Beginning June 15, The Smithsonian American Art Museum unveils 46 rarely-shown Abstract Drawings from the permanent collection. This collection of works on paper demonstrates a range of techniques used in works by Man Ray, Joseph Cornell, Willem de Kooning, among many others.

>> The National Museum of African Art hosts a workshop on the beads of Africa. Beads! Beads! Beads! covers the history and symbolism of beads made from a wide assortment of materials like shells and glass while you create your own beaded bracelet. June 8, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Free.

>> The National Building Museum has several lectures and presentations on the calendar for the month of June, including a panel discussion on affordable artist housing in the District. DC Builds: Creating Space for Artists features an artist, city planner, development company CEO, and a moderator who will lead the group through the logistics and hurdles involved in creating affordable live-work spaces, as well as the roles of the many planners, architects, and policy makers involved to make it happen. Monday, June 25 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Tickets are $20 for non-members.

>> On June 10, the National Museum of Women in the Arts screens Seductive Subversion: Women Pop Artists, 1958-1968, an hour-long film featuring interviews of some of the original women Pop artists and highlights the contributions of women to the Pop art movement. 1:30 p.m. and 3 p.m., Free. Then, on June 30, attend Adult Workshop: Artful Activism lead by Amelia Hankin, American University’s Printmaker-in-Residence, who will take visitors through the fundamentals of monoprinting and the works of Corita Kent. 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Free, but reservations required.

>> It’s Choctaw Days at the National Museum of the American Indian June 20 through 23. Meet The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and learn their tribal history, heritage, and traditions over four days of workshops, performances, and food. Free.

>> The National Air and Space Museum welcomes all future pilots and aviation fanatics for the 8th annual Become A Pilot Day on June 16! From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., this family day features flight simulators, experts, and hands-on activities, plus 50 visiting aircraft of the vintage, recreational, homebuilt, and military varieties on-site for one day only. Share your favorite snapshots in the official Become A Pilot Day Flickr group. Don’t forget to check out the calendar of events for a full run-down of June activities at the Museum and Center.