[7][8] The building was near completion when the Civil War broke out and was seized by the U.S. Army in August 1861 as a temporary military warehouse for the records and uniforms for the Quarter Master General's Corps.

[3][9][11] In 1965, President Lyndon Johnson signed an executive order transferring the Renwick building to the Smithsonian Institution for use as a "gallery of arts, craft and design.

"[3] After a renovation under the direction of Lloyd E. Herman[12] it opened in 1972 as the home of the Smithsonian American Art Museum's contemporary craft program.

[16] Fundraising for the renovation began in 2013, and was completed in June 2014 when local financier and philanthropist David Rubenstein donated $5.4 million toward the project.

[16] The renovation included replacing all HVAC, electrical, plumbing, and fire-suppression systems; upgrades to security, phone, and data systems (including Wi-Fi installation throughout the building); restoring the original window configuration; restoring two vaulted ceilings on the second floor; reconfiguring the basement for staff offices and workshops;[16] and adding LED lighting throughout the building.

The artists chosen were Jennifer Angus, Chakaia Booker, Gabriel Dawe, Tara Donovan, Patrick Dougherty, Janet Echelman, John Grade, Maya Lin, and Leo Villareal.

[30] Echelman based her piece off of images from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that showed the impact of waves during the 2011 Japan tsunami.

[34] The 2016 exhibition featured works by Steven Young Lee, Kristen Morgin, Jennifer Trask, and Norwood Viviano.

[35] Disrupting Craft: Renwick Invitational 2018 featured works by Tanya Aguiñiga, Sharif Bey, Dustin Farnsworth, and Stephanie Syjuco.

In addition to craft activities for patrons, the 21+ event features craft beers selected by Greg Engert of the ChurchKey restaurant and pub in Washington, D.C.[37] In 2019, the Renwick hosted an augmented reality exhibition by glass artist Ginny Ruffner and digital collaborator Grant Kirkpatrick titled Reforestation of the Imagination.

[38] In 2023, the tenth Renwick Invitational, Sharing Honors and Burdens, opened and features Native American artists: Joe Feddersen, Erica Lord, Geo Soctomah Neptune, Maggie Thompson, Lily Hope, and Ursala Hudson.

[39] A number of well-known, critically acclaimed artists had works in the Renwick Gallery's collection; as of the November 2015 reopening most are no longer on display.