Celebrate Native American Heritage Month with an inspiring artistic journey at Exclusive Collections Gallery (EC Gallery). Join us from November 10 to 12 for the “Native American Art Show,” highlighting the rich cultural heritage of the nation’s top Native American artists through remarkable sculptures, paintings, and mixed media pieces. Don’t miss this opportunity to explore exceptional creativity in one place.

The weekend show will be held Friday & Saturday from 6–9 p.m. and Sunday from 1- 4 p.m. where attendees get to meet internationally acclaimed Native American artists, Cara Romero, Gerald Clarke, Ruben Chato, Johnny Bear Contreras, George Rivera, Jeremy Salazar, Son of Picasso, Votan, and Cody Sanderson.

There will also be a VIP reception on Saturday, November 11 from 6–9 p.m.

The EC Gallery Native American show was conceptualized by Ruth-Ann Thorn, a registered tribal member of the Rincon Band of Luiseño/Payómkawichum Indians in Southern California. She is an Indigenous woman warrior, and her ability to overcome adversity speaks to her resilience as a Native Woman. As a tribal leader, art dealer, producer/host of the national cable shows “Art of the City” and “This is Indian Country,” her artistic vision as an entrepreneur is fueled by a passion for her community.

“10-million Native Americans live on this continent and the art in this space is tremendous,” said Ruth-Ann Thorn, Founder, EC Gallery. “Our goal of hosting this Native American art show is to bring the finest Native American art in the country to San Diego and invite all of Southern California to see these one-of-a-kind works of art as well as celebrate our Native American Culture.”

EC Gallery is the FIRST and ONLY Native American owned business in the Gaslamp area. When the Gaslamp area was developed in the mid-1800s native people weren’t allowed to own businesses. Ruth-Ann is the first tribal member to open and operate a business in the area, making this a historic milestone for downtown.

In addition to meeting the acclaimed artists, guests will also be able to enjoy Native American wine, beer, light bites, and music. EC Gallery always goes big for these events.

EC Gallery is located area at 621 Fifth Street, San Diego, CA 92101. In the heart of downtown San Diego at the corner of Fifth and Market in the Gaslamp area.

RSVP is recommended. The cost for the show is free and open to all ages — except the Friday VIP event where guests must be 21+. Please visit their web site at http://www.ecgallery.com to RSVP and for more show details.

About the artists:

Cara Romero, an enrolled citizen of the Chemehuevi Indian Tribe, is a contemporary fine art photographer who challenges stereotypes of Native Americans. She employs modern photography techniques to vividly depict Indigenous perspectives and everyday supernaturalism. Her work has been featured in PBS’ Craft in America and is widely recognized in public and private collections worldwide.

Gerald Clarke is a sculptor and conceptual artist from the Cahuilla Band of Mission Indians, who delves into contemporary Native American issues through his impactful creations. In 2020, the Palm Springs Art Museum showcased the first major retrospective of his innovative work. Besides his artistry, he serves as a Professor of Ethnic Studies at the University of California Riverside, passionately educating students about Native American art, history, and culture. Clarke’s unique perspective reflects the rich heritage of the Cahuilla people.

Ruben Chato, an enrolled member of the Lipan Apache Nation Tribe of Texas with a proud Mescalero Apache heritage, is a versatile artist, actor, and writer. His art, characterized by vibrant spiritual colors and mixed media naturalistic Expressionism, draws inspiration from nature, often crafted on wooden panels. Renowned for his diverse portfolio, Ruben’s professional arts encompass sculpture, fine art, furniture art, and limited-edition Apache Warrior Bone Knives, which grace notable collections across the United States, Europe, and Canada.

Johnny Bear Contreras, a member of the San Pasqual Band of the Kumeyaay Nation, is an accomplished self-taught sculptor. He skillfully blends his cultural traditions with contemporary design techniques, creating unique and innovative artworks. Johnny’s art reflects a fusion of heritage and modernity in his sculptures.

George Rivera has over 20 years of experience and is renowned for his monumental stone and bronze sculptures, paintings, and architectural design work. His creative inspiration is deeply rooted in the Native American Pueblo culture, reflecting the symbolism and realism of pueblo life, particularly focusing on pueblo dancers. Among his notable works is a 12-ton buffalo sculpture carved from Virginia soapstone, serving as a symbol of cultural and economic stability for his tribe.

Jeremy Salazar, a self-taught contemporary painter based in Albuquerque, New Mexico, specializes in vibrant acrylic portraitures that skillfully blend abstraction and realism, with a focus on eyes and facial expressions. Despite never having received formal art training, his work breathes life into his subjects, making them more realistic and full of depth, while his use of color sets the mood and atmosphere. Raised on the Navajo reservation in New Mexico, his humble upbringing has significantly influenced his dedication to representing authentic Native arts.

Son of Picasso, a member of the Kiowa tribe of Oklahoma, is known for his vibrant and highly stylized paintings depicting Indian life and heritage. His intricate figures, inspired by his people’s history and grandparents’ stories, reflect a remarkable competence with color and composition. Notably, Nelson achieved recognition at a young age, winning awards and even gracing the cover of Indian Artist magazine.

Votan, a Maya and Nahua artist based in Los Angeles and Albuquerque, is renowned for his powerful city murals. With a unique fusion of Native and mainstream U.S. perspectives, he creates compelling and empowering art pieces. Raised amidst the emergence of Los Angeles street art, Votan employs tagging, graffiti, and wheatpasting to make impactful statements in community spaces.

Cody Sanderson is known for his imaginative, often playful style. He uses traditional Navajo techniques that are inspired by his surroundings. Sanderson loves the challenge in creating something different and with this as his motivation, the results are a completely new, cutting-edge visual aesthetic, both contemporary and authentic. Working from his studio in Santa Fe, Sanderson often utilizes hand-fabricating techniques such as stamping, forging, casting, and bending to craft his award-winning jewelry.

Editor’s Note: In partnership with the Doris Duke Foundation and the Sheri and Les Biller Family Foundation, TCG’s THRIVE! Uplifting Theatres of Color initiative offered $1,140,000, equaling 46 grants in 3 categories, to U.S.-based (including Tribal lands and Territories) Black Theatres, Indigenous Theatres, and Theatres of Color (BITOC). In addition to the funds, 21 BITOC receiving RECOGNIZE category grants also participated in REBUILD, a learning cohort working with BIPOC consultants to strengthen their effectiveness in specific areas. The initiative was created with an advisory committee of 14 BIPOC theatre leaders and artists. To further uplift these companies, American Theatre magazine approached myself (Regina Victor, editor of Rescripted) and fellow cultural critic Jose Solís to curate and edit six articles highlighting the RECOGNIZE companies, with each of us guiding three pieces. It was our work to divide and then re-thread these companies together into articles with common themes, source writers and assign them, and edit their drafts, with American Theatre seeing to the final copy edit. These stories are examined through the lens of this year’s critically focused Rising Leaders of Color cohort (Amanda L. Andrei, Citlali Pizarro, and afrikah selah), as well as three Chicago-based writers (Dillon Chitto, Madie Doppelt, and Tina El Gamal). This six-part essay series showcases 21 examples of people doing the work, championing their culture, and finding creative solutions to generational problems. Thank you to Jose for being a wonderful thought partner in this project, and to Emilya Cachapero and Raksak Kongseng for your invitation and support.

Unrestricted support. Support without expectation, or conditions.

This is a foreign concept to most theatres that identify as Black, Indigenous, or Theatres of Color (BITOC), as well as to most theatre leaders of color. So many of us have grown accustomed to a dysfunctional system of philanthrocapitalism, upon which the future of our organizations, and therefore our legacies, are hinged. Philanthrocapitalism is a philanthropic approach that mirrors how business is done in the for-profit world. The Berkeley Economic Review defines it as “different from traditional forms of philanthropy because it involves a capitalist, market-based, for-profit approach to solving the world’s biggest and most pressing issues.” It also leads to the establishing of philanthropic LLC’s, like the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, which are rapidly replacing private foundations.

There is a complex range of strengths and challenges to this methodology, but one of its challenges is that in order to receive more money, you must provide more output. More shows. More metrics. Rather than encourage theatres to work toward deeper and more sustainable work, this system pushes for measurable content. But anybody who loves the arts knows we often work in a subtler space: that of the immeasurable, and the profound.

Fundraising is cyclical, much like the nature of cultural continuation in theatre. In cycles, there is an invitation for intention, iteration, and evolution. This piece explores the funding cycle’s impact on, and the ingenuity of, the work of three theatres: Silk Road Rising, Pangea World Theater, and Penumbra Theatre.

My experience as a leader includes having been an executive leader of a storefront theatre in Chicago through the height of the pandemic, co-founding a SWANASA (South West Asian, North African, South Asian) community organization, and currently serving on the board for the League of Chicago Theatres. These experiences provide me with insight into fundraising at its most liberating and its most oppressive. I am dedicated to healing this relationship, and envisioning what we could accomplish if funders supported us without restriction.

Unrestricted support is funder-to-fundraiser jargon for “you can use this money however the hell you see fit—we trust you.” What is more healing than trust? I seek this healing and this trust for all theatres, but specifically those built from a place of community. My community has shown unrestricted support when it comes to investing in artists like myself. Upon reflection, it is BITOC theatres like Silk Road Rising in Chicago that have gifted me with unrestricted support and investment as a person, artist, and community leader.

In fact, Silk Road was the first professional theatre that hired me. I was still in college. At the time, I was cast in a show at my university, and there were some schedule conflicts between the two opportunities. My professor encouraged me to drop the Silk Road show, saying that I would be on heavy rotation with them once I graduated because of my talent and identity, and that I didn’t have to start right away. But I didn’t drop the show, and I am so glad I kept that commitment, as my professor was right about one thing: They continued to invest in me as an artist well beyond that first show. 

As co-founder and co-executive artistic director Malik Gillani says of the company, “We aren’t just driving our own progress, we’re playing a crucial role in the transformation of the theatre sector to one that actually looks like America. THRIVE! strengthens the ecosystems that make such transformation possible.” Gillani also spoke about Silk Road Rising’s upcoming partnership with Filpina American playwright Karissa Murrell Myers, in partnership with Northeastern Illinois University. Theatres such as these are transforming the sector (and the world) by investing in the next generation of BIPOC theatre artists both in and out of their diasporas, thus creating a legacy.

The cyclical nature of funding, when ethically applied, as with the RECOGNIZE! grants, can be leveraged to the benefit of cultural continuation and community work, through creating a culture of intention and deepening the work already happening. Pangea World Theater creates legacy by channeling funding toward programs such as the Indigenous Voices Series, which “was created in 2001 to highlight the diverse, contemporary work of Indigenous theatre and performance artists. Indigenous Voices continues to bring local, national and international Indigenous artists to audiences in the Twin Cities.”

Pangea has a stunning digital archive of 18 years of this work. Their innovative arts programming also includes Race North and South on the Great River, a creative forum for community members and youth from many diverse communities to dialogue about issues of race and its intersections. These approaches are the kinds of imaginative programming that can further blossom with unrestricted funding like that of the RECOGNIZE grants.

“The THRIVE! grant has afforded us the opportunity to explore new modes of breaking artistic silos and expanding our definition of theatremaking,” said Jamil Khoury, co-founder and co-executive artistic director of Silk Road Rising, which plans to rebrand as Silk Road Cultural Center in early 2024. “This shift will enable us to continue producing live and digital theatre, but also to engage with visual art, literature, music, dance, comedy, food, etc. We’re looking at the connectivity and interplay within and between artistic mediums. It’s how we continue to serve our Silk Road communities and honor our commitment to expanding the American story.”

Like Silk Road, Penumbra continues to build a legacy of healing and cultural continuance. They, too, are “evolving into [their] next life cycle: a performing arts campus and center for racial healing that nurtures Black artists, advances equity, and facilitates wellness for individuals and community,” according to the theatre’s website. “Our space will center the Black experience, learn from and support people of color who are not Black, and welcome white individuals interested in building resiliency and competency for racial equity and racial healing work. Penumbra will stand in solidarity with and support indigenous communities upon whose land the work is located.”

Penumbra Theatre’s contributions to cultural continuation are not only seen in the award-winning work on their stages, which is “artistically excellent, thought-provoking, relevant and…illuminates the human condition through the prism of the African American experience.” It is also beautifully symbolized in the transfer of this culturally specific and necessary theatre from a father to a daughter, as Sarah Bellamy, president of Penumbra Theatre, continues the artistic legacy of her father, Lou Bellamy, Penumbra’s founder and current co-artistic director.

Often these brilliant initiatives are made possible with little more than a shoestring budget and a big dream. As a storefront theatre leader, this is how I got most things done. However, these big ideas can really flourish when funded by a philanthropic system that trusts and invests in the implicit knowledge held by BIPOC leaders who are in constant contact with their communities. It is this deep community expertise from which Penumbra’s newest program, PRIDE (Positive Racial Identity Development and Empowerment), blossoms.

As Khemara Pettus, Penumbra’s development director explained, PRIDE “will combine arts, equity, and wellness for the benefit of youth. The PRIDE program is…designed to support children of all races as they learn about concepts and experiences of race, identity, and social justice. Primary beneficiaries are youth ages 2-22 and their families. PRIDE is unique in that it supports a child’s journey through adolescence with racial and cultural pride, a nuanced knowledge of history, and practical skills to build resiliency, self-esteem, and a sense of community and belonging.”

PRIDE secured $1 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Education through the FY 2023 congressional bill—a level of government support that shows trust in BITOCs to venture into new territory. When BITOC are empowered to follow their impulses, take risks, and center the needs of the communities they work with, magical things can happen.

Silk Road co-artistic director Malik Gilliani says that support from THRIVE! has enabled his work on a new piece called The Art of Aphasia. Aphasia is a neurological condition that can affect the parts of the brain associated with language. The new piece, said Gillani, “showcases my ongoing recovery from a post-stroke language disorder, aphasia, and the interconnectedness of art and neuroplasticity. With the help of THRIVE!, we’re building a new genre of theatre called Aphasic Theatre that centers the experiences of people like me and draws inspiration from Theatre for the Deaf and Theatre for the Blind.” He added, “It’s important to note that as a brown, South Asian, Muslim, immigrant, queer, disabled person, my story is a Silk Road story, and it expands the representation of Pan-Asian, North African, and Muslim peoples.” 

If funders continue to move in this direction, looking to theatres like Silk Road, Pangea, and Penumbra as our guides, we have a chance to heal a struggling financial system while also healing our communities and ourselves. Unrestricted funding can help ensure that these theatres and the legacies they hold will persist, and create a beautiful cycle of cultural continuance and living ancestors. Unrestricted investment invites Black, Indigenous, or Theatres of Color (BITOC) and their leaders to be similarly unrestricted in their imagination, in their paying it forward, and in their investment in their communities.

Tina El Gamal (she/they) is a Chicago-based theatre artist, educator, and administrator. She was featured on New City Stage’s Players 50, 2022.

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More than 60 works of art by 26 contemporary Native American artists and designers are being exhibited in a new show at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. This Land Calls Us Home: Indigenous Relationships with Southeastern Homelands opened November 6 and will be in the gallery space of the T North Concourse for a year. It’s part of the airport’s art program.

The works express the visions of Cherokee, Mvskoke and other Native Americans living in, near and beyond the Southeastern homelands and reflect the relationships that Native Americans today have with their regional roots.

Most of the artists are descendants of the ancient mound builders and Cherokee peoples who are indigenous to the region. Five relationship categories are included in the show: community and autonomy; communication and expression; heritage and legacies; identity and diversity; nature and nurture.

Among the many artists included in the exhibit are Luzene Hill, Johnnie Lee Diacon and Tony A. Tiger.

Hill, an Atlanta native, is an enrolled member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and now lives and works in the Qualla Boundary in Cherokee, North Carolina. A multidisciplinary artist, she is best known for immersive installations and performance collaborations. She has exhibited throughout the United States, Canada, Russia, Japan and the United Kingdom. Some of her work was included in the Atlanta Contemporary group show Returns: Cherokee Diaspora and Art in 2022.

Diacon is Mvskoke, Thlopthlocco Tribal Town (Raprakko Etvlwa), and Deer Clan (Ecovlke) and has nearly 40 years of experience in fine art. He lives on the Mvskoke Reservation in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and works in many different mediums, including acrylic, oil and watercolors. He has done 3D assemblages, beadwork and sequential art for graphic novels such as Tales of the Mighty Code Talkers Volume One and Chilocco Indian School: A Generational Story.

Tiger is an enrolled member of the Sac and Fox Nation of Oklahoma, with Mvskoke Creek and Seminole lineage. He is an artist, independent indigenous art curator and art educator. His exhibitions projects include Speak: Speak While You Can (focused on the revitalization of indigenous languages in Oklahoma) on view at the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History, University of Oklahoma, in August 2024, and Return From Exile: Contemporary Southeastern Indian Art, with colleague Bobby C. Martin. His art is included in the Ford Jones Jr. Museum of Art, University of Oklahoma; the Museum of Contemporary Native Art Santa Fe, New Mexico; and the First American Museum of Art, Oklahoma City.

The This Land Calls Us Home project was led by the Rev. Chebon Kernell, a Seminole/Mvskoke scholar and educator who serves as executive director of the Native American Comprehensive Plan of The United Methodist Church. He developed the exhibit with a team of museum professionals and scholars. The organization will launch an accompanying website later this year. The Global Ministries of the church is presenting the exhibit in collaboration with the church’s Native American Comprehensive Plan, which is designed to amplify the voices of indigenous peoples.

A very exciting exhibition opens on Saturday, Nov. 11, at Redbud Arts Center at 303 E. 11th Street. “Ancient Lands … Ageless Stories” is a show of contemporary Aboriginal Australian art, which Redbud Arts Center is hosting in collaboration with the Booker-Lowe Art Gallery to celebrate the 50-year anniversary of Australia’s contemporary Aboriginal art movement.

The show includes works by artists Rosella Namok, Silas Hobson, Fiona Omeenyo, Jeffrey Jangala Gallagher, Theo (Faye) Nangala Hudson,  and Joycie Pitjarra Morton among others. While the paintings all have a modern look and feel and are created by Aboriginal artists who are our contemporaries, they draw on the rich artistic heritage of the world’s oldest living culture. Australia’s first nations have been making art for 50,000 years. If you’re a lover of abstract art, you might have encountered the term “mark making,” referring to artistic strokes meant to evoke emotion. Surely, the knowledge that 50,000 years ago Aboriginals in Australia were engaging in mark making on cave walls, in the bark of trees, in the sand, even on their own bodies, is awe-inspiring. And the fact that so many thousands of years later, artists are carrying on these artistic traditions along with the mythology that permeates them, and that we can see such works here in our own neighborhood is exciting indeed.

According to the Redbud Arts Center website, “The contemporary Aboriginal art movement began in the early 1970s at Papunya, a remote government settlement in the Northern Territory.  At the urging of the local school’s art teacher, a group of senior men agreed to paint a mural of a tribal Tjukurrpa, or Dreaming story about their Honey Ant ancestor.  Using modern paints and brushes, they created a striking abstract work on a school wall, and soon after, began painting on canvas, old floorboards, or whatever they could find.  These small paintings quickly attracted attention at a small art gallery and on the streets of Alice Springs, several hundreds of miles away.  Soon, men and women from other indigenous communities began painting, translating their own traditional patterns onto canvas.  Today, hundreds of Aboriginal painters from coast-to-coast exhibit their works, portraying a cultural journey unlike any other in museums and galleries not only in Australia but throughout Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and the U.S.”

According to the Redbud Arts Center website, the inception of the contemporary Aboriginal art movement can be traced back to the early 1970s when it emerged in the remote government settlement of Papunya, located in the Northern Territory. Encouraged by a local school’s art teacher, a group of senior men decided to embark on a creative endeavor, painting a mural depicting a tribal Tjukurrpa or Dreaming story centered around their Honey Ant ancestor. Armed with modern paints and brushes, they skillfully crafted an impactful abstract artwork on a school wall. This initial project inspired them to extend their artistic expressions to various surfaces, including canvas, old floorboards, and any available materials.

These small paintings quickly garnered attention, both within a small art gallery and on the streets of Alice Springs, several hundreds of miles away. Before long, individuals from other indigenous communities joined in, bringing their own traditional patterns to life on canvas. Today, Aboriginal painters hailing from different corners of the country proudly showcase their works. Their art serves as a representation of a cultural journey that stands apart from any other, gracing museums and galleries not only in Australia but also across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and the United States.

“Aboriginal art from Australia is a window into one of the world’s oldest cultures,” said Nana Booker, co-founder of the Booker-Lowe Art Gallery and a long-time art dealer of Australian Aboriginal art. The art reflects an incredible visual history, yet aesthetically it’s very modern. Artists use a combination of natural pigments as well as Western materials. The resulting canvases, Booker said, are “rich and layered in meaning, as well as great to look at.” Art lovers who want to know more about the meaning behind the paintings can delve into a whole mythology where the amount of exploration open to them seems endless. They can learn about ancestral creation spirits, rainbow serpents, as well as a different philosophy regarding creation, in which the creation era is never ending. 

Having been involved with collecting Aboriginal art for over 25 years, and having traveled to Australia repeatedly, Nana Booker talks with great excitement about the moment when she first fell in love with Aboriginal art, in a gallery in St. Louis during a business trip. She says she was blown away by the paintings she saw. “The power of them was palpable.”

“Ancient Lands … Ageless Stories” will be on view at Redbud Arts Center until Dec. 30, with the opening reception taking place the evening of Saturday, Nov. 11, from 6-9 p.m. 

The crumbs of an earthy, cracked adobe floor, mixed in dirt, hay and some horse dung, are sprinkled throughout the upper room of MCA Denver’s latest exhibition. This is the same adobe floor where artist rafa esparza and his longtime collaborator Fabian Guerrero took a moment to dance on while the earth was still wet.

In the aftermath of their baile, one can now walk on the intimate indents of frozen earth in what is meant to be a representation of love in Norteño culture. The same black boots used in this dance are left as witness.

“We got all the materials, put it in a freezer truck outside the museum for a week to kill all the bugs, and then we had a whole team mix it in the fire lane kind of like the way you see folks crushing grapes,” said senior curator Miranda Lash. “It took about a week to mix it, spread it, do the dance while it was still wet and wait for it to dry.”

On display through Feb. 18, 2024, esparza’s piece is part of MCA Denver’s latest exhibition Cowboy, drawing from the works of 27 artists meant to challenge the mainstream notion that America’s great horse riding heroes were all white, cisgender men.

Ken Taylor Reynaga’s sculptural cowboy hats, often connected to depictions of the female anatomy, not only help to feminize the most masculine of stereotypes but also adds to their role in the culture.

“We love [Reynaga’s] descriptions of why he focuses on hats,” Lash said. “For the folks working fields they are ubiquitous because they protect you from the sun. They are functional objects.”

An image of plastic wrapped cowboy hats hanging in the aisles of a Bennett, Colorado grocery store, blocking bottles of hot sauce and boxes of Premium saltine crackers, is displayed on the exhibition’s lower level.

The black and white image, captured by Denver-based photographer Juan Fuentes, was taken during an almost seven-month long project studying and connecting with the people of a small rural town 40 miles east of Denver.

Fuentes hosted workshops at a local library where he invited locals interested in photographing Bennett through their own eyes. This culminated in an outdoor installation of disposable camera flicks, developed with the help of Fuentes. The photographer, known for his urban eye, says the whole experience reminded him of childhood trips to his hometown of Chihuahua, Mexico.

“I didn’t take my first photo until the fifth visit I had in Bennett,” Fuentes said. “I really wanted to make these connections first and build some relationships.”

The project, commissioned by the Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art and Anythink Libraries as an effort to activate art in library spaces, caught the attention of Lash during a studio visit with Fuentes. They spoke about what it would look like to adapt some of these images into Cowboy.

“It is really important to us that there be a strong representation of Colorado artists in the show,” Lash said.

“I just wanted to reflect some of that Mexican vaquero and charro culture that’s been here for generations,” Fuentes added. “While it feels like something from the past, talking about the mythology of the cowboy, it’s amazing to see how alive it is and how fresh certain aspects of it are.”

Artists like Otis Kwame Kye Quaicoe and Ana Segovia imagine a new world of cowboys through their works.

Quaicoe, a Ghanaian artist who became obsessed with cowboy culture before living in the U.S., depicts friends and family as cowboys in his paintings as a way of assuming the cowboy identity.

Segovia’s work focuses on the golden age of Mexican cinema celebrating the traditionally macho Charro culture. Her film, titled “Aunque me espine la mano,” depicts queer Charros in neon suits and borrows gestures from a classic Charro film.

“She talked about how she went to multiple tailors, all of whom declined to make a charro suit in these [neon] colors,” Lash said. “She ultimately collaborated with an artist on making the suits.”

Belt buckles, photographs and T-shirts of Indian and Pawnee Rodeos are also on display by the family of Nathan Young, an artist and scholar from Tahlequah, Oklahoma.

“We approached him about the Cowboy exhibition and he got really excited for this to be an opportunity to share his own family’s history,” Lash said. “Showing the longstanding history of his family within rodeo culture.”

The exhibition takes “apart the myth of a homogenized idea,” like the American cowboy, by drawing on the perspectives of Asian American, Black, Latinx and Native artists, Lash added.

“The cowboy, one of the reasons we really focused on it is that yes, it’s in popular culture…But it’s also a political idea that’s tied to American identity. The rugged individual who can set his own terms and succeed in the way he wants. The Maverick,” Lash said. “We were really trying to dig into why so many politicians, entrepreneurs like identifying with the cowboy. Art can really pull apart and deconstruct the holes in that narrative.”

Ask students about the bronze horseman perched upon the galloping stallion in Mudd Hall, and many will call to mind not only the statue’s title, Rumors of War, but also the horseman’s distinct hairstyle (dreadlocks) and attire (a hoodie and Nike tennis shoes).

“If you’ve had coffee in Mudd Hall, you’ve likely talked about the sculpture and perhaps gone on to read or learn about it,” said Maureen Marsh, senior vice president and secretary of the board of trustees at Johns Hopkins University. The 7-foot-tall equestrian statue by world-renowned artist Kehinde Wiley—an original smaller-scale version of his 27-foot bronze monument that now stands in Richmond, Virginia—is on long-term loan to the university from its owner Bill Miller, an investor, philanthropist, and JHU trustee.

“The statue brings people together and inspires conversation,” Marsh said. “It makes people stop and think.”

Now, the university has the opportunity to purchase and display new contemporary works of art on its campuses, positioned in places that both the public and the Johns Hopkins community can enjoy, gather around, think about, and discuss. In keeping with the aims of the university’s Diverse Names and Narratives Project, the goal is to select artists and artwork representing a broad range of perspectives, with many pieces created by local artists of burgeoning acclaim and reflecting some aspect of Baltimore.

A committee made up of faculty, staff, students, alumni, and trustee representatives will work in partnership with Cara Ober, the editor-in-chief and publisher of the independent art magazine BmoreArt, to identify and select artwork to buy and install on campus in 2024.

At the first committee meeting, Ober provided an overview of collecting art in Baltimore. Her story started with sisters Etta and Claribel Cone, who bought paintings and other art from Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso in the early 20th century, before bequeathing more than 3,000 art objects to the Baltimore Museum of Art. Included in the BMA’s Cone Collection are 600 works by Matisse and 114 by Picasso, plus hundreds of prints, drawings, jewelry pieces, furniture pieces, books, and other items.

“For me, the most interesting and inspiring aspect of [the Cone sisters’] work is that they were not collecting famous artists at that time, and they were not collecting because they formed friendships with these artists,” Ober explained. “They were collecting artists they believed in … [and] saw value in, when others did not.”

Investing in and collecting art involves more than amassing material goods of high aesthetic—and financial—value, Ober indicated. “A lot of collectors are uncomfortable using the word ‘invest,’ but in my way of thinking, investing means giving artists resources because we value what they’re doing, and we’re giving them the opportunity to grow their practice and buy food,” she said.

The vibrant art scene, creative energy, and affordability of Baltimore make it an ideal place for ambitious, emerging artists to live and work. But Baltimore-based artists looking to make it in the international art world tend to exhibit their work outside of Charm City, booking shows instead in global art meccas like New York City, Los Angeles, Mexico City, London, Tokyo, Istanbul, Berlin, Paris, Hong Kong, Seoul, and Shanghai.

“By bringing some of this art to Johns Hopkins University, the institution can serve as a local venue that showcases Baltimore art, while supporting artists as they grow and evolve in their careers,” Ober said.

To lend diverse thoughts and opinions to the project, the selection committee consists of individuals with varied interests and experience.

Krieger School faculty are among the arts and culture scholars in the group, including Daniel Weiss, A&S (MA), ’92 (PhD), an art historian and Homewood Professor of the Humanities at Johns Hopkins, who previously served as the president and chief executive officer of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York; Mia Yinxing Liu, an assistant professor in the Department of the History of Art at Johns Hopkins, who specializes in modern and contemporary Chinese art and media culture; and Karen ní Mheallaigh, the Andrew W. Mellon Professor in the Humanities and chair of the Department of Classics at Johns Hopkins, whose work focuses on intersections between literature, art, and astronomy (among other sciences) in the ancient world.

“I’m interested in connections between art and science, and how art can help us get over our entrenched boundaries,” said ní Mheallaigh. “I’ve been thinking about these connections largely in disciplinary terms, and that’s why I’m here—I’m just really interested in how art can shift the way we think.”

Alicia Wilson, a university trustee, Baltimore native, and managing director and global head of philanthropy for the North American region for JPMorgan Chase, is also on the committee. “Art is such an important part of life, and I’m honored to join this exciting program focused on my hometown,” Wilson said.

For student committee members, the chance to learn about Baltimore art and influence the selection is exciting. “I’ve learned in my classes about the role of museums in society and how people question how museums should display art—and what art, in particular, should be displayed,” said Eric Smith, a committee member and sophomore majoring in international studies. “I look forward to exploring more on this committee.”

The committee is meeting throughout the fall and plans to make final selections by the end of this semester.

Another week flies by, and so will this week’s arts events, so check them out before they’re gone!

Head to the Hayden Library for a tea and zine-making class hosted by Asian Native Hawaiian Pacific Islanders Visionary Action and taught by Professor Loretta LeMaster. Mugs and tea bags will be provided, and students can learn hands-on how to create a zine. The event starts on Tuesday, Nov. 7, at 6 p.m.

Starting at 10:30 a.m. on Nov. 7, guest artist Art Werger will give a free demonstration and lecture on his work, ideas and process in room 446 of the Art Building. Werger is an internationally renowned artist known for his work in etching, reductive aquatint and mezzotint. 

The opening of the multimedia exhibition entitled “To Whom it May Concern” is being held on Tuesday, Nov. 7 at 5:30 p.m. in Gallery 100 at Mirabella at ASU and will showcase the work of eight student artists. Through different mediums, the work aims to showcase themes such as culture, trauma, home, and societal issues. This event is free for all students, and the gallery will be open Monday through Friday from noon to 5 p.m.

Native veterans, in collaboration with the Heard Museum and the Native Artists Resource Group, are hosting an exhibition of Native artists’ prints. This exhibition will take place in ArtSpace West on Wednesday, Nov. 8 at 7 p.m. 

Dana Mossman Tepper, the conservator of the ASU Art Museum, is leading a behind-the-scenes experience at the museum on Thursday, Nov. 9, from noon to 1 p.m. that will include hands-on activities and information about projects currently happening in the Conservation Lab. The event is free for students, who can RSVP here. 

Check out the incredible designs of fellow ASU students at the 16th annual poster showcase! The show will take place at Novus on Thursday, Nov. 9 at 6 p.m. The event is free but will include an auction for poster designs, with proceeds going to final design exhibitions this spring semester.

‘De-Construction: by Popular Demand’ Exhibit, Vault Gallery in the Downtown Phoenix campus library until Dec. 8.

‘Hommage de Jules Massenet: Confluence of Art Forms’ Exhibit, Music Library until Dec. 15

‘Anthropocene,’ Galvin Playhouse Theatre until Nov. 11

Join the TEMPEtations, ASU’s co-ed acapella group, for their fall concert from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 9, at Neeb Hall. The show will feature a variety of performances from its members and is free for students.

The Devil Clefs will perform their fall concert this Friday from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. at AZ Social Hall, where the group will perform their fall repertoire and host small group performances. 

Head to the Turquoise Room in the Memorial Union on Saturday, Nov. 11, at 4 p.m. to hear The Undertones in their fall concert. They will perform a variety of pieces, including acapella jazz group performances and solo accompanying performances.

Comedy at ASU will host its weekly Friday performance on Nov. 10 with sets from both groups. Farce Side will perform at 7 p.m. and Barren Mind at 8 p.m. Stand-up comedy will also occur at 9 p.m. after both shows, hosted by the director of Barren Mind. The performances will be held on the Memorial Union stage.

ASU choral ensembles will unite onNov. 6 in an extravaganza performance hosted by the Herberger Institute. The performance will take place at 7:30 p.m. in Gammage. Herberger students and staff are offered complimentary tickets, and other general admission is $12. 

The ASU School of Music presents a morning show on Tuesday, Nov. 7, consisting of ASU students of violin professor Danwen Jiang. The performance takes place in the Kerr Cultural Center at 10:30 a.m., and refreshments will be served in the Crescendo Garden starting at 9:30 a.m. The concert is free, but donations of $5 or sealed items for charity are encouraged. Reservations are required.

Visit the Margaret Gisolo Dance Theatre at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 8, to experience the artistry of ASU’s dance students! Tickets for students are $5 and must be purchased in advance, as there are no in-person sales at the event.

Under the direction of Robby Carillo, the ASU Latin Jazz Band will be performing selections from their diverse repertoire at The Nash on Nov. 8 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are only $5 per person to enjoy this rich musical experience.

Head to the Katzin Concert Hall on Nov. 8 at 7:30 p.m. to enjoy an incredible performance from the Viola Studio. This event is free for all to attend, so take advantage and enjoy some beautiful music performed by ASU students!

Enjoy an evening of vintage selections performed by ASU’s Big Bands in the Katzin Concert Hall on Thursday, Nov. 9 at 7:30 p.m. This free performance spans the history of big band music and promises a wonderful show.

The Visiting Quartet Residency Program presents the culminating performance of Brentano String Quartet program students. Hear the results of their hard work in the Recital Hall on Nov. 8 at 7:30 p.m. for free!

Experience some of the oldest and newest music of the organ repertoire as performed by Professor of Organ Kimberly Marshall on Sunday, Nov. 12, at 2:30 p.m. in Organ Hall. Student tickets are $12, and ticket sales are online only.

Head to Fusion on First at 6:30 p.m. on Nov. 9 for a free showcase of fashion and music, as well as catered food! Looking to perform? Sign-up begins at 6:15 p.m. and is open to the public.

Student Recitals

Check out some of ASU’s most talented performers with this week’s student recitals! Doctoral students Eunbin Ko and John Harden will perform the piano and clarinet. While graduate students Haley Kessler and Maoning Wang play piano, and graduate student Michael Furgala plays violin. Undergraduate soprano student Yueyao Li and tuba Connor Fry will be performing this week as well.

Join the Association of Filmmakers at ASU for a speed networking event on Nov. 8 at 5 p.m. in Durham Hall. Connect with students in the film community and expand your network.

Join Movies on the Field for a screening of “Top Gun: Maverick” at Mountain America Stadium on Nov. 10 at 7 p.m. Enjoy this classic under the stars and during Salute to Service week.

ASU’s Center for Science and the Imagination screens “Prospect” at Majestic Cinema Grill on November 8 at 7 p.m. Tickets cost $8, with a limited number of free tickets for ASU students. This event is part of “The History of the Future” film series.

Join ASU’s Movies on the Lawn for the highly-anticipated sequel, “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” on Nov. 9 at 6:30 p.m. on University Lawn. The event is free, family-friendly, and open to the public, featuring prizes for selected guests. 

ASU’s “Moonlight Movie Nights” presents a free screening of “Selena” on Nov. 10 at 7:45 p.m. in the Plaza at Mesa City Center. The evening includes pre-movie activities starting at 7 p.m., such as food vendors, a lowrider parade, and a Selena look-alike contest. Enjoy a family-friendly night under the stars, celebrating Selena’s life and music.

The 3rd Edition of the Romanian Film Festival AZ, presented by the American Romanian Cultural Society Arizona, features two films on Saturday, Nov. 11, at Majestic Tempe 7. The films “E PERICOLOSO SPORGERSI” and “TAXI DRIVERS” are part of the festival’s theme, “One Eye Laughing, One Eye Crying,” and are in Romanian with English subtitles. For ticket prices, visit the festival’s website.

ASU is hosting a free reflective writing workshop titled “Pieces of Our Origin Story” on Nov. 6 at 3 p.m. in the Virginia G. Piper Writers House in Tempe, where participants can explore ideas of identity, home, and personal origin stories. The event is open to the public, with snacks provided.

ASU’s “Micrography Magic” event on Nov. 8, starting at noon, lets attendees create art with text using the “micrography” technique led by Hayden’s Ferry Review intern Ariella Aminov at the Virginia G. Piper Writers House in Tempe. The event is free and open to the public, with snacks provided.

ASU will host a free workshop on Nov. 8 at 5 p.m. in Ross-Blakley Hall and via Zoom. The event explores the use of science fiction and speculative design to address contemporary questions and is open to the ASU community and the public.

ASU is hosting “Shakespeare at 400—’Making Shakespeare: The First Folio,'” a free event featuring PBS documentary excerpts and insights from Shakespeare scholars on Nov. 8 at 6 p.m. in the Arizona PBS Communication Suite, marking ASU’s celebration of the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s First Folio.

ASU celebrates the life and work of Margarita Cota-Cárdenas, featuring critical essays, reflections, interviews, and unpublished writing, on Thursday, Nov. 9 at 3 p.m. in Ross Blakely Hall and via Zoom. The event is free and highlights arts, diversity, and inclusion in honoring the legacy of this pioneering Chicana author, with refreshments provided.

ASU is hosting an event featuring Douglas Kearney and Octavio Quintanilla, both accomplished poets, for readings, conversation, and book signings. This free event will take place on Thursday, Nov. 9, at 7 p.m. in Armstrong Hall on the Tempe campus.

ASU is hosting a conversation with acclaimed science fiction writer Ken Liu in collaboration with theoretical physicist and astrobiologist Sara Walker, where they will discuss the role of narrative in the construction of reality and its connection to science. This free event will take place on Monday, Nov. 13, at 6:30 p.m. in the Marston Theater on the Tempe campus.

The Vintage Street Market Festival will be held on Nov. 9 at 9 a.m. in the Civic Space Park on the downtown campus. Hosted by ASU’s Fashion Journalism Club in collaboration with other student organizations, it features vendor tables, music, food, drinks, and opportunities to learn about the organizations and programs involved. 

Edited by Claire van Doren, Sadie Buggle, Walker Smith and Caera Learmonth.

Reach the reporters at asvargo@asu.edu and adirst@asu.edu and follow @asvargo and @andrewdirst on X.

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