For Olivia Shortt, from the series For Zitkála-Šá

Copied Raven Chacon, For Olivia Shortt, from the series For Zitkála-Šá, 2020, lithograph on paper, sheet and image: 11 in. × 8 12 in. (27.9 × 21.6 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Julia D. Strong Endowment, 2022.7.1.12, © 2019-2020, Raven Chacon

Artwork Details

Title
For Olivia Shortt, from the series For Zitkála-Šá
Artist
Date
2020
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
sheet and image: 11 in. × 8 12 in. (27.9 × 21.6 cm)
Copyright
© 2019-2020, Raven Chacon
Credit Line
Museum purchase through the Julia D. Strong Endowment
Mediums Description
lithograph on paper
Classifications
Keywords
  • Abstract
Object Number
2022.7.1.12

Artwork Description

Trained as a composer, Chacon (Diné) often starts from musically notated scores to create conceptually rich artworks across creative categories. Since scores are inherently fluid, even when they take fixed form in a video or print, the works based on them retain the possibility for further interpretation, collaboration, and reanimation in new contexts.

In his print portfolio series For Zitkála-Šá, Chacon recognizes Zitkála-Šá (Yankton-Dakota, 1876--1938), an Indigenous and women's rights advocate and the first Native composer to use Western musical notation. The series of score-portraits celebrates contemporary Native woman musicians in his circle. Each striking graphic is accompanied by performance instructions, inviting all to imagine how they might activate this legacy.

Musical Thinking: New Video Art and Sonic Strategies, 2023

Related Books

The cover of the publication Musical Thinking New Video Art & Sonic Strategies
Musical Thinking: New Video Art and Sonic Strategies 
Exploring the powerful resonances between recent video art and popular music, the exhibition Musical Thinking: New Video Art and Sonic Strategies features ten leading contemporary artists and the work.

Exhibitions

Media - 2020.54.1 - SAAM-2020.54.1_2 - 139600
Musical Thinking: New Video Art and Sonic Strategies
June 23, 2023January 28, 2024
Musical Thinking explores the powerful resonances between recent video art and popular music.

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Side by side artworks displaying symbols in a musical arrangement.
11/03/2023
Award winning composer Raven Chacon combines Diné (Navajo) worldviews with Western classical and avant-garde music traditions
SAAM