Media Advisory Press Preview for First Major Exhibition to Explore the Achievements of Native Women Artists

WHAT:    

Press preview for “Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists”  

WHEN:    

Thursday, Feb. 20
10 a.m. to noon
Sign-in: 10 a.m.
Remarks and tour: 10:30 a.m.

WHERE:

Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum
Pennsylvania Avenue at 17th Street N.W.

WHO:

Stephanie Stebich, director, Smithsonian American Art Museum
Jill Ahlberg Yohe, associate curator of Native American art, Minneapolis Institute of Art 
Teri Greeves (Kiowa Nation), independent curator
Anita Fields (Osage)
Carla Hemlock (Kanienkeháka)
Kelly Church (Ottawa/Pottawatomi)     

The Smithsonian American Art Museum presents the groundbreaking exhibition “Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists” at its Renwick Gallery. This timely exhibition is the first major museum showcase to explore the artistic contributions of Native women and establishes Native women’s rightful place in the art world. 

The presentation at the Renwick Gallery is part of a nationally touring exhibition organized by Jill Ahlberg Yohe, associate curator of Native American Art at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, and Teri Greeves, an independent curator and member of the Kiowa Nation. The exhibition includes more than 80 artworks dating from ancient times to the present, made in a variety of media—from textiles and ceramics to sculpture, time-based media and photography. The exhibition is multi-lingual, with wall text presented in the artist’s Native American or First Nations language and in English. 

This exhibition will be on view from Feb. 21 through May 17.

Information about this exhibition is available online at americanart.si.edu/press/kits

Interested media should RSVP to americanartpressoffice@si.edu. Photographers and film crews are welcome. Contact Ashley Reese in advance at reeseam@si.edu to make arrangements and to request one-on-one interviews. 

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About the Smithsonian American Art Museum and its Renwick Gallery

The Smithsonian American Art Museum is the flagship museum in the United States for American art and craft. It is home to one of the most significant and inclusive collections of American art in the world. The museum’s main building, located at Eighth and G streets N.W., is open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. The museum’s Renwick Gallery, a branch museum dedicated to contemporary craft, is located on Pennsylvania Avenue at 17th Street N.W. and is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Check online for current hours and admission information. Admission is free. Follow the museum on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. Smithsonian information: (202) 633-1000. Museum information (recorded): (202) 633-7970. Website: americanart.si.edu.

Press Images

Christi Belcourt painting The Wisdom of the Universe
Press - Hearts of Our People

Christi Belcourt (Michif), The Wisdom of the Universe, 2014, acrylic on canvas, Collection Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto; Purchased with funds donated by Greg Latremoille, 2014, 2014/6. © Christi Belcourt