Greater Nicoya female figure on a feline-effigy bench
The Baptism of Pocahontas, John Gadsby Chapman
Official White House Photo by Pete Sousa
Engraving, Harper's 1867. Library of Congress.

Exhibitions & Events

Cerámica de los Ancestros

Cerámica de los Ancestros: Central America’s Past Revealed

March 29, 2013–February 01, 2015
Washington, DC

This exhibition illuminates Central America’s diverse and dynamic ancestral heritage with a selection of more than 160 objects. For thousands of years, Central America has been home to vibrant civilizations, each with unique, sophisticated ways of life, value systems, and arts. The ceramics these peoples left behind, combined with recent archaeological discoveries, help tell the stories of these dynamic cultures and their achievements. 

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Grand Procession: Dolls from the Charles and Valerie Diker Collection

April 17, 2013–January 05, 2014
Washington, DC

Grand Procession celebrates Native identity through 23 colorful and meticulously detailed objects that are much more than dolls. Traditionally made by female relatives using buffalo hair, hide, porcupine quills, and shells, figures like these have long served as both toys and teaching tools for American Indian communities.

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C. Maxx Stevens: House of Memory

December 01, 2012–June 16, 2013
New York, NY
C.Maxx Stevens (Seminole/Muscogee) is a visual storyteller whose deeply personal, eclectic constructions tell stories about places and people from her past. Working with “found objects” and ephemeral materials such as paper, wood and hair, her art has a dark, gritty quality that is both haunting and familiar. The selected sculpture, installation and prints in this solo exhibition address memory through cultural and personal symbols, and illustrate the complexities of the contemporary Native experience.

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Circle of Dance

Circle of Dance

Ongoing
New York, NY
Circle of Dance is a five-year exhibition that presents Native dance as a vibrant, meaningful, and diverse form of cultural expression. Featuring ten social and ceremonial dances from throughout the Americas, the exhibition illuminates the significance of each dance and highlights the unique characteristics of its movements and music.

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Infinity of Nations: Art and History in the Collections of the National Museum of the American Indian

Ongoing
George Gustav Heye Center, New York
This spectacular, permanent exhibition of some 700 works of Native art from throughout North, Central, and South America demonstrates the breadth of the museum’s renowned collection and highlights the historic importance of many of these iconic objects. Infinity of Nations opens with a display of headdresses. Signifying the sovereignty of Native nations, these works include a magnificent Kayapó krok-krok-ti, a macaw-and-heron-feather ceremonial headdress.

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