Telling Their Own Stories

In a 2022 article in Travel + Leisure magazine, writer Vivian Chung summed up the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture’s Here, Now and Always exhibition with these words: “Museums spark
exploration, not endings.”

The museum’s Native Narratives Speaker Series, funded by the Gale Family Foundation, embodies that spirit. About once a month in the museum’s Kathryn O'Keeffe Theater, leading Indigenous
voices in Native arts, culture and tribal heritage tell their own stories as they explore the exhibition’s themes of Cycles, Ancestors, Home and Community, Trade and Exchange, Language and
Song, Art, and Survival and Resilience.

Past speakers have included Porter Swentzell (Santa Clara), who examined the 1680 Pueblo Revolt as “part of numerous and continuous acts by Pueblo peoples to oppose and overcome the
imposition of colonialism.” Julie O’Keefe, lead Osage clothing consultant for the Oscar-winning film "Killers of the Flower Moon," discussed the film's role in raising awareness about the Osage
Reign of Terror and the recent shift toward authenticity in how Natives are portrayed. And artist Rose Simpson (Santa Clara) discussed her mixed media works in relation to tribal identity,
history and resilience.

Join s for the next Native Narrative Speaker Series for  an intimate conversation with Loren Aragon (Acoma Pueblo), Penny Singer (Diné) and Patricia Michaels (Taos Pueblo) (all pictured above) on June 29 from 1 to 3 p.m.

Purchase your ticket in advance to reserve your seat.  Visit https://my.nmculture.org/overview/26827 or call (505) 476-1269 today.  Members - use your promo code!

Native Narratives will feature new speakers throughout the summer and is free for Museum of New Mexico Foundation members. Visit miaclab.org for details.

This article and images are from the Museum of New Mexico Foundation’s Member News Magazine and the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture.