G. Peter Jemison Aotearoa/Ganondagan, 1986 Color pencil and grease crayon on paper bag Photo by Addison Doty

This exhibition explores the work of 47 native artists from the United States and Canada for whom self-portraiture is a primary means of self-expression.

Guest curators Zena Pearlstone and Allan J. Ryan have selected works that illustrate the ways in which native representations of personal identity have changed in recent years. In Pearlstone’s words, “For native artists there has been a sense of empowerment over the last 35–40 years. They have found the power to speak back, to expose the pains of the past, to criticize the dominant culture, to laugh at cultural collisions. . . What distinguishes Native American self-portraits from those of the dominant culture is that these speak to identity through the negotiation of cultural conflict.”

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