Nations at War! Field Sketches of a Pawnee Warrior – Opening on September 1, 2023, Nations at War! explores the significance of Native American ledger art by Brummett Echohawk, a Pawnee soldier in the American 45th Infantry Division during World War II. Native American ledger art is known for its colorful and extremely accurate depiction of Indigenous life. The sketches created by Brummett Echohawk are not only important historical resources, but also part of an artistic and social legacy dating back thousands of years in North America. Sketching soldiers from Germany, Japan, India, Algeria – as well as soldiers from many different Native American nations serving in the 45th Infantry Division – Brummett Echohawk brings a unique perspective to the history of art and war. He drew the battles he fought and the friends he lost; something not known to have been done by an indigenous artist since the late 1800s.
Nations at War! will be on exhibit through January 21, 2024, and is being completed in partnership with Oklahoma State University Departments of History and Art History and is curated by Dr. Eric Singleton (NCWHM) and Dr. David D’Andrea (OSU).
Women in Wyoming: Portraits and Interviews of Women Who Shape the West – Opening on September 8, 2023, Women in Wyoming shares the stories of 25 bold and impactful women who make their mark in the Cowboy state. Created by fifth generation Wyomingite Lindsay Linton Buk, the project promotes the integrity, civility, diversity, and profound legacy of women and girls.
Using photography and audio interviews, the project aims to connect the past to the present. Wyoming led the country as the first state to recognize a woman’s right to vote and hold office. Because of this landmark decision, Wyoming also gave the country its first female jurors, bailiff, Justice of the Peace, and Governor in the years that followed. Women in Wyoming celebrates the strong, female voice that contributed to America’s history and the women who continue to shape Wyoming’s future through courageous spirit and action.
Women in Wyoming will be on exhibit through January 2, 2024.
King Ranch: A Legacy in Art; Paintings by Noe Perez – Supported by the King Ranch which offered the artist access to the ranch, the paintings in the exhibition, King Ranch: A Legacy in Art, Paintings by Noe Perez present evocative visual narratives through Perez’s paintings from and about King Ranch. Opening September 22, 2023, the exhibition reveals the lifeways and traditions of King Ranch and its place in the artistic heritage of the American West. Perez’s landscapes, genre scenes, wildlife, and livestock paintings serve as a reminder of the beautiful, vast and rugged place that is King Ranch.
Noe Perez is a contemporary Texas painter living in Corpus Christi. He has painted his native South Texas his entire life and his works have been exhibited at the Witte Museum in San Antonio, the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, the Nave Museum in Victoria, the Mayborn Museum at Baylor University in Waco and at the Texas State Capitol in Austin.
King Ranch, established in 1853, looms large in American history and perhaps even larger in the popular imagination. During a drought in south Texas and northern Mexico, Richard King purchased the cattle from the families of the ranching community of Cruillas, Tamaulipas, and invited them to move to his ranch and become his workforce. These families became Los Kineños (King’s people). From its founding by Richard King to the present day, King Ranch has indelibly captured for generations the essence of the American West. Moreover, the King Ranch was an early supporter of the National Cowboy Hall of Fame and continues to support the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.
King Ranch: A Legacy in Art, Paintings by Noe Perez will be on exhibit through January 2, 2024.
Black Cowboys: An American Story – Opening September 22, 2023, Black Cowboys: An American Story explores the lives and work of the numerous Black men, women and children – enslaved and free – who labored on the ranches of Texas and participated on cattle drives before the Civil War and through the turn of the twentieth century.
This powerful exhibition features artifacts, photographs and documents depicting the work and skills of Black cowboys. Black Cowboys: An American Story offers insight into legendary cowboys, a clearer picture of the Black West and a more diverse portrait of the American West.
Be transported through time to meet a variety of real Black cowboys and appreciate their deep impact on American History. Discover how they tamed and trained horses, tended livestock and rode on the trail with thousands of cattle across America.
Black Cowboys: An American Story will be on exhibit through January 2, 2024, and was developed by the Witte Museum, San Antonio (WitteMuseum.org). The exhibition is presented by Bank of America and generously supported by the John L. Santikos Charitable Fund of the San Antonio Area Foundation, I1-B-B and Ed Rachal Foundation.