Forbes
Native American And African American History Unfold Through Art Across New York
May 15, 2026
Written By Chad Scott
“Advancing further into the 20th century, the exhibition introduces important works on paper by artists such as Awa Tsireh (San Ildefonso), Julian Martinez (San Ildefonso), Quah Ah Tonita Peña (San Ildefonso), Gerónima Montoya (Ohkay Owingeh), Tse Tsan Pablita Velarde (Santa Clara), Acee Blue Eagle (Muscogee), Archie Blackowl (Cheyenne), the Kiowa Six, and many others who invented and advanced the “Flat Style” and achieved international recognition including at the 1932 Venice Biennale.
Also featured are a pair of mid-20th century works by modernist pioneers Oscar Howe (Yanktonai Dakota) and George Morrison (Ojibwe). They took Native American art out as far as it had ever gone. They helped initiate the contemporary era of Native art along with the creation of the Institute for American Indian Art in 1962.
No conversation about American art since 1960 is complete without recognition of IAIA in Santa Fe, the only four-year degree fine arts institution in the world devoted to contemporary Native American and Alaskan Native arts.
The “House Made of Dawn” exhibition brings to light the artistic accomplishments of three generations of groundbreaking IAIA teachers and students beginning with the OG’s: Fritz Scholder (Luiseño), Momaday, Allan Houser (Apache), T.C. Cannon (Kiowa), Earl Biss (Crow), Linda Lomahaftewa (Hopi), Joy Harjo (Muscogee), Dan Namingha (Hopi), and David Bradley (Chippewa) among them.”
