Crystal Bridges opened its newest exhibition, “American Sunrise: Indigenous Art at Crystal Bridges” on Nov. 9. The collection of artwork highlights a diverse range of mediums including basketry, beadwork, paintings, photography and pottery. It showcases work from more than 30 Indigenous artists and will be on display for free at the museum through March 23, 2025.

The museum hosted a gallery talk on Saturday with a panel of exhibition artists and curators to mark opening weekend. Around 50 people attended the event to hear the panelists speak about their work and the significance it holds to Indigenous cultures.

Co-curator Jordan Poorman Cocker opened the panel by offering an overview of the exhibition. The title “American Sunrise” was inspired by a 2019 volume of poems by Joy Harjo, the 23rd Poet Laureate in the United States.

“Harjo’s poetry opens up a dialogue with American history through the lens of Indigenous Nation’s relationships to the land through past, present and future timelines,” Cocker said.

The exhibit revolves around three central themes: Indigenous futurism, place and kinship. These themes highlight the deep connections to the land, intergenerational artistic practice, and the resilience of kinship between Indigenous artists and place.

Art for the Past, Art for the Future 

Much of the artwork in the show tells stories that hold a deep significance to Indigenous history.

During the gallery talk, Lillie Vann — who sat on the panel to represent her grandmother, exhibition artist Jane Osti — spoke about Osti’s firepot, which is based on the pots the Cherokee people carried on the Trail of Tears. Marching during the winter, the tribe kept embers in the small pots throughout the journey in order to be able to start fires along the way.

Another artist on the panel, Jeri Redcorn, said it was through her pottery that she found a connection to her own history, learning more about her people’s past in the Louisiana and Arkansas area even though she grew up on the plains of Oklahoma. Redcorn is widely credited with reviving traditional Caddo pottery, and in 2009, First Lady Michelle Obama displayed one of her pots in the White House.

Artist Kelly Church, who comes from a basket weaving family, is carrying on the tradition her Ottawa/Potawatomi ancestors have held for centuries. Her baskets are woven from black ash trees found in her home state of Michigan and surrounding areas. 

She explained the intricate process of harvesting, debarking, scoring and weaving that goes into each basket. Along the way, Church has been documenting her artistic process, with hopes to sustain the tradition for future generations.

“Everything I create today, I try to think about tomorrow. You know, when I’m gone, what can I leave behind for the people to continue to teach them, to help them,” she said.

Today, a beetle known as the emerald ash borer has been steadily killing the black ash trees. First introduced to the area through infected ash pallets from China, Michigan is expected to lose its black ash trees in the next few years, Church said.

She explained that she is collecting seeds for future generations, looking ahead at how the resource can be revitalized. In harvesting one tree, the weavers would replant 10 or 20. Now, she also works to share the message of the black ash trees’ demise, with a hope to inspire others to plant the trees as well. 

“I like to look at my work as something that’s from the past, talking about something that’s happening today in the present and in the future will become history,” she said.