Past Exhibitions | Smithsonian Institution

who stole the tee pee?

Explore the social, political, cultural, and personal changes that Native Americans of North America have experienced in the last century through 25 historical pieces,

October 1, 2000 – January 21, 2001

American Indian Museum New York

Woven by the Grandmothers: 19th-Century Navajo Textiles from the NMAI

See 40 19th-century Navajo textiles, woven between 1840 and 1880, including boldly patterned chief blankets, poncho sarapes, biil (traditional two-piece dresses), women's striped shoulder blankets, bordered mantas, and diyogi (loosely woven blankets).

October 6, 1996 – January 8, 1997

American Indian Museum New York

Will Wilson: Auto Immune Response

Photographer and artist Will Wilson (Navajo) creates an imagined environment to show what the Navajos' relationship to the land might be like in the distant future.

May 4, 2006 – September 24, 2006

American Indian Museum New York

Why We Serve: Native Americans in the United States Armed Forces

Why We Serve honors the generations of Native Americans who have served in the armed forces of the United States—often in extraordinary numbers—since the American Revolution.

November 11, 2020 – November 30, 2023

American Indian Museum New York

Weaving a Mayan Heritage: Clothing by Juana Cavanaugh

Discover traditional vestments handmade by Juana Cavanaugh, an Ixil Indian from Guatemala.

March 18, 1992 – September 14, 1992

American Indian Museum New York

We Are Here! Eiteljorg Contemporary Art Fellowship

Paintings, photos, installation art, videos and sculpture reveal the issues, concerns, and methods of leading contemporary Native artists.

June 2, 2012 – September 23, 2012

American Indian Museum New York

Virgil Ortiz: La Renaissance Indigene

View an exhibit of ceramics, mixed media and couture from the artist Virgil Ortiz (Cochiti Pueblo, b. 1969).

May 4, 2006 – September 24, 2006

American Indian Museum New York

Up Where We Belong: Native Musicians in Popular Culture

This banner exhibition highlights Native people who have been active participants in contemporary music for nearly a century.

August 4, 2012 – August 11, 2013

American Indian Museum New York

Unbound: Narrative Art of the Plains

This exhibition reflects the dynamic tradition of narrative art among Native nations from the Great Plains. The exhibition traces the evolution of the art form from historic hides, muslins, and ledger books to more than 50 contemporary works commissioned by the museum.

March 12, 2016 – December 4, 2016

American Indian Museum New York

Transformer: Native Art in Light and Sound

Presents the work of ten artists who use light, digital projection, and experimental media to reflect on their place in and between traditional and dominant cultures.

November 10, 2017 – January 6, 2019

American Indian Museum New York

Traditional Iroquois Clothing

See intricate bead and ribbon work that decorates these modern items of clothing created by Sheila Smith (Oneida).

November 7, 1990 – March 10, 1991

American Indian Museum New York

To Honor and Comfort: Native Quilting Traditions

See 40 quilts that demonstrate the cultural and economic significance of quiltmaking in tribal communities.

October 19, 1997 – January 4, 1998

American Indian Museum New York

Time Exposures: Picturing a History of Isleta Pueblo in the 19th Century

See how the lives of Native American people of the American Southwest were changed by the arrival of the railroads after 1881.

September 17, 2011 – June 10, 2012

American Indian Museum New York

Through the Eyes of the Eagle: Illustrating Healthy Living for Children

See nearly 70 original watercolors used in the Eagle Books -- a diabetes-prevention series developed for Native schoolchildren.

October 3, 2008 – January 4, 2009

American Indian Museum New York

This Path We Travel: Celebrations of Contemporary Native American Creativity

Drawing on ancient and modern influences using sounds, objects, and videos, 15 contemporary Native American artists, writers, musicians and dancers make a collective statement about the continuity of the Indian American spirit.

October 30, 1994 – April 8, 1996

American Indian Museum New York

The Language of Native American Baskets: From the Weavers' View

See more than 200 of the finest examples of Native American baskets from the museum's collection.

September 20, 2003 – January 9, 2005

American Indian Museum New York

The Edge of Enchantment

View exhibits presenting the histories, contemporary lives, and traditions among the Native communities of the Huatulco-Huamelula region of Oaxaca, Mexico.

December 15, 2002 – August 3, 2003

American Indian Museum New York

The Art of Being Kuna: Layers of Meaning Among the Kuna of Panama

See a 300-work exhibition focusing primarily on the "molas" (colorful, richly decorated applique blouses), for which the Kuna of Panama are world-renowned.

September 13, 1998 – March 21, 1999

American Indian Museum New York

Telling a Crow Story: The Photographs of Richard Throssel

On view are 32 historical images of the Crow people taken by Richard Throssel (1882-1933), defender of Native rights.

May 1, 2003 – July 27, 2003

American Indian Museum New York

Taino: Native Heritage and Identity in the Caribbean

Explore the rural roots of the Taíno movement and find information about the legacy of Native peoples throughout the Spanish-speaking Caribbean islands and their U.S. diasporas.

July 28, 2018 – November 12, 2019

American Indian Museum New York

T.C. Cannon: At the Edge of America

T.C. Cannon: At the Edge of America celebrates Cannon’s creative range and artistic legacy through numerous paintings and works on paper, as well as his poetry and music.

April 6, 2019 – September 16, 2019

American Indian Museum New York

Stretching the Canvas: Eight Decades of Native Painting

On view are nearly 40 diverse, exciting paintings from the museum's rich permanent collection that transcend, represent, or subvert conventional ideas of authenticity.

November 16, 2019 – January 2, 2022

American Indian Museum New York