It has been nearly twenty years since the Dallas Museum of Art hosted an exhibition of Native American art. All of that will change on April 24th when Art of the American Indians: The Thaw Collection opens. The exhibition features 135 works of art collected by Eugene and Clare Thaw, whose collection now resides at the Fennimore Art Museum in Cooperstown, New York.
Art of the American Indians: The Thaw Collection will be arranged by geographic region, and will include works of art from the Northwest Coast, Woodlands, Plains, Southwest, Arctic, California, and Great Basin regions. One of the artworks I am most excited to see in person is a horse mask made by the Nez Perce people. I am intrigued by the bright colors and intricate beadwork designs, and I can’t wait to include the horse mask on our summer tours. I’m also looking forward to learning more about the DMA’s collection of American Indian art through connections with the Thaw collection.
Horse Mask, c. 1875-1900, Nez Perce or Cayuse, Idaho, Oregon, or Eastern Washington, Thaw Collection, Fennimore Art Museum, photograph by John Bigelow Taylor
We have a very limited number of docent-guided visits to the exhibition available in the month of May. If you are interested in bringing your students to see the exhibition before the end of the school year, submit an Online Visit Request Form today! Students receive free admission to the exhibition when a visit is scheduled at least three weeks in advance. We will include the exhibition on our summer tours and are creating a Go van Gogh Summer Library Program around the exhibition. We look forward to sharing Art of the American Indians: The Thaw Collection with you and your students this spring!
Shannon Karol
Manager of Docent Programs and Gallery Teaching
