Description

This grant will support all aspects of the 2024 reinstallation of Montclair Art Museum’s (MAM) galleries of Native American art. This project follows a three-year, Luce-funded exploratory process in close collaboration with Native American knowledge holders, artists, and curators. A Native American Advisory Council and a cohort of Indigenous collaborators will continue as consultants and contributors to the presentation, juxtaposing historical and contemporary works across four thematic sections: Relating to Place, Generational Knowledge, Gender and Belonging, and Reframing Art. An installation by artist Holly Wilson (Delaware Nation) will introduce a throughline of Lenape content and perspectives in dialogue with the land of Lenapehoking (where MAM is situated) and contemporary Lenape people. MAM has undertaken this work to educate its audience, to empower Indigenous communities through decolonial practices and sustained reciprocal relationships, and to address pressing issues, including Indigenous sovereignty and environmental justice.