Description

The High Desert Museum (HDM) welcomes over 200,000 visitors a year in a culturally underserved region of central Oregon and offers wide-ranging collections including art and material culture from tribes across the Plateau Region (defined by the Columbia River and its tributaries). HDM seeks funding for the final stage in the collaborative development of “Creating Together,” a long-term collection-based installation centered on the Plateau and featuring Native art. Since 2019, HDM has been building partnerships with a group of Native project advisors who will continue to have a leadership role in creating the content and design of the installation. The Museum at Warm Springs, Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, is a key partner in the work. The project is also providing the opportunity for HDM staff to revise its collection documentation, care, and access, to center Native knowledge and languages, and honor the ongoing relationships between collection objects and contemporary Native communities.  
 
This grant advances the AAP’s strategic goal 1a: supporting art museums advancing representation and equity in contemporary society through innovative, art-centered projects that spark dialogues about America’s past and present.