Heard Museum

Unrivaled for its celebration of the history, life, arts and culture of Native American tribes in the Southwest, we  found the Heard Museum to be a worthwhile visit today. We also enjoyed the contemporary interpretation of traditional arts and crafts. Special exhibits were also presented in the 12 separate galleries. The moving Boarding School Experience, examined the controversial federal policy of removing Native American children from their families and sending them to remote boarding schools in order to 'Americanize' them. Another exhibit entitled ,"Over the Edge: Fred Harvey at the Grand Canyon and in the Great Southwest", seemed controversial to me because Fred Harvey either 'exploited' native artists or 'promoted' their work by featuring their baskets, pottery and weavings as an enticement for travelers on the railroad from Chicago to Los Angles. Of course, he also built hotels and restaurants to serve the RR customers.

At any rate, we did take advantage of three separate tours of the various exhibits including the Fred Harvey one. We also went on a tour of the "Home: Native People in the Southwest" Gallery, a sort of historic overview of the Hopi, Navaho and Zuni people. The third tour was entitled "Highlights of the Heard". Our docent for this tour focused most of her attention on the "Beauty Speaks For Us" in the newly opened Grand Gallery and featured many contemporary works of art.

(You will really need to enlarge the pictures by clicking on them!)

According to the Heard, "Some of the most exciting and moving American Indian fine art of the 20th and 21st centuries has been created by sculptors." This one greeted us at the entry plaza.

To one side of the plaza were several 'heroic' sculptures that recognized the American Indian Veterans and their service to their country.

Map of current day Arizona and New Mexico and the location of the lands and pueblos of the Native American Indians.

Our tour guide for "Home: Native People in the Southwest".

Sculpture in clay and glass by two artists. (The glass artist was a teacher of Dale Chihuly.)

Hopi katsina doll gallery (many of the pieces were a gift from Barry Goldwater).

Harry Potter bowl tucked in amongst more traditional pottery.

Silver work of the Zuni's.

Contemporary interpretation of the Grand Canyon by Tony Abeyta (born in 1965).

Another work by Tony Abeyta just outside the new Grand Gallery - painted right on the wall! It depicts the under-world.

The following pictures are from the Grand Gallery.

Katsina doll.

A 'phase one' "Chief's Robe", before dyes.

Contemporary weavings called 'eye dazzlers'.

A huge weaving depicting coyotes.

Weaving of Ship Mountain in Monument Valley.

A weaving of a sand painting - very unusual.

baskets

Contemporary jewelry using multi-colored stones.

Dress

We left the Grand Gallery and went outside to view some of the sculptures.

The original museum.

Spanish Colonial architecture

Sculpture by Alan Houser

And his son, Bob Haozous - Woman in Love