2023 Iroquois Museum Latest Exhibit

Through April 1st to November 30, 2023 the 42 oil and water works of art by Ernest Smith, Jim Beaver, and Jesse Cornplanter are on display at the Iroquois Museum. The paintings and drawings explore the context of cultural assimilation and reclamation, and the Works Projects Administration – Indian Arts Project.

The Haudenosaunee experience from 1800 to the 1950s was distinguished by US government policies of removal, assimilation, and the dismantling of traditional languages and lifeways. In the face of such cultural upheaval, very few Haudenosaunee painters from this period were documented, and even less so, celebrated. European-style instruction in drawing and painting was commonplace in the government and church-run residential schools of the era. Portrayal or interpretation of traditional stories, cultural beliefs and practices using these formal mediums was widely discouraged. Beaver, Smith, and Cornplanter were among the few Iroquois who embraced painting despite these obstacles.

Also on display is a painting by Bruce Boots. His painting is part of the permanent collection of the New York State Museum and on loan to the Iroquois Museum. Boots will be at the Iroquois Museum on July 15, 2023, to present a live demonstration of his painting techniques. Boots' painting are very much in the style of Ernest Smith – capturing Haudenosaunee legends and stories.

The Iroquois Museum is located near Howes Cave, New York.