Sharing Honors and Burdens: Renwick Invitational 2023 features artists Joe Feddersen (Arrow Lakes/Okanagan), Lily Hope (Tlingit), Ursala Hudson (Tlingit), Erica Lord (Athabaskan/Iñupiat), Geo Neptune (Passamaquoddy), and Maggie Thompson (Fond du Lac Ojibwe). Together, these artists present a fresh and nuanced vision of Native American art. The artists were selected for their work that expresses the honors and burdens that Native artists balance as they carry forward their cultural traditions. These artists highlight principles of respect, reciprocity, and responsibility through their work that addresses themes of environmentalism, displacement, and cultural connectedness.
Sharing Honors and Burdens: Renwick Invitational 2023
Evans, Lara M., Miranda Belarde-Lewis, and Anya Montiel. Sharing Honors and Burdens:
Renwick Invitational 2023. Washington, DC: Smithsonian American Art Museum in association with University of Washington Press, 2023.
Erica Lord, Leukemia Burden Strap, DNA/RNA Microarray Analysis,
2022. Glass
beads and wire, 7
1/2 ×94 1/2 × 1/4 inches. Courtesy of the artist
and Accola Griefen Fine Art. Photo by Addison Doty.
Erica Lord,
Multiple Myeloma
Burden Strap, DNA/RNA Microarray Analysis, 2022.
Glass beads
and wire, 7 × 60 × 1 1/4 inches. Courtesy of the artist and Accola Griefen Fine Art. Photo by Addison Doty.
Geo Neptune, Apikcilu Binds the Sun, 2018. Ash and sweetgrass with commercial dye, acrylic ink, and 24-karat gold-plated beads, 16 1/2 × 9 inches diameter. Bowdoin College Museum of Art,
Brunswick, ME,
Museum purchase, The Philip Conway Beam Endowment Fund. Photo by Luc Demers.
Geo Neptune, Piluwapiyit: The Powerful One, 2018. Black ash
and sweetgrass with commercially tanned deer skin, brain-tanned deer skin, cochineal-dyed deer skin, 24-karat gold-plated beads, freshwater pearls, garnets,
and charlotte-cut glass beads, 13 × 8 × 8 inches. Courtesy of the artist. Photo by Luc
Demers.
Joe Feddersen, Fish Trap, 2021-22, fused glass and metal, 24 × 72 × 24 inches. Courtesy of the
artist. Photo by Mario Gallucci.
Joe Feddersen, Social Distancing series, 2021. Mirrored
and blown glass, six vessels: approx. 16 × 8 inches diameter.
each. Courtesy of the artist.
Photo by Mario Gallucci.
Joe Feddersen, Bestiary 5, 2021.
Monoprint, 44 ×30 inches.
Courtesy of the artist.
Lily Hope, Lineage Robe, 2017. Thigh-spun merino wool and cedar bark with beaver fur, 48 × 52 1/2 × 2 inches.
Lily Hope, Memorial Beats, 2021. Thigh-spun merino and cedar bark with copper, headphones, and audio files, 16 × 4 × 10 inches. The Hope Family Trust. Photo by Sydney Akagi.
Maggie Thompson, I Get Mad Because I Love You, 2021-22. Glass beads and filament, 48 × 72 × 1 inches. Courtesy of the artist and Bockley Gallery.
Maggie Thompson, The Equivocator, 2021. Rope, wire stockings, thread, and
ribbon, 42 × 66 × 6 inches.
Collection of Hair & Nails. Photo by Emma Beatrez, Courtesy of the Rochester Art Center.
Ursala Hudson, collar from the
Matriarch Rising ensemble, 2021. Collar: merino, silk,
steel cones, and leather; Electrified Heart apron: merino,
silk, leather, and steel cones; vintage wool hat: merino, silk, and mother-of-pearl,
women’s size 6. Courtesy of the artist. Photo by Addison Doty.
Ursala Hudson, Tideland Warrior,
2021. Headpiece: merino, feathers and mother of pearl; shawl: merino, silk, mountain goat fur, and mother-of-pearl; wrap: merino, silk, leather, and Tencel, women’s size 6. Courtesy of artist. Photo by Kahlil Hudson.
See Also
“We strive to support institutions that share our artist-centered values. The small grassroots arts organizations as well as the museums that comprise our grantees provide invaluable opportunities for artists to express their unique perspectives on the pressing urgencies of the day. We hope that our grants help to amplify artists’ voices within their communities, in national discussions and debates, and across platforms in the international contemporary art world.”
Joel Wachs, President