"Chicago's Art Institute postpones Native American exhibit over concerns of cultural insensitivity"

The Art Institute of Chicago made the unprecedented decision this week to postpone a major exhibition on Native American pottery weeks before it is slated to open after indigenous scholars raised concerns about cultural insensitivity.

“Worlds Within: Mimbres Pottery of the Ancient Southwest” was slated to open on May 26, but the Chicago Tribune reported Monday that its opening has been pushed back amid concerns that more needed to be done to include native voices in the presentation.

The exhibit was set to display roughly 70 pieces of pottery from communities along the Mimbres River in modern-day New Mexico from about A.D. 1100. The pieces are owned by a local collector who pledged them to the museum.

The display's primary issue is that the objects were found in graves, the Tribune reported.

Patty Loew, the director of Northwestern University’s Center for Native American and Indigenous Research, criticized the collection, saying it is “not art.”

“If someone dug up your great-grandmother’s grave and pulled out a wedding ring or something that had been buried with her, would you feel comfortable having that item on display?” Loew told the outlet.

The museum hosted a “scholars day” for Native American researchers and community representatives in December.

Heather Miller, the executive director of Chicago’s American Indian Center, told the newspaper that members of the group were “very adamant” with museum leadership about postponing the exhibit.

“Now I feel great that our concerns and our issues were actually addressed by this institution,” Miller said.

Andrew Hamilton, the Art Institute’s new associate curator of the art of the Americas, told the Tribune that the museum just needed “more time.”

“To me it’s a great step to be able to take this time and really reassess,” he said.

Kati Murphy, a spokesperson for the museum, said the scholars day gathering contributed to their decision to push back the opening.

The Art Institute is now working to engage and collaborate with Native American nations with close ties to the Mimbres people, Murphy said.

This includes current Pueblo people, who are believed to include descents of the Mimbres, the Tribune noted.

“The principal thing that we have not accomplished is to have an aligned indigenous perspective, scholarly and curatorial, with the project,” said James Rondeau, the Art Institute’s president and director. “And I think that ultimately for us has been the crucial realization that our ability to reflect back what we were learning needed to be done in multiple voices, not just our voice.”

Loew praised the Art Institute for postponing the show, calling it the “right decision.” Still, she criticized officials for not reaching out to Native American leaders before the exhibit's creation.

“It’s not fair to frame what you’re going to do and then bring in people to affirm the decisions you’ve already made. … There should have been consultation and communication from the very beginning,” Loew told the Tribune.

https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/436972-chicagos-art-institute-postpones-native-american-exhibit-due-to