Sonny Assu: A Fresh Perspective on the World of Contemporary Art

Native American art has previously been out of the traditional scope of the art world; only recently has it begun to truly make its transition from the world of anthropology museums into the western contemporary art discourse. Even with this advancement and placement into the realm of contemporary art, most Native American art is grouped with the other worldly arts such as African, Meso-American, and Oceanic art; these world arts are often excluded from the galleries dedicated to the display of contemporary art. One artist has found a way to bypass this trend. Artist Sonny Assu, a Ligwilda’xw of the Kwakwaka’wakw nations melds the artistic traditions of his Ligwilda’xw background with contemporary art practices. His vibrant paintings link back to his First Nations heritage by combining Kwakwaka’wakw style with contemporary subject matter and materials. His paintings often adorn animal hide drums providing a sculptural aspect for Assu to explore as well as creating another link back to his Kwakwaka’wakw culture. By working in both the Native American and western contemporary art discourses, Assu has a chance to educate people about the struggles of the Kwakwaka’wakw people and ignite change within the Pacific Northwest Coast communities. The works of Sonny Assu spark conversation about First Nation peoples as well as pose important questions surrounding their history and treatment. Assu explores the role of the artist as an educator, the perpetuation of socio-cultural values of Native American people, and the function of totemic representation in the contemporary context. These central ideas shape his work and offer an important perspective on the concerns of contemporary indigenous artists

There’s a Museum for That? Defining New Pop-Up Experiential Exhibition Spaces

Thesis (Master's)--University of Washington, 2019The purpose of this study was to richly describe new pop-up experiential exhibition spaces. This study focused on characterizing these spaces, and their organization, in relation to museums as defined by their professional organizations. Visitor experiences in these spaces was also explored. Using a case study design, data were collected from 4 pop-up experiential exhibition spaces through structured interviews and analysis of public-facing documents. Findings suggest that these new spaces function very similarly to museums through their operation, structure and perceived impact. However, this similarity to museums is rejected by these sites, as they see themselves as something new, and in some cases a foil, to museums. The experiences offered in these spaces are intentionally open-ended, self-guided, and exploratory in nature. The results of this study propose additional “museum-like” and “gallery-like” classifications within the pop-up experiential exhibition spaces, and offer the museum field an opportunity to understand these new and upcoming museum competitors

Arterial Echoes : Three Generations of Creative Mentoring

"Arterial Echoes features seven UMKC Studio Art Faculty members each shown alongside an artist who mentored them and an artist to whom they have mentored. The mentor/mentee relationship reverberates throughout the space, highlighting the threads that are strengthened between these bonds. One can consider the ways in which these contemporary artists’ practices overlap with one another, yet how their generational differences become evident." -- Publisher's website