The Briscoe Western Art Museum is giving everyone a modern view of Native American art and showcasing stories of the West that go far beyond boots and spurs during its fall exhibition, VISUAL VOICES:  Contemporary Chickasaw Art. The traveling exhibition, which includes 15 Chickasaw artists and almost 60 artworks, will be on display at the museum from Friday September 25, 2020, through Monday January 18, 2021. The public was invited to enjoy a first view of the exhibition during its opening reception on Thursday, September 24 and there will also be a virtual curator’s talk on Saturday, September 26. (Briscoe Western Art Museum, 2020)

Featuring the artworks of present-day Chickasaw painters, potters, sculptors, metalsmiths and weavers, the exhibition tells a beautiful and compelling contemporary visual story. From oil and watercolor paintings to textiles and metals, glass and bronze, the artworks are unique, intrinsically Southeastern in design and distinctive among contemporary tribal artists. Chickasaw artists featured in the exhibition include Brenda Kingery, Brent Greenwood, Daniel Worcester, Billy Hensley, Margaret Roach Wheeler, Norma Howard, Maya Stewart, Lisa Hudson, Dustin Mater, Paul C. Moore, Tyra Shackleford, Erin Shaw, Lokosh (Joshua D. Hinson), Joanna Underwood Blackburn and Kristen Dorsey.

Featured in the exhibition, Dustin Mater’s “Cosmic Warrior II”, a 2015 mixed media work that includes acrylic on molded plastic, as well as rabbit fur, deer antler and black lip oyster shell, is the stunning stormtrooper helmet that goes beyond anything George Lucas ever envisioned. And is definitely not a typical Native American headdress.

VISUAL VOICES Virtual Curator’s Talk

Saturday, September 26, 11a.m. – Noon

Join Ryan Badger, the Briscoe’s Curator of Education, and VISUAL VOICES: Contemporary Chickasaw Art curators, Dr. Manuela Well-Off-Man and Karen Whitecotton as they discuss VISUAL VOICES. Well-Off-Man, chief curator of the Institute of American Indian Arts Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, and Whitecotton (Citizen Potawatomi), the director of collections at the Oklahoma Museum of Popular Culture, will discuss the background of the VISUAL VOICES exhibition as it closes out its national tour at the Briscoe. Tickets are free for museum members and $10 for nonmembers. Briscoe members please RSVP by phone: 210.299.4499 or email: rsvp@briscoemuseum.org.

VISUAL VOICES: Contemporary Chickasaw Art is made possible by a grant provided by the Chickasaw Nation, guidance from the Chickasaw Artist Board and assistance from First Americans Museum. This exhibition is also made possible with funding from Humanities Texas and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) as part of the federal CARES Act. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this exhibition do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The museum’s health and safety protocols require temperature checks and that both staff and guests wear masks. Additional sanitizing and cleaning protocols are observed throughout the day and both visitor services and the museum store feature plexiglass shields for additional protection.

Museum hours are 10a.m. through 3p.m. seven days a week. The Briscoe is located on the south end of the River Walk, near the Arneson River Theatre and La Villita, with convenient parking at the Riverbend Garage directly adjacent to the museum or one of many downtown surface lots. Museum hours, parking and admission details are available online.