EVOLUTION
Melbourne—The Bunjilaka Aboriginal Cultural Centre
at the Melbourne Museum is presenting a small
exhibition of masks from the Torres Strait. Evolution:
Torres Strait Masks, on view until January 28, 2019, is
comprised of twelve striking masks and other related
cultural materials that together celebrate the rich and
continuing tradition of the Torres Strait. Developed by
the Gab Titui Cultural Centre on Waiben (Thursday
Island) in partnership with the National Museum of
Australia, this exhibition explores the longstanding
importance of ceremonial masks in Torres Strait culture
and how they infl uence contemporary art forms.
The masks in this show are contemporary but draw
upon and interpret a centuries-long tradition. They are
on loan from the National Museum of Australia and
the Gab Titui Cultural Centre.
RIGHT: Vincent Babia, Zei
Sagulaw Mawa.
Saibai/Seisia (Kala Lagaw Ya
language group), Torres Strait,
Queensland.
BELOW: Seriat Young
(Kawrareg elder), Ceremonial
dressware.
Kaywalagal (Kala Lagaw Ya and
Kawrareg Ya language groups), Inner
Islands, Torres Strait, Queensland.
Gab Titui Cultural Centre.
Photos: George Serras, National
Museum of Australia.
ABOVE: Model tipi cover.
Cheyenne Nation, Southern
Plains. C. 1860.
Hide, paint, sinew.
Toledo Museum of Art, gift of the
Georgia Welles Apollo Society, inv.
2017.17.
BELOW: Ledger drawing.
Apsáalooke (Crow), Northern
Plains. C. 1890.
Watercolor, graphite, and colored
pencil on paper.
Toledo Museum of Art, purchased with
funds from the Joseph and Kathleen
Magliochetti Fund, inv. 2017.35.
RIGHT: Polychrome pottery
jar. Kewa Pueblo (Santo
Domingo Pueblo), New
Mexico. C. 1865–75.
Native clay, pigment.
Toledo Museum of Art, gift of the
Georgia Welles Apollo Society, inv.
2017.16.
MUSEUM NEWS
EXPANDED VIEWS
Toledo, OH—While the collection of outstanding examples
of Native American art has been an important
focus of the Toledo Museum of Art’s curatorial strategy
since soon after its founding in 1901, in recent
years it has increased its efforts to broaden the scope
of its acquisitions of singular works of art from cultures
that have traditionally been underrepresented in
the classical art museum tradition. The degree of its
success is palpable in Expanded Views: Native American
Art in Focus, on view through April 28, 2019, in
a newly renovated space adjacent to the permanent
galleries of American art. Works as
diverse as a traditional Acoma manta
and a Cherokee tipi cover are shown
together with contemporary works
by artists James Lavadour, Wendy
Red Star, and Marie Watt. In addition,
the exhibition includes two signifi cant
Crow Ledger drawings, a Cheyenne
model tipi, and a Santo Domingo
polychrome pottery jar. A select number
of paintings from the museum’s
established American paintings collection will be included
in the installation.
The works of art by Native American artists on
display in this exhibition do not represent a singular
culture, perspective, or moment in time. Rather,
considered together, they offer a glimpse into the
variety of traditions, practices,
and voices that together
inform Native
American art, in
both historical
and contemporary
forms.