EVENTS 2022 AT EL MUSEO
SPECIAL EXHIBITION
VARIATIONS ON A LOOM, MASTER NAVAJO WEAVERS FROM
CRYSTAL TRADING POST DURING THE J.B. MOORE ERA
curated by Anne & Robert Smith
This will be the second time a J.B.Moore Collection of this size will be on public view. The Smith’s have the most complete collections of J.B. Moore rugs known today and the exhibition will feature over 50 pieces. Smith began feverishly collecting the textiles in 2007, captivated by the beauty of the designs and the colorful history of J.B Moore.
Born in Texas, J.B. Moore established the Crystal Trading Post, in Crystal, New Mexico, in 1896. Near the Narbona Pass, the trading post’s location was thought to be one of
the coldest and most isolated places in the Navajo Nation. It was in 1903 J.B. Moore began publishing a mail-order catalog featuring a collection of hand-woven Navajo rugs that for the first time incorporated Oriental motifs into the traditional indigenous designs. J.B. Moore is credited by many for his influence on the design and marketing success of these weavings using catalogs to reach consumers throughout the United States. Moore was also the first trader to honor his Navajo weavers by placing their names with their creations in his 2nd catalog. There are 14 named weavers in this 2nd catalog with some of them having multiple weavings/designs. The rugs now are one of the most coveted and hard to find Navajo textiles.
Moore published his last catalog in 1911. Where he went next and why is unverified but his legacy of introducing these weavings to the broader public has become legend.
SPECIAL EXHIBITION
LOOKING FORWARD THROUGH THE PAST: CONTEMPORARY NATIVE AMERICAN ART
curated by James Trotta-Bono
Rooted in tradition, Native artists today are creating dynamic cross-cultural dialogues examining our past and reinterpreting our shared future. Through these voices, we are witness to a continuing narrative of ancestral knowledge. Each generation standing upon the shoulders of the previous. This connection to the past has uniquely served Native artists and by extension – the larger art community. Trotta-Bono Contemporary will present a cross-section of artwork by these integral figures of the 20th and 21st Century.
ART INSTALLATION
AKOOTA OOSHCHI KA TAPIHK / VIEWPOINT
by multidisciplinary Cree-Metis sensation Jason Baerg
Metis artist Jason Baerg will display his laser cut painting (ladder) installation series, alongside a new series of print works. As a first generation new media artist, Jason Baerg forged towards unique ways to utilize emergent 2D, 3D, interactive, immersive and fabrication technologies. Baerg’s multimedia bodies of works envision Indigenous futurities through expansive visual forms and immersive optical experience. Presented by Fazakas Gallery
ART INSTALLATION
SHAKE, RATTLE & ROLL
by Richard Glazer Danay, presented by Trotta-Bono Contemporary
Richard Glazer Danay is a well-regarded multimedia artist who works in paintings, assemblage, and more. He graduated from California State University, Northridge, and holds two M.F.A degrees from California State University, Chico, and the University of California, Davis. Glazer Danay was the Rupert Costo Chair of American Indian Affairs at the University of California,
Riverside, and taught at California State University, Long Beach, where he earned the title of professor emeritus. He also served as a commissioner on the Indian Arts and Crafts Board. His art has been featured in many important institutions including the British Museum, the Heard Museum, and the Peabody Essex Museum. Richard’s art has been inspired by his various occupations, his sense of California, and his Native culture. “I was an iron worker, dishwasher, I worked at the Whisky a Go Go in L.A., I was Dean Martin’s bodyguard,” he says. “The sixties weren’t a real big influence, more like the fifties, like Hollywood Boulevard, the garishness and the excess. The neon signs.”
FEATURED GALLERY PRESENTATION
AUSTRALIAN ABORIGINAL MASTER ARTISTS
curated by James Trotta-Bono
Natalie has amassed an amazing 30 years dealing with Australian Aboriginal art and its great artists. Her career began as a teen in her father’s galleries in Melbourne and Alice Springs in the late 1990s where she cultivated working relationships with major artists and their families. This can best be seen with the Possum family. Clifford Possum Tjapaltjarri, considered one
of the forefathers of the Aboriginal art movement, had a close bond with the Hollow’s and lived with Natalie and her family in Sydney for a period of time. Natalie has spent countless hours watching him paint and listening to his stories. This family bond has also encapsulated working relationships with his daughters, Gabriella and Michelle Possum Nungurrayi, and his grandchildren who are also starting their artist endeavors. Natalie has worked closely with Gabriella and has been a fan of her Milky Way series since the early 1990s.
FEATURED GALLERY PRESENTATION
SOLO EXHIBITION BY RANDE COOK
by Natalie Holubnytschyj of Australian Aboriginal Art Gallery
Rande Cook is a multimedia artist born in culture-rich Alert Bay. Surrounded by the beauty of the land and art, he found his passion for artistic creativity at an early age as he studied traditional jewelry and carving techniques under several master craftsmen including carver John Livingston (1951-2019). While growing up, Cook observed and
Livingston (1951-2019). While growing up, Cook observed and discussed the traditional art forms of his Kwakwaka’wakw forefathers with his grandfather, Gus Matilpi. With the strong teachings from his grandparents about culture and the sacred ceremonies of Potlatch, Cook became an accomplished singer and dancer and learned the values of life and culture that prepared him to be a strong leader. He carries two chieftainships: the Hamatam/Seagull, and the Gigalgam, both from the ancient ancestor Kwanusila/Thunderbird. This story can be seen on the 27-foot totem pole he was commissioned to carve for the Museum Volkenkunde in the Netherlands in 2012.