Sandra Hale Schulman
Special to ICT
The latest: Wild animals in national parks become art subjects, a new single is dedicated to a late musician, and California artists shine in new exhibit
ART: Yellowstone wildlife prowl artist’s works
Wolves, moose, otters and other wildlife roam the paintings of Cherokee artist DG House in a new exhibit at the Missoula Art Museum.
The exhibit, “DG House: In That Still Moment,” features 20 new paintings in this historical and environmental account of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, where House documents the wildlife, environment and local history as a freelance photographer and painter.
House, based in Bozeman, Montana, has been an artist-in-residence in Yellowstone National Park for the past 17 years, and part of the Guest American Indian Artist Program for Grand Teton National Park for 27 years.
“I’ve never run out of ideas,” House said in a statement. “Each piece I create is based on a real-life encounter with perhaps a grizzly walking on a trail, a wolf hunting in a valley, or a moose feeding in the river. Whatever the interaction, each painting is a story.”
Her work involves applying multiple layers of oil and acrylic paints, along with pastels and colored pencils, and features her trademark geometric patterns around the edges, drawn from bead and quill patterns.
House’s work has amassed a wealth of local geologic and biological knowledge that inform her art and the park.
“As an Indigenous creative, I’ve made it my job to produce art that represents the wildlife and people who don’t often have a voice in our society,” she said. “Inspiration is everywhere in my world … I believe I have my personal ancestors and all people who came before in my workspace with me. My heart beats a little faster every time I walk through the door of my studio.”
The exhibit opened Jan. 13 and runs through March 31.
MUSIC: Canadian trio’s new single celebrates bandmate
The jazzy, R&B-inflected new single, “More Than Ever,” from Manitoba’s Indigenous band, Low Budget Rock Star, sounds at first like it’s about a loved one.
I need you more than ever / baby don’t you ever go
The real story behind the song, however, reveals it was written about drummer and band member Richie Cudmore, who was diagnosed with cancer in 2022.
Cudmore and the other two band members, Kennie Henderson and Harley Whitehead, all members of Opaskwayak Cree Nation, came together to write the song as a “what if” scenario, wondering how the band would survive without Cudmore.
Would the remaining two members from the remote northern community of The Pas, Manitoba, wander the streets of Winnipeg, feeling lost, tired and alone?
They found their answer when Cudmore died in July 2022, at the age of 58 — just as the band was about to release the single about him. With faith in a higher power, the band members dug their way out of a dark place to realize that life is a gift — and the journey from grief to joy is possible with music as salvation.
“Growing up on the reservation,” Henderson said in a statement, “I used music as an outlet to help overcome the struggles of poverty, alcoholism, drug abuse, and domestic family violence.”
The surviving members of Low Budget Rock Star are soldiering on, celebrating Cudmore’s legacy as a songwriter and artist whose experience and expertise helped the band rise since its debut release in 2019.
ART: Golden State art stars
The Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian in Santa Fe, New Mexico, is opening a new exhibition, “California Stars: Huivaniūs Pütsiv,” that explores the impact of multiple generations of First California artists.
Loosely translated, Huivaniūs Pütsiv in the Chemehuevi language means “stars with us/around us,” drawing attention to the influence the artists had on contemporary Native art for more than 60 years.
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The exhibition features 14 Indigenous artists, half of whom are continuing to work today and seven whose works live on. It opens Feb. 11 and runs through Jan. 14, 2024.
“California Stars/Huivaniūs Pütsiv”creates a dialogue between iconic and lesser-known works from the Wheelwright Museum’s permanent collection with loaned works and new works pieces created especially for the exhibition, officials said.
“With iconic works from the Wheelwright’s permanent collection and important loans and pieces not previously seen beyond the artists’ studios, ‘California Stars’ gives insight into the work of stellar artists who have influenced the Native American contemporary art field for more than six decades,” officials said in a statement.
Working across varied media with richly layered works that are inspired by personal experience, spirituality, and traditions, the pieces speak to the complexity of everyday life for Native people, emphasizing issues of identity, resilience and social justice.
The exhibition was curated by Andra Hanley, Navajo.
“The Wheelwright has both safeguarded and supported the wonderful art and narrative of First Californian artists for decades,” Hanley said in a statement. “I am honored to be a part of this ongoing legacy.”
Featured artists
Artists included in the exhibition at the Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian in Santa Fe, New Mexico, are:
*Jean LaMarr, born 1945, Pit River/Paiute
*Judith Lowry, born 1948, Hammawi Band Pit River/ Mountain Maidu/ Washoe/ Scottish/ Irish/ Australian
*L. Frank Manriquez, born 1952, Tongva/Ajachmem
*Jacob Meders, born 1977, Mechoopda Indian Tribe of Chico Rancheria/Maidu
*Jamie Okuma born 1977, Luiseño/Shoshone-Bannock
*Cara Romero, born 1977, Chemehuevi Indian Tribe
*Liz Wallace, born 1975, Navajo/Washoe/Maidu
*Rick Bartow, 1946–2016, Mad River band of the Wiyot Tribe
*Frank Day, 1902 –1976, Maidu/Konkaw
*Harry Fonseca, 1946–2006, Nisenan/Maidu/Native Hawaiian/Portuguese
*Frank LaPena, 1937–2019, Nomtipom Wintu
*James Luna,1950 – 2018, Luiseño/Puyukitchum/Ipai/Mexican
*Fritz Scholder, 1937–2005, Luiseño
*Billy War Soldier Soza, 1949–2014, Soboba Band of Indians
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