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National Museum of the American Indian

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A Retrospective of the Art of Truman Lowe Celebrates One of the Most Acclaimed Native American Sculptors of the 20th Century

Growing up near the peaceful waters of the Black River in Wisconsin, traditional knowledge was gathered from the natural landscape and its resources. These cultural teachings and resources were used to develop the exhibition

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Restoring Her Name: The Story Behind a 1910 Photograph

American Indians have long been erased or hidden from historical records, but archivists and Native communities are working to restore identities and reconnect families with photos and other materials related to their ancestors.

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The Quapaw Treaty Was Honored for Only Six Years Before the United States Broke It

The document signed in 1818 serves as a reminder of the unfairness of the federal government's approach to negotiating with Native communities

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Connecting Community and Collections

The Role of Virtual Engagements in Home to Mi’kma’ki Shared Stewardship

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The Indigenous Effect: Native People in Film

Over the past few years, Indigenous film and television have finally started to break through on mainstream platforms, and the National Museum of the American Indian's annual Native Cinema Showcase has been part of that change. Native comedian, filmmaker, and the producer of Netflix show "Spirit Rangers" Joey Clift (Cowlitz) looks back on how things have changed since his childhood and what he hopes the future holds for Indigenous film and television.

The quilted work Tears of Our Children, Tears for Our Children created by Susan Hudson (Diné/Navajo) depicts the effects of assimilation and boarding schools on the lives of Diné/Navajo children and adults.

Healing Soul Wounds: Grappling with the Indian Boarding School Era

During history major Maddie Henderson's internship at the National Museum of the American Indian, she sought to learn more about the Indian boarding school era and how forced assimilation has affected the dissemination of cultural practices generations later, including within her own family.

Cynthia and her husband Walter

Museum's New Director Dr. Cynthia Chavez Lamar Says Her Goal Is 'Listening, Being Respectful and Asking for Help'

Chavez emphasizes how she plans to maintain her cultural and communal ties while working in Washington D.C.

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A Retro Look in the Archives Reveals Past Views on Language Derogatory to Native Americans

Although current views may point to “political correctness” for changes in language and terminology, by looking back through historical documents, it’s quite clear that this is not something new.

Jim Thorpe (Sac and Fox), with the inscription “To my little girl Grace From Dad Jim Thorpe 1951.” The photo, in the original folder frame, shows Thorpe during his career with the Canton Bulldogs football team, ca. 1915 to 1920. Grace Thorpe Collection, NMAI.AC.085 (pht_092_002). (National Museum of the American Indian Archives Center, Smithsonian)

Happy Birthday, Jim Thorpe! We're Celebrating by Making His Daughter's Archives More Accessible Online

The exact date of Jim Thorpe's birth is unknown, but it is generally believed that the first Native American to win an Olympic gold medal for the United States—regarded by many as one of the greatest athletes of all time—was born on May 22, 1887, or May 28, 1888. In honor of his birth, the Smithsonian Transcription Center has added eight significant projects from the Grace Thorpe collection in the museum's archives, including Grace’s “Memories of Dad” and her answer to the frequently asked question “How does it feel to be Jim Thorpe’s daughter?” Read more about Grace Thorpe’s life, then consider becoming a Smithsonian digital volunteer and contributing to the Transcription’s Center’s work.

Gabrielle Lee (Kanaka Maoli), the first Native Hawaiian cultural interpreter on the staff of the National Museum of the American Indian, in a small section of the New York Botanical Garden that features plants native to Hawai‘i. (Courtesy of Gabbi Lee)

Aloha Opens the Door to Learning

The first Native Hawaiian cultural interpreter on the staff of the National Museum of the American Indian explores the importance of aloha in the Hawaiian worldview. “More than a greeting or salutation, aloha is like a feeling that encompasses many other feelings,” Gabrielle Lee writes, a set of values that “work together to build a profound sense of love and respect for others.” In the spirit of aloha, she sees museums as places to learn together. Celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month by exploring the Smithsonian’s collections of art and objects from Hawai‘i and the Pacific: https://www.si.edu/spotlight/asian-american

Ceramic olla purchased from Soledad Lala (Soboba Luiseño), Riverside, California, for the collections of the Museum of the American Indian, with a sketch by the collector, E. H. Davis. Olla: NMAI 7/1952. Drawing: Expedition Sketch Book, No. 2, November 1917. Edward H. Davis Papers, Huntington Free Library Collection 9166, Cornell University Library (National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian; sketch courtesy of the Cornell University Library)

Spotlight on Collections: Reuniting Objects and Expedition Field Notes

The collections of the National Museum of the American Indian include thousands of objects and images acquired during expeditions conducted or sponsored by our predecessor institution, the Museum of the American Indian–Heye Foundation. While some expeditions are well documented in collectors’ field notes and early publications, much of the information about specific objects or the individuals associated with them was never recorded on the museum’s catalog cards. A long-term, multi-institutional project to reconstruct objects’ acquisitions histories is reuniting this information with the collections. Here are a few things we’ve learned so far.

Maria Marable-Bunch, associate director for museum learning and programs of the National Museum of the American Indian, in the exhibition

"All the Fun Action Happens in the Galleries and Learning Centers of a Museum"—Maria Marable-Bunch

For the close of African American History Month, and looking ahead to Smithsonian magazine's Museum Day April 4, we talk with Maria Marable-Bunch about her formal and informal education and her career in museums. A widely respected educator—recipient of the Alliance of American Museums’ Award for Excellence in Practice—and an accomplished artist, Maria, as she prefers to be called, is one of three associate directors of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian.

Coiled basket jar, ca. 1900, made by Mary Burkhead (Western Mono). Madera County, California. 16/5503. Through archival research, the museum now knows that a Western Mono woman named Mary Burkhead made this coiled basketry jar, information not listed on the catalog card. The research is part of a multiyear, multi-institutional project to recover information that was separated from, or perhaps never a part of, the museum's catalog records. (National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian. Note: Objects and catalog cards in these photo composites are not to scale.)

Spotlight on Collections: Expanding Both What We Know and What's Available Online

The National Museum of the American Indian has taken a major step toward making our collections more widely available: We have posted all of the museum’s ethnographic and contemporary art collections to the Smithsonian’s collections search center, more than tripling the number of our object records online. Equally important, a long-term, multi-institutional project to reconstruct objects' acquisitions history is adding significantly to what we know about the collections, the history of the museum, and collecting practices over time.

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