Art has many purposes. Our readers often tell us why they collect Native American art: beauty, history, culture, the mastery of a medium, narrative, color, design. The list is as varied as our readers. But art can also be about pushing boundaries, inciting an emotional response from the viewer and shining a light on the horrors of the past.
I’m typing this just days after attending the 2025 Heard Museum Guild Indian Fair & Market (our full report will be in the June/July issue), and I’m happy to report that many artists are willing to tackle these darker, more transgressive and more complex themes in their work. I saw it in pottery, paintings, weavings, beadwork and nearly every other classification at the market. These were pieces that featured imagery related to politics, the failure of “Manifest Destiny,” the Trail of Tears, reservation life, gender issues and other issues. It is brave work.
These pieces are not for every art collector, and that’s OK. Each collector—and artist, for that matter—should gravitate toward the work that speaks to them best. But seeing this kind of work reassures me about the role of art in the 21st century. Art can provoke us, and should. I keep returning to that famous 1893 quote about the role of the media: “The job of the newspaper is to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.” That motto can easily apply to art, which is meant to force questions onto viewers.
In this issue we have a feature on painter Kent Monkman, who has a major new exhibition opening at the Denver Art Museum in Colorado. Monkman is no stranger to controversial subjects. In our article, he makes a case for “de-colonizing sexuality,” and has artwork to help prove that point. The artist is also not afraid to use violence and brutality to tell stories about Native American history. It’s intense work, and powerful and beautiful and very much needed. These perspectives are vital in bigger conversations about the world we all live in together.
As you explore this issue, and artwork in general, seek out work that challenges you. Never stop asking questions, and never stop trying to come up with answers. This is what makes art so special.
Michael Clawson
Executive Editor
mclawson@nativeamericanartmagazine.com
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