San Francisco’s de Young Museum opens reimagined Native American art galleries San Francisco’s de Young Museum opens reimagined Native American art galleries

San Francisco’s de Young Museum has just unveiled its reimagined Arts of Indigenous America galleries.

Developed in collaboration with a group of predominantly Native co-curators, the new installation brings Indigenous values and voices into the foreground.

The galleries are themed around the idea of ‘Relationship to Place’, and include highlights from the permanent collection alongside lesser-known artworks. The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco have also acquired and commissioned new works specifically for this installation from celebrated contemporary artists.

Artists with pieces on show include Rick Bartow, Brian D. Tripp, Shoshoni Gensaw-Hostler and Melissa S. Cody. Works on display include drawings, paintings, earthenware, and textile arts.

To celebrate the occasion, the museum is hosting a daylong event with talks, performances, and demonstrations by contemporary Indigenous artists on 13 September, with plans to host further public programmes around the Arts of Indigenous Americas galleries over the next three years.

The de Young Museum is also set to open Rose B. Simpson: LEXICON at the end of this month. The Native American mixed-media artist has taken Pueblo pottery traditions and used them to transform a 1964 Buick Riviera for the special exhibition.

The de Young Museum first opened in 1895, and has featured Indigenous artwork from the very beginning. Some of the highlights include pre-Hispanic Mesoamerica and ancient Maya artworks and ceramics as well as more contemporary pieces.

Part of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, the de Young Museum is one of the most visited art museums in the world, ranking 70th in 2024 with nearly a million visitors.

More information: famsf.org

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