Residues and Rebellions

The 18th- and 19th- century “American Indian Wars” and 21st-century “Global War on Terror” are two of the longest military conflicts in US history. Although rarely considered in relation to one another, these “long wars” are endlessly intertwined through parallel military strategies and the persistence of anti-colonial resistance. The residues of these entanglements are visible in the creative responses to these long wars by Indigenous, Black, Middle Eastern, and South Asian artists, including by the BIPOC veteran artists featured in this exhibition.

SURVIVING THE LONG WARS: Residues and Rebellions highlights intimate connections across vast differences in time, geography, and medium to propose uncommon alliances that can serve as a foundation for solidarity.

Historic works from the Newberry’s Edward E. Ayer Collection, including Kiowa and Cheyenne ledger drawings along with a selection of ink and watercolor drawings by Frederick Gokliz (San Carlos Apache), are paired with contemporary artworks to reclaim visible yet overlooked strategies of BIPOC survival and resistance. From ledger art to beadwork to portraiture, the featured works use different strategies to record distinct yet overlapping community histories, redirect the colonial gaze, and recycle the technologies of US militarism, opening up alternative ways of knowing, sensing, and living in the long wars.

Featuring artists Miridith Campbell (Kiowa), Mahwish Chishty, Gilbert Kills Pretty Enemy III (Standing Rock Sioux), Rodney Ewing, Darrell Wayne Fair, Frederick Gokliz (San Carlos Apache), Terran Last Gun (Piikani), Monty Little (Diné) and more, including selections from the Black Horse Ledger and Kiowa Indian ledger drawings.

Full exhibition checklist available here.