Prairie as Pattern: Native American Beadwork

Prairie as Pattern presents Native American beadwork as a living expression of connection among communities, materials, and lands. From moccasins and vests to handbags and cradleboards, a wide-ranging selection of works from the permanent collection, including a recent gift of works from the Ralph T. Coe Center for the Arts, illuminates how generations of artists have integrated beading into daily life, ceremony, and celebration. Created in the wake of forced removal to reservations, the works on view remain grounded in material knowledge and artistic practices that predate colonization.