Native American Art Studies Association

Native American Art Studies Association
Name	Native American Art Studies Association
Caption	Logo of the Native American Art Studies Association
Formation	1980s
Type	Scholarly association
Headquarters	United States
Location	United States
Leader title	President

Native American Art Studies Association is a scholarly organization dedicated to the study, preservation, and dissemination of scholarship on Indigenous visual, material, and performance arts of the Americas. The association convenes scholars, curators, artists, collectors, archivists, and tribal cultural specialists to advance research on Indigenous artistic practices across time and place. It engages with museums, universities, tribal nations, foundations, and cultural institutions to foster collaborative projects, exhibitions, and publications.

History

The association emerged amid debates that involved institutions such as the Smithsonian Institution, American Alliance of Museums, Metropolitan Museum of Art, National Museum of the American Indian, and Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology and individuals connected to programs at Harvard University, University of California, Berkeley, Columbia University, New York University, and University of New Mexico. Early meetings drew participants associated with the National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, Ford Foundation, Gordon Parks Foundation, and the Rockefeller Foundation as well as curatorial staff from the Denver Art Museum, Milwaukee Art Museum, Philbrook Museum of Art, Seattle Art Museum, and Brooklyn Museum. Influential figures and affiliated scholars have connections with projects or fellowships at the Getty Research Institute, Walters Art Museum, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Royal Ontario Museum, Canadian Museum of History, American Philosophical Society, and the Newberry Library. The association’s formative dialogues intersected with programs at tribal institutions such as Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, Institute of American Indian Arts, Navajo Nation Museum, Heard Museum, Autry Museum of the American West, and regional cultural centers in places like Santa Fe, Taos Pueblo, Juneau, and Sitka.

Mission and Goals

The association articulates goals resonant with stakeholders including tribal governments such as the Navajo Nation, Cherokee Nation, Osage Nation, Lakota Sioux (Sioux Tribe), Ojibwe (Chippewa), and intertribal organizations like the National Congress of American Indians. It aligns with museum standards advanced by bodies like the International Council of Museums and legal frameworks including the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act and intersections with policy work at the National Museum of the American Indian Act. The association’s mission emphasizes collaboration with cultural resource offices at institutions such as Bureau of Indian Affairs, tribal historic preservation offices in states like New Mexico, Arizona, Alaska, Washington (state), and regional archives including the Library of Congress and the Bureau of Land Management records. It promotes ethical practices that engage stakeholders from the American Anthropological Association, Society for American Archaeology, and the College Art Association.

Membership and Governance

Membership comprises curators from the Art Institute of Chicago, conservators trained at the Conservation Center for Art and Historic Artifacts, professors with appointments at Yale University, University of Pennsylvania, University of Arizona, University of Oklahoma, and independent scholars who have exhibited at venues like the Cooper Hewitt, Frick Collection, and Walker Art Center. Governance structures reference parliamentary models used by organizations such as the American Historical Association and committees convene representatives from tribal museums like the Mashantucket Pequot Museum and university museums such as the Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology. Advisory councils include elders, legal advisors versed in Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990, and representatives from funding partners like the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Kress Foundation, and National Science Foundation.

Conferences and Meetings

Annual conferences rotate among host institutions including University of New Mexico, University of British Columbia, University of California, Los Angeles, Arizona State University, Kansas State University, and museums such as the Autry Museum of the American West, Peabody Essex Museum, and National Museum of the American Indian. Special sessions have convened at events affiliated with the College Art Association, Society of American Archivists, Association of Tribal Archives, Libraries, and Museums, and the American Anthropological Association. Panels have featured collaborations with artists represented by galleries like Garth Greenan Gallery and institutions such as the Native American Rights Fund and exchanges with international partners at the British Museum, Musée du quai Branly, and Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.

Publications and Research

The association sponsors edited volumes, proceedings, and peer-reviewed journals in partnership with presses including University of Nebraska Press, Duke University Press, University of Washington Press, University of Arizona Press, and journal platforms connected to the Smithsonian Scholarly Press. Research projects have been funded by grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and collaborations with repositories such as the Newberry Library, Harris Library, and the American Philosophical Society. The association promotes archival digitization initiatives with partners like the Digital Public Library of America and scholarly networks connected to the Native American and Indigenous Studies Association and engages with thematic special issues addressing collections at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and regional museums.

Education and Outreach

Educational outreach includes curricula developed with K–12 partners in districts near Santa Fe Public Schools, collaborations with tribal colleges such as Diné College, Salish Kootenai College, and higher-education partnerships at Stanford University and University of California, Berkeley. Public programs have been co-organized with museum education units at the Brooklyn Museum, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Field Museum, and community initiatives supported by the Ford Foundation and National Endowment for the Arts. Training workshops for museum professionals have been held in concert with the American Alliance of Museums and tribal cultural programs in regions including Northeast (United States), Southwest (United States), Pacific Northwest, and Great Plains.

Awards and Honors

The association confers awards modeled after recognitions given by institutions like the Pulitzer Prize-level fellowships, the MacArthur Fellows Program in practice (informal model), and named lectures akin to those at the Getty Research Institute and Smithsonian Institution. Honors recognize lifetime achievement comparable to awards from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, emerging scholar prizes similar to those given by the American Council of Learned Societies, and project grants administered in partnership with foundations such as the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and Kress Foundation. Recipients often include curators from the National Gallery of Art, artists represented in exhibitions at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and scholars affiliated with the University of Chicago and Yale University.

Category:Scholarly societies