Future Imaginaries: Indigenous Art, Fashion, Technology
September 7, 2024 – June 21, 2026
Samuel & Minna Grodin Gallery
About the Exhibition
Future Imaginaries explores the rise of Futurism in contemporary Indigenous art as a means of enduring colonial trauma, creating alternative futures and advocating for Indigenous technologies in a more inclusive present and sustainable future. More than fifty artworks are on display, some interspersed throughout the museum, creating unexpected encounters and dialogues between contemporary Indigenous creations and historic Autry works. Artists such as Andy Everson, Ryan Singer and Neal Ambrose Smith wittily upend pop-culture icons by Indigenizing sci-fi characters and storylines; Wendy Red Star places Indigenous people in surreal spacescapes wearing fantastical regalia; Virgil Ortiz brings his own space odyssey, ReVOlt 1680/2180, to life in a new, site-specific installation. By intermingling science fiction, self-determination, and Indigenous technologies across a diverse array of Native cultures, Future Imaginaries envisions sovereign futures while countering historical myths and the ongoing impact of colonization, including environmental degradation and toxic stereotypes.
Highlights
Cara Romero (Chemehuevi). Three Sisters, 2022. Limited-edition archival photograph. The Carl & Marilyn Thoma Foundation, Santa Fe. Image courtesy of the artist
Will Wilson (Diné [Navajo]), K’ómoks Imperial Stormtrooper (Andy Everson), Citizen of the K’ómoks First Nation, from the Critical Indigenous Photographic Exchange: dzidz elalič series, 2017, printed 2019. Archival pigment print. Collection of the artist. Image courtesy of the artist
Wendy Red Star (Apsáalooke [Crow]). Stirs Up the Dust, 2011. Pigment print on Fine Art Pearl. Gift of Loren G. Lipson, M.D. Autry Museum of the American West; 2018.16.1. Image courtesy of Wendy Red Star
Virgil Ortiz (Cochiti Pueblo). Jai Nopek, Recon Watchman, 2022. Ceramic. Image courtesy of the artist
Future Imaginaries: Indigenous Art, Fashion, Technology is among more than 70 exhibitions and programs presented as part of PST ART. Returning in September 2024 with its latest edition, PST ART: Art & Science Collide, this landmark regional event explores the intersections of art and science, both past and present. PST ART is presented by Getty. For more information about PST ART: Art & Science Collide, please visit: pst.art
Additional support for Future Imaginaries is provided by the Carl & Marilynn Thoma Foundation, the Ethnic Arts Council, The Henry Luce Foundation, The Mildred E. and Harvey S. Mudd Foundation, Caryll and William Mingst, and the Pasadena Art Alliance.