The new exhibit at The Heritage Center was inspired by the "We Are a Horse Nation" documentary film by Keith BraveHeart. The exhibit is set to debut this September. Photo by Jim Cortez / Keith Brave Heart / We Are A Horse Nation
Exhibit to examine Lakota’s relationship with horse
By Brandon Ecoffey
Lakota Country Times Editor
www.lakotacountrytimes.com

PINE RIDGE—The arrival of the horse on to the great plains put in to motion a series of historical incidents that led to the rise of one of the most powerful nations North America has ever known. A new exhibit set for the Heritage Center at on the campus of Red Cloud Indian School will highlight the relationship between Lakota people and the horse.

“From the very beginning, our objective in creating Horse Nation was to make it much more than a visual arts exhibit. We needed to hear directly from the people of the Očhéthi Šakówiŋ, asking them to guide us with their ideas, perspectives, and voices. Their insights will serve as the foundation for a multi-faceted vision of the Horse Nation that explores not only the people's deep connection to the horse but also to each other as relatives,” said Mary Maxon, the curator at the Heritage Center. “We are so honored that organizations like the Warhol Foundation see the value of engaging artists and communities in this way. Enough stories have been told about them from the outside. With this exhibit, we believe the Očéti Šakówiŋ will be able to tell their own story.”

At the height of its power the coalition of Lakota, Nakota, and Dakota nations comprising the Oceti Sakowin (Seven Council Fires) controlled approximately one-fifth of the continental United States. Much of that power was consolidated after the horse arrive on the plains in the early 1800’s.

Additionally, the horse raised the stature of many Oceti Sakowin leaders including Crazy Horse, Red Cloud, Gall, Sitting Bull and other whose feats in battle helped establish the lore of the great Lakota horseman. In modern times Lakota cowboys have carried on this tradition having become successful ranchers and world-champion rodeo cowboys.

The exhibit is set to open in September as planners from the Heritage Center will look to use funding provided by the Andy Warhol association to bring in community members to help in its creation The Heritage Center has received two grants totaling $75,000 to support the Horse Nation exhibition and accompanying catalog. According to a release from The Heritage Center, “the team is facilitating an innovative, artist-led and community-influenced process, gathering and building on insights and input directly from the people of the Očeti Šakówiŋ to inspire the show’s direction and message.”

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Through the Warhol Foundation’s gift, The Heritage Center is spurring exactly that kind community engagement. Lakota artist Keith BraveHeart, co-director of We Are a Horse Nation, the documentary film that inspired the exhibit, is helping to lead the collaborative effort by gathering with communities of the Očhéti Šakówiŋ living in areas as far as Minnesota, North and South Dakota, and into Canada to encourage participation and involvement that truly represents each oyáte, or nation. Together BraveHeart and The Heritage Center staff have organized a series of community gatherings to promote healthy and sincere dialogue between elders, artists and other culture bearers, tribal leaders, community members, and more. BraveHeart and his team are documenting every moment of these meetings and creating an extensive archive that will help guide the development of the exhibition and catalog. The exhibition’s catalog will be produced under the direction of Lakota scholar Dr. Craig Howe and notable Lakota artist Arthur Amiotte.

“I believe in the reality that art can create social change. By acknowledging all the creative Relatives of our Očéti Šakówiŋ, I believe that the strength of a combined effort of artists and community can elevate the culture of the Dakota, Lakota and Nakota or ‘Seven Council Fires,’” said BraveHeart. “As a Lakota person I want to see our identities be presented with respect for the reality that we still exist among the world…we exist as more than the stereotypical negative statistics and over-romanticized clichés that most of the world envisions of us.”

(Contact Brandon Ecoffey at editor@lakotacountrytimes.com)

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