Empowerment Through Cloth

Free admission. **Late-breaking news 9/28/24: American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation will be presented at this event.**

Join us to celebrate and learn about a community partnership that became an art installation on view at The Joslyn. The program will begin with a conversation that includes artist Henry Payer Jr., Tami Buffalohead and Valery Killscrow Copeland with the Healing Ribbons organization, and from the museum—Annika K. Johnson, PhD, Stacy and Bruce Simon curator of Native American art and Ingrid Cho, curatorial assistant, Native American art. They will share details and insights about how they all worked together to highlight the Indigenous artform of ribbonwork appliqué in the installation Appliqué sur le terrain.  After the conversation, members of Healing Ribbons will model wearing blankets and other regalia inspired by the collaboration, sharing stories about their vibrant culture and traditions. A reception will follow.

About Our Partners
Healing Ribbons began when several intergenerational Indigenous women came together to sew and create to honor and remember loved ones and heal from historical trauma. From there, it grew to become an organization that promotes holistic well-being, healing, positive cultural identity, and cultural revitalization.

About the Artist
Henry Payer Jr. is a Ho-Chunk artist who works mainly with collage and mixed media. Payer received a BFA from the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, NM in 2008. He studied at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, obtaining an MFA in 2013. In addition to his work being shown in multiple galleries and museums, he was awarded a Joan Mitchell Fellowship in 2022. At the Joslyn Art Museum, his installation Appliqué sur le terrain is on view in the American Galleries (Joslyn Building).

Photo by Lauren Deerfoot, courtesy Healing Ribbons

Generous support provided by Mellon Foundation and Henry Luce Foundation.

Generous support provided by Art Bridges Foundation’s Access for All program.