Galleries by Parker Jackson

• From Object to Author: Reclaiming the Native Image — "From Object to Author: Reclaiming the Native Image"; examines how representations of Indigenous people have been created, controlled, and challenged over time. The exhibition begins with the concept of the colonizer's gaze introduced in the Native Art lecture and considers how images can shape the way Indigenous people are understood. Rather than simply dividing representations into positive or negative images, this exhibition focuses on the lecture's idea of indigeneity as image: representation does not merely reflect reality but can actively shape identity and influence how a culture is perceived. Edward S. Curtis's In Mut Too Yah Lat Lat or Chief Joseph (1903) provides the starting point because it demonstrates the historical problem of Indigenous people being represented through an outside perspective. The formal portrait places Chief Joseph at the center of the composition, surrounded by visual markers of Indigenous identity, while the absence of a recognizable environment isolates him from contemporary life. The photograph therefore establishes the question that drives the exhibition: Who has the power to decide how Indigenous identity is represented? This question connects to Edward Said's observation that "Identity is constructed through representations by others, through images and discourse that define and limit what a people or culture can be." Said's idea provides a framework for understanding how representations can become more than pictures; they can influence cultural identity and reinforce assumptions about particular groups. The exhibition then moves from representation by outsiders toward Indigenous artists reclaiming control over their own images. Jaune Quick-to-See Smith's Trade (Gifts for Trading Land with White People) (1992) confronts colonial history and the commercialization of Indigenous identity by combining newspaper clippings, photographs, objects, and painted imagery. Jeffrey Gibson's Infinite Anomaly #1 (2004) moves further a (5 views)