Our favorite Florida Museum, The James Museum ( https://thejamesmuseum.org/ ) in St. Petersburg, has done it again. Another fabulous exhibit is on display through May 14. If you don't know, the James is a museum of western and wildlife art, one of the best in the nation, at least top three along with the Booth Western Art Museum and the Buffalo Bill Center of the West.
This exhibit is called "The Stories They Tell: Indigenous Art and the Photography of Edward S. Curtis," and it masterfully juxtaposes Curtis photographs with indigenous art objects, old and modern, Curtis is considered one of the premier photographers of American Indian culture in the late 1800s and early 1900s. At the time he made his photographs, he thought - as did most of the country - that he was documenting the last gasps of a dying people, racing to document as much of their culture as he could. Now, one must be careful to realize that he was a photographer with an artistic eye first, and an anthropologist or historian second, so there may be some mistakes made for artistic license. Nevertheless, his photos are an important anthropological and historical record and, simultaneously, fantastic works of art.
What the James has done in this exhibit is to display some photos alongside art works made by the people of the societies and locations depicted in the photos, demonstrating the continuity of the cultures that are still with us, thankfully. The objects range in age from the 19th through the 21st century proving the cultural resilience of their makers. In most cases, the same activity depicted in a photograph is depicted in the accompanying art object.
The works are divided by location, including several different pueblos of the southwest and the Northwest.
It really is a great experience, worthy of any museum. We're so fortunate to have it just an hour away.
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