The $233 million interior transformation of major sections of the Philadelphia Museum of Art recently opened to the public on May 7, 2021. While the eye-catching designs by Canadian American architect Frank Gehry are getting positive attention, there are other aspects of this renovation that are equally as remarkable, if not more significant. For visitors seeking Indigenous representation, this renovation offers several points of interest regarding Indigenous experiences in Philadelphia, the histories of colonialism and settler colonialism in the Americas, and the Indigenous history of this region. IPD Philly welcomes more representation of Indigenous Peoples and individuals in Philadelphia to help combat the underrepresentation and historical erasure of Indigenous history and experiences across the city.
One item newly on display is a piece of Philadelphia history that extends back to a meeting between Lenape (Delaware) sachems and Pennsylvania founder William Penn in 1682. The wampum belt pictured above was given to William Penn by the Lenape represented by sachem Tamanend as part of a peace treaty. The wampum belt is on loan from the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and the City of Philadelphia. Purple and white beads made of quahog and whelk shells (wampum) from the coast are woven together on leather strands forming an image of two people holding hands: one larger and one smaller, representing the Lenape and Penn, respectively.
To the Lenape and other Native Peoples of the Northeast, wampum is a significant and sacred material used for a variety of purposes, from adornment to ceremonial. This is one reason it is the material chosen to record diplomatic events, such as political treaties, when woven into belt-shaped visual documents.[1] Originally, there were two belts recording this 1682 agreement, one given to Penn and one kept by the Lenape. However, after being displaced from the Delaware Valley and fleeing from an attack near Fort Pitt, the Lenape copy of the belt was lost and has not been seen since 1782.[2] There are only two other known historic Lenape wampum belts; they are located at the National Museum of the American Indian.[3] “Today the Lenape still support and uphold the commitment to those whom they offered the wampum belt,” says Ben Miller, an artist and citizen of the Delaware Tribe of Indians.[4]
the Historical Society of Pennsylvania Collection, and the City of Philadelphia. Photos by:
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Joseph Hu.
The wampum belt is prominently displayed in the newly reinstalled Early American art galleries dedicated to art from 1650-1850. Nearly 800 objects are on display, selected and interpreted with the intent to create a more inclusive vision of American history, “emphasizing the contributions of individuals and groups that have long been underrepresented in presentations of American art.”[5] Also on display are portraits of two Lenape sachems, Lapowinsa and Tishcohan, who were two of the Lenape chiefs betrayed by William Penn’s sons, John and Thomas Penn, in the infamous 1737 Walking Purchase. The Lenape diaspora is represented by a beaded bag from the Kansa Territory and a wooden beaver bowl. A land acknowledgement is located in the gallery, though arguably also deserves to be located at the entrances to the building since the entire museum rests on Lenapehoking.
Indigenous experiences are also addressed in other areas of the renovation. For example, Fire (United States of the Americas) by artist Teresita Fernández is on display in the Williams Forum. This work takes the form of an abstracted map of the United States and US territories and “refers to the violent legacies of settler colonialism, Indigenous genocide, and slavery. The material of charcoal—itself made from burned trees—also refers to the traditional ‘slash-and-burn’ agricultural method used by Indigenous people. Through this sustainable practice, their burning of select forested areas significantly shaped the American landscape for thousands of years before European contact.”[6] In the new contemporary galleries, the work of Philadelphia-based Peruvian artist, Kukuli Velarde, is on display in the exhibition, “New Grit: Art & Philly Now” on view through August 22nd. To Thomas Hine, Verlade’s ceramic sculptures “underscore the brute force with which European colonial culture built over and often obliterated Indigenous religion and art, and at the same time express a kind of exuberance in their hybrid nature.”[7] Verlade is one of 25 contemporary artists with connections to Philadelphia whose art is included in “New Grit.”
The museum charges a steep admission, which has not been waived for Lenape or other Indigenous visitors, despite the land acknowledgement and the museum’s display of arguably one of the most important Indigenous documents of this region. However, there are “Pay What You Wish” days on the first Sunday of the month and every Friday night (5:00-8:45pm) and youth under 18 are always free. IPD Philly hopes you get to experience these representations of Indigenous history very soon!
Sources
[1] The United States also made treaties with Delaware Nations; see this website for more information about early treaties between tribal nations and the US government: http://treatiesportal.unl.edu/earlytreaties/index.html
[2] http://www.penntreatymuseum.org/treaty.php
[3] https://library.si.edu/digital-library/book/pennwampumbelts00spec
[4] Ben Miller, personal communication, June 8, 2021
[6] https://www.philamuseum.org/calendar/exhibition/teresita-fernandez-fire-united-states-americas
About Author: Stephanie Mach (Diné)
