NEW YORK, NY.- The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian in New York will host the traveling exhibition “Clearly Indigenous: Native Visions Reimagined in Glass,” Nov. 15 through May 29, 2026. The exhibition features approximately 120 glass art objects created by 29 Native American and First Nations artists as well as leading glass artist Dale Chihuly, who first introduced glass art to Indian Country as an instructor at the Institute of American Indian Arts. Many of these artists are widely known for their work in other media as well. In addition, two Yolŋu (Aboriginal Australian) artists and two Māori artists who have collaborated with Native American artists are also featured, for a total of 33 artists, plus Chihuly.

The art in the exhibition embodies the intellectual content of Native traditions, newly illuminated by the unique properties that can only be achieved by working with glass. Whether reinterpreting traditional stories and designs in the medium of glass or expressing contemporary issues affecting tribal societies, Native glass artists have created a content-laden body of work. These artists have melded the aesthetics and properties inherent in glass art with their cultural ways of knowing. The result is a groundbreaking exhibition featuring an impressive body of artworks.

“This exhibition underscores one path of evolution for Indigenous artists that breaks beyond media considered traditional for their respective cultures,” said Michelle Delaney, associate director for museum scholarship. “Through their work in glass, these artists have expanded into unexpected ways of expressing Native perspectives.”

“Clearly Indigenous: Native Visions Reimagined in Glass” was originated by the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where it was curated by Letitia Chambers, former CEO of the Heard Museum in Phoenix, Arizona, and artist and museum consultant Cathy Short (Potawatomi). The traveling exhibition was curated by Chambers and is toured by International Arts & Artists. After its presentation at the National Museum of the American Indian in New York, “Clearly Indigenous” will travel to San Diego and Spokane, Washington.