On November 7, the Trout Gallery hosted a reception honoring the internationally recognized Indigenous Apsáalooke (Crow) artist, Wendy Red Star and her exhibit “Her Dreams are True.”
Red Star was present at the reception,chatting and mingling with guests. During the reception, the public was invited to view the artwork and participate in dialogue about the exhibit.
Following the reception, Red Star was bestowed with the prestigious Dickinson Arts award, whose past recipients include poet Robert Frost (1958-59) and dancer Trisha Brown (2007-08). Red Star is the first Indigenous person to receive this award, and the first Indigenous artist to have an exhibit of this magnitude dedicated to her work at the Trout Gallery.
While the Trout Gallery has hosted many indigenous works, including works from Indigenous artist Shan Goshorn, this is the first Indigenous exhibit to this scale. Trout Gallery Fellow Maddy Hull ’24 described the exhibit as “a culmination of the exhibits before it.”
The exhibit was naturally divided into phases, based on the collections of Red Star’s creative and archival work.
Upon entering the exhibit, visitors were greeted with one of the oldest works in the collection, a striking photography piece titled The Last Thanks (2006). The work depicts a parody of the infamous The Last Supper (1489) by Renaissance artist Leonard Da Vinci. The piece was described by Hull as a “way for viewers to connect to who Wendy is as an artist, and to get a glimpse of her humor.”
Throughout her work, Red Star emphasizes the importance of everyday objects, and the reclamation of those objects for indigenous people. In her Q&A, following the reception, Red Star articulated how many Indigenous objects have been taken from their owners and sensationalized as artifacts, when in reality they are still everyday items.
Red Star communicates this sentiment through many of her art pieces, but especially her Accession collection. The artwork included in this collection is a combination of images taken of the modern-day Crow people and Denver museum card catalogues, all on other backgrounds. Red Star shared her inspiration behind the work as two-fold. She desired both to reclaim the objects as parts of a living history, and to present the catalogue cards as pieces of art, as many of the original artists’ names were never recorded as the cards were not seen as art by the museum.
Another equally striking section of the exhibit included Red Star’s Bíiluuke (Our Side) collection, featuring photographs of Crow heritage objects, annotations and archival tags and locations. Red Star expressed that this exhibit, like Accession, served to recontextualize Indigenous items and show their connection to communities that still exist today.
The artworks included in Bíiluuke are a physical marker of not only Red Star’s prowess as an artist, but her skill as an archivist. The pieces include Apsáalooke items from museums around the country, with annotations from Red Star detailing what the items are, who the figures in photographs are and where the items can be found in the museums. However, the artwork in Red Star’s collection not only holds a close connection to her roots, but also to her family members.
The namesake of the exhibit, Red Star’s piece entitled Her Dreams are True (Julia Bad Boy) (2021) features her great-grandmother. Red Star found the photographs of both her great-grandparents, Dust and Her Dreams are True, through her archival work. They were the inspiration behind her collection of photograph collages, placed on star-quilted backgrounds. Additionally, Red Star created Four Generations as an “archive for her daughter Beatrice,” which includes photographs of herself, her daughter, father and grandmother.
Throughout her Q&A, Red Star returned to the concept of family, connection and the special meaning that Carlisle held for her as a member of the Crow Nation. Carlisle PA is where the Carlisle Indian Industrial School once stood, and where many Crow children were sent during its years of operation from 1879-1918. Red Star explained that she also feels a close connection to Carlisle because of the multiple Crow Peace Delegations that leaders made to the area.
Red Star’s artwork is a humorous, and yet deeply touching exploration of Indigenous ownership and lineage surrounding objects. The exhibit will be housed at the Trout Gallery through February 7, 2026, and all members of the public are encouraged to attend.
