Minnesota Historical Society Announces 2025 Native American Artist-in-Residence Program Cohort

ST. PAUL, Minn (December 12, 2024) –  Two Native American artists will have the opportunity to expand their understanding of traditional art in 2025 through the Native American Artist-in-Residence program (NAAIR) from the Minnesota Historical Society (MNHS). This paid residency allows artists to study the Native American collections at MNHS as well as other institutions. By supporting access to these resources, MNHS collections will also benefit from the expertise and knowledge shared by the artists regarding the construction, style, utility, and meaning of the objects they examine.

A key component of this residency involves artists developing community-based programming in their home communities and for the public at large. The 2025 artists were selected based on the recommendations of a panel of experts in the field of Native arts, culture, and education.

The 2025 awardees are: 

Oogie_Push, of the Meskwaki Nation (Bear Clan), has worked as an actor and theatre-maker for 20+ years and has been a writer/storyteller for over 30 years. She has been weaving Meskwaki twine bags for the past 10 years and plans to focus her residency on woven fiber bags. Oogie is looking forward to using this residency to gain a deeper understanding of the art form and to expand her experience and knowledge with weaving by examining old bags in collections and interviewing other knowledge keepers. Oogie plans to share the knowledge gained through this residency in the form of hands-on workshops that will take place later in the year. She also plans to use her past experiences to capture this work in a documentary that will be shared with the public, her community, and generations of weavers to come. 

Dawi Westerman, a descendant of the Santee Sioux Nation, also known as Huhá Máza, has worked as a craftsman and educator for many years. During his residency, Dawi plans to research Indigenous-made wood carving tools, centering on crooked knives (crook knives) from the Northern Plains and Great Lakes. Dawi plans to document the artifacts in collections he visits that are associated with the Dakhóta people and neighboring nations. He also aims to make contact and build relationships with other knife-makers and woodworkers from different Tribal nations. Dawi plans to create a method to easily share and teach this knowledge to future apprentices and students in a bilingual learning method incorporating the Dakhóta language and cultural knowledge including a message of sovereignty and independence that can be shared through this craft. Dawi plans to share the knowledge he gains through this residency with apprentices as well as students through community workshops. “Our goal is to have independence as people economically, and we may share these tools with others who may face economic barriers that prevent them from having fulfilling lives through their art forms,” said Dawi.

Encouragement Grants

In addition to the residencies, two encouragement grants were awarded to support artists to continue with their cultural arts and research. These grants consist of a stipend and a paid research visit to MNHS collections. The 2025 Encouragement Grant awardees are:

• Melissa Fowler, Lac Courte Oreilles Tribal member, plans to study the construction of birchbark basketry as a container, specifically looking at basketry with height, handles, and lids prior to the 1950s.
• Awanigiizik Bruce, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, whose proposed research is related to Parfleche items held within institutional collections. 

NAAIR is made possible in part by a grant from Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies.

About the Minnesota Historical Society

The Minnesota Historical Society is a non-profit educational and cultural institution established in 1849. MNHS collects, preserves, and tells the story of Minnesota’s past through museum exhibits, libraries and collections, historic sites, educational programs, and book publishing. Using the power of history to transform lives, MNHS preserves our past, shares our state’s stories, and connects people with history.