The Agua Caliente Cultural Museum’s new exhibition, A Beauty That Endures: Native Painting, Ritual, and Resilience in the 20th Century, features more than 50 paintings by Indigenous artists—and the stories behind them.
The gallery includes paintings from 16 tribal nations across the United States. The pieces are on loan from the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art at the University of Oklahoma, and some have not been previously displayed.
At the exhibition’s entrance, visitors are greeted with a watercolor painting by Oscar Howe, titled “Waci (He Is Dancing).” The painting depicts a member of the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe wielding a sword and shield, dancing in the center of reddish-orange flames and surrounded by flowing water.
Next to it is a message from the curator, Tony Abeyta, which reads, “This exhibition stands as a testament to their resilience, the changing world from which they emerged and the challenges they faced as that world transformed around them.”
Abeyta told the Independent that the 1973 Howe piece offered a perfect blend of traditional themes and modernist influence, preparing viewers for the beginning and end of the exhibit.
“We wanted to put something together that cultivated a group of paintings that would exemplify some of the other American tribes throughout the United States,” Abeyta said. “We wanted to focus on the common narratives all Indigenous people have gone through in America.”
Artists represented in the exhibition grew up dealing with federal assimilation efforts, including boarding schools, Christian missions, displacement and service during World War II. The artworks from left to right showcase the gradual evolution of Indigenous representation and art during the 20th century.
“The paintings tell a story of many of these young students, including my father, who were taken off the reservation and went to boarding schools,” Abeyta said. “You see those who had a prowess for painting Native American life and working together and influencing one another.”
Abeyta said his father, Narciso Platero Abeyta, left his Navajo reservation at about 15 years of age and went to a boarding school with some of the other featured artists. Abeyta included a few of his father’s works in the exhibit.
“My father belongs to the story,” Abeyta added. “He’s always been an influence in my life and on my art. He taught me a lot about painting.”
Even though the works came from the University of Oklahoma, Abeyta said he requested permission from each tribe.
“We just wanted to be sensitive to their specific tribes and family members,” Abeyta said.
A Beauty That Endures presents the paintings as their own unique form of art, while examining their contributions to American art history overall.
“We put this exhibition together to illustrate the importance of Indigenous art in America as part of the American art narrative. It’s not necessarily just Native American Art,” Abeyta said. “It’s American art.”
The works include vivid watercolor paintings and oil paintings depicting ancestral stories, landscapes, everyday life and cultural dances.
Abeyta welcomed everyone to view the exhibition and form their own opinions about the art and its storytelling.
“The goal of this exhibition isn’t about dwelling on the trauma or about injustices to Native Americans, but about the survival of our people,” Abeyta said. “It is about how they got through these obstacles—and how we emerged from it.”
A Beauty That Endures: Native Painting, Ritual, and Resilience in the 20th Century will be on display at the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum, at 140 N. Indian Canyon Drive, in Palm Springs, through May 30, 2027. Admission is $10 for adults, with discounts; admission is free every Thursday from 5 to 8 p.m. The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday, with extended hours until 8 p.m. on Thursday. For more information, visit www.accmuseum.org.
