A new exhibit at the Museum of the Cherokee People is set to shine a light on the narratives and perspectives of the Aniywiya, or Cherokee people, in relation to the American Revolution. This exhibit is a response to the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
Unrelenting: Cherokee People and the American Revolution
This exhibit, titled “Unrelenting: Cherokee People and the American Revolution”, presents historical artifacts, images, and documents alongside contemporary works by Cherokee artists. Brandon Dillard, a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, serves as a guest curator and emphasizes the importance of centering the voices and works of enrolled members.
“People get excited about anniversary years,” Dillard explained. “They pay attention to the past in different ways. And so we wanted to use that as a way to invite people in to consider what do Cherokee people think about this time period and what happened in this part of the world in 1776 and the decades that followed because the conflict was ongoing for a really long time.”
Artists from the Cherokee Nation, Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI), and the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians were invited to create new works that respond to historical treaties and documents from the Revolutionary era.
Courtesy of the Museum of the Cherokee People.
Among the artists featured is Laura Walkingstick, a citizen of the Eastern Band. Known for her work in various mediums, Walkingstick has recently focused on creating corn husk dolls, one of which is showcased in the exhibit.
“Growing up I didn’t see any dolls that represented who I was or my identity so I’d started creating my own dolls,” Walkingstick shared with BPR. “It wasn’t until a family vacation when I was younger, when I got to see my first Native dolls that came from the Diné Nation in Arizona. I really don’t know how I got into the corn dolls. I think it was just more, like, challenge and curiosity.”
Walkingstick’s piece, titled Then and Now: Wrapped in Survival, features a woman in traditional attire with a worn American flag at her feet. The piece is surrounded by Indian corn, symbolizing life, fertility, nourishment, resilience, and cultural continuity—key elements of Cherokee survival.
In her artist statement, Walkingstick reflects on the American Revolution as a pivotal moment in Cherokee history. “During that era, Cherokee towns and cornfields were deliberately destroyed, and treaties promising protection were repeatedly violated,” she noted. The distressed flag in her work symbolizes the broken treaties and the instability brought upon Native Americans “through colonization.”
According to Dillard, the exhibit aims to transport visitors to the era of conflict, urging them to draw lessons applicable today. The exhibit runs from March 17 through December 30.
