Why’d They Put That In A Museum?
Show Notes
Artist: Stephen Standing Bear (c. 1859–1933)
Item: The Battle of Little Bighorn, c. 1892–1900
Details: Pencil and ink on muslin, 35 x 174 in. (Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa)
Stephen Standing Bear Battle of Little Bighorn (Pt. 2)
This is the second episode of a two-part discussion of a painting by Lakota artist Steven Standing Bear in the podcast Why’d They Put That In A Museum podcast. Beth Bacon, Sarah Lees, and guest speaker Christina Burke discuss a large-scale painting of the Battle of the Greasy Grass, which is also known as the Battle of Little Bighorn, or the Custer Battle of June 25th, 1876. (In the first part of this two-part discussion, they review the painting in detail, please see Season 2 episode 8.) In this episode, Christina explains the distinction between art museums and natural history museums, noting how historical and cultural attitudes impact the ways Indigenous artworks are viewed and categorized. The hosts talk about the provenance of Standing Bear’s painting. This painting was created in South Dakota, moved to various collectors and galleries, and now resides in the Philbrook Museum of Art. The hosts discuss how cultural perceptions and institutional choices impact the way Native American art is displayed and understood. This is the second part of a two-part episode focusing on this extraordinary work of art and its artist.
Contact Us
Say helloAbout the Podcasters
Sarah Lees
Sarah is a museum curator and researcher who has worked in organizations both large and small, and who remembers her first assignment for an art history class – to look into Rembrandt’s eyes and describe what she saw there. She believes everyone can find those kinds of connections to some form of creative expression, whether it’s a painting, a grandmother’s quilt, or a perfectly formed pen-stroke in a manuscript.
Beth Bacon
In addition to being an avid museum-goer, Beth Bacon is an author for young readers. Her books empower today’s kids to learn about themselves and the world through reading. She is also a teacher and branding consultant and a volunteer at the Missouri History Museum. Beth holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts, an MA in Communication Arts from NYU, and a BA in Literature from Harvard University.
Music Credit
The music you hear in the intro and outro was composed by Edward Whelan. We appreciate his contribution to our podcast.