Aktá Lakota Museum & Cultural Center

Articles of a Treaty
2019-05-27 - 2019-11-30 | Aktá Lakota Museum, St. Joseph's Indian School, Chamberlain, SD, 57325, United States
Articles of a Treaty focuses on the articles of the 1868 Fort Laramie Treaty between the “different bands of the Sioux Nation of Indians” and the United States. The title is the first four words of the actual treaty.
The 1868 Fort Laramie Treaty contains seventeen articles. Each article is interpreted through music, poetry, and visual art created by Oceti Skowin artists.
This educational exhibit is developed and curated by Craig Howe, Director of the Center for American Indian Research and Native Studies (CAIRNS).

Takuwe – Why?
2018-06-11 - 2018-10-31 | Aktá Lakota Museum, St. Joseph's Indian School, Chamberlain, SD, 57325, United States
“Takuwe,” which in English means “why,” centers on re-imagining the senseless slaughter of 300 Lakotas on December 29, 1890.
The narrative structure of “Takuwe” is based on the words of Lakotas who were there in 1890 and 1891. Their recollections and reflections guide visitors through the exhibition in seven chronological periods:
The exhibition includes songs, visual artworks, and poems by 46 contemporary Lakota artists. The artworks range in scale from very small to very large. An imaginative pendant crafted from the tip of a buffalo horn with a fitted, engraved sterling silver cap was created by JhonDuane Goes In Center, a self-taught silversmith who was born and raised on the Pine Ridge Reservation. At the other end of the scale is a large, queen-sized fabric quilt that was buried for nearly two months this winter, then disinterred and displayed uncleaned, spread out on the gallery floor.
The voices of the Lakota poets and musicians can quite literally be heard in the gallery. By putting on a pair of headphones, visitors can listen to the poets recite their works and the musicians sing or play, their songs.
This educational exhibit is developed and curated by Craig Howe, Director of the Center for American Indian Research and Native Studies (CAIRNS).

Tapun Sa Win
2018-02-01 - 2018-05-31 | SD
The Tapun Sa Win (taw-poon sha ween) narrative is organized around a story about a beautiful young Lakota woman (Tapun Sa Win, or Red Cheek Woman) who married a star and went to live with him in the sky. Near the due date for the birth of her baby, she inadvertently created a hole in the sky through which she could see her relatives on earth. This made her lonesome so she braided a rope to descend to earth. But the rope is too short and she falls and dies, but her son is miraculously born and survives. He is found and raised by Lakotas, who name him Wichapi Hinhpaya (we-chagh-pe heen-ghpa-ya), Fallen Star.
The exhibit divides the Tapun Sa Win narrative into seven passages which are interpreted by four types of artworks by contemporary Lakota artists: a two-dimensional artwork, a three-dimensional artwork, a poem, and a song. The exhibit includes 28 new works by Lakota artists from across the United States.
This educational exhibit is developed and curated by Craig Howe, Director of the Center for American Indian Research and Native Studies (CAIRNS).

The Great Race
2017-08-14 - 2017-12-31 | Aktá Lakota Museum, St. Joseph's Indian School, Chamberlain, SD, 57325, United States
According to Lakota legend, long ago there was a great race between the four-leggeds and the two-leggeds. The purpose was to determine which of the two groups of contestants would have precedence over the other. One unintended consequence of the race was the Black Hills were caused to come into being. The Great Race focuses on the short narrative of the race by James LaPointe (Oglala Lakota) that is in his 1976 book, Legends of the Lakota. The exhibit divides the 1,218-word narrative into eight passages.
This educational exhibit is developed and curated by Craig Howe, Director of the Center for American Indian Research and Native Studies (CAIRNS).

Lakota Emergence
2017-02-01 - 2017-04-21 | Aktá Lakota Museum, St. Joseph's Indian School, Chamberlain, SD, 57325, United States
Lakota Emergence focuses entirely on the short Lakota emergence narrative titled “How the Lakota Came Upon the World,” written down by James Walker sometime between 1896, when he first arrived at Pine Ridge to serve as the agency’s physician, and 1917 when it was published by the American Museum of Natural History. The exhibit divides the 1,251-word narrative into 16 “passages” that are paired with original artworks by distinguished and emerging contemporary Lakota artists.
This educational exhibit is developed and curated by Craig Howe, Director of the Center for American Indian Research and Native Studies (CAIRNS).

The Gift of the Sacred Pipe
2005-08-24 - 2006-03-31 | Aktá Lakota Museum, St. Joseph's Indian School, Chamberlain, SD, 57325, United States
The Aktá Lakota Museum & Cultural Center is proud to present its newest exhibition, The Gift of the Sacred Pipe – The Seven Rites of the Lakota by artist Vera Louise Drysdale. This powerful series includes eight gouache paintings and 29 pencil sketches illustrating the sacred rites of the Lakota people.
The collection was generously donated by the family of Vera Louise Drysdale, who passed away in 1994. Honoring her heartfelt wish, the series now has a permanent home among the Lakota (Sioux) people.
Drysdale was widely recognized for her sensitive and accurate depictions of Native American and Indigenous life across the Western Hemisphere. Her artistic legacy is rooted in respect, cultural understanding, and a deep commitment to portraying traditional lifeways with authenticity.
The high point of her career was the publication of The Gift of the Sacred Pipe (University of Oklahoma Press, 1982), based on Black Elk’s account of the Seven Sacred Rites of the Oglala Sioux. Edited and illustrated by Drysdale, the book remains a seminal work in Native American literature and visual storytelling. Her artwork is marked by extraordinary attention to ceremonial detail, traditional dress, gesture, and expression.
This exhibition invites visitors to engage with the spiritual heart of Lakota tradition through the lens of an artist who worked to preserve it with care and reverence.

Native Waters: Sharing the Source
2004-03-15 - 2004-04-08 | Aktá Lakota Museum, St. Joseph's Indian School, Chamberlain, SD, 57325, United States
The Aktá Lakota Museum & Cultural Center at St. Joseph’s Indian School in Chamberlain is proud to host Native Waters: Sharing the Source, a new traveling exhibition and film exploring the Missouri River Basin.
Developed by the Native Waters Project at Montana State University–Bozeman in collaboration with the Science Museum of Minnesota, this exhibition brings together voices from 22 tribal communities across the Basin. Together, they share vital perspectives on water—blending Indigenous knowledge with scientific understanding.
The exhibit features engaging, hands-on displays, cultural objects, and a thought-provoking film designed to deepen our appreciation of water from both environmental and spiritual viewpoints.
Highlights include:

A series of interpretive text panels that connect traditional ecological knowledge with modern science

Four interactive stations:

Missouri River LED Map

What is a Watershed?

Non-Point Source Pollution Marble Game

Which Watershed Is Better for the River?

A 30-minute documentary film: A Dream for Water

This unique experience invites all visitors to reflect on the shared responsibility of protecting our water sources and honoring the relationships that sustain life.

Selvage & Salvage: Images of Belief
2002-02-11 - 2002-03-31 | Aktá Lakota Museum, St. Joseph's Indian School, Chamberlain, SD, 57325, United States
Selvage & Salvage: Images of Belief is a collaborative exhibition featuring the photography of John Moler and the collage paintings of Arthur Amiotte. The exhibition explores the persistence, evolution, and transformation of the Lakota Christian experience through the lens of church architecture.
Supported by a grant from the South Dakota Arts Council, Moler and Amiotte traveled to 63 tribal communities across South Dakota, documenting 82 historic churches. Together, their work captures the enduring spiritual presence, cultural adaptation, and layered histories embodied in these sacred spaces.

Continuity and Diversity: The Art of Arthur Amiotte
2001-04-03 - 2001-06-01 | Aktá Lakota Museum, St. Joseph's Indian School, Chamberlain, SD, 57325, United States
Continuity and Diversity showcases more than 60 paintings, fabric works, and collages created between 1967 and the present by Arthur Amiotte, a renowned Lakota artist with an international reputation. This retrospective—the most comprehensive presentation of his work to date—traces six distinct phases of the artist’s creative development, offering a profound look into his evolving vision and enduring cultural voice.
The works in this landmark exhibition have been drawn from over 20 collections, including major loans from the Aktá Lakota Museum (Chamberlain), The Heritage Center at Red Cloud Indian School (Pine Ridge), the Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation (Crazy Horse), and the artist himself.
Born in 1942 on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, Amiotte was mentored in his early years by the influential Yanktonai painter Oscar Howe. He holds a bachelor’s degree in art education and a master’s degree in interdisciplinary studies—combining anthropology, religion, and art—and has been awarded two honorary doctorates.
Amiotte’s leadership in the arts has been recognized through appointments to numerous prestigious institutions, including the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian Advisory Committee and the Presidential Advisory Council on the Arts at the Kennedy Center. He has also served as a trustee for the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, Wyoming; as a board member of the Native American Art Studies Association; as a commissioner for the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Indian Arts and Crafts Board; and on the Council of Regents for the Institute of American Indian Arts.
His accolades include a Lila Wallace–Reader’s Digest Fellowship at Giverny, grants from Arts International, the Getty Foundation, and the Bush Leadership Program, as well as the South Dakota Governor’s Award for Outstanding Creative Achievement in the Arts and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Native American Art Studies Association.
With over 100 exhibitions—including more than 20 solo shows—Amiotte’s work is held in 18 public and nearly 100 private collections across the country.
This retrospective is cosponsored by the Aktá Lakota Museum at St. Joseph’s Indian School; The Heritage Center at Red Cloud Indian School; the Journey Museum in Rapid City; Northern Galleries at Northern State University; the South Dakota Art Museum; the University Art Galleries at The University of South Dakota; and the Visual Arts Center at the Washington Pavilion in Sioux Falls. Support from the South Dakota Arts Council is made possible with funding from the State of South Dakota and the National Endowment for the Arts.
