Nicholas Galanin 24 Jan — 28 Mar 2020 at the Peter Blum Gallery in New York, United States

13 JANUARY 2020

White Noise, American Prayer Rug, 2019 wool, cotton 60 x 90 inches (152.4 x 228.6 cm) Courtesy the artist and Peter Blum Gallery, New York

Peter Blum Gallery is pleased to present an exhibition of work by visual artist Nicholas Galanin entitled, Carry a Song / Disrupt an Anthem at 176 Grand Street, New York. This is the artist’s first solo exhibition in New York and it follows his acclaimed participation in the 2019 Whitney Biennial. There will be an opening reception on Friday, January 24 from 6 to 8 pm and the show runs through March 28, 2020.

Nicholas Galanin works from his experience as a Tlingit and Unangax̂ artist, simultaneously exploring his Indigenous identity and contemporary art practice. With a keen observation of past and present, Galanin exposes intentionally obscured collective memory and barriers to the acquisition of knowledge while celebrating the resilience and strength of Indigenous people and their culture. As Galanin says, the exhibition’s title implies that "to carry the songs of Indigenous people, to carry the songs of the land, is inherently disruptive of the national anthem."

Expressing his art through sculpture, installation, photography, video, performance, and textile-based work, Galanin asserts cultural, political, and creative sovereignty for Indigenous people. In White Noise, American Prayer Rug, a version of which was exhibited at the 2019 Whitney Biennial in New York, a woven image of static on a television set offers a critical analysis of American culture. He comments on its relationship with white noise used to drown out unwanted sounds and mask alternative voices. In The Imaginary Indian (Totem Pole), Galanin juxtaposes the form of a carved totem overlaid with Victorian Era floral designs. The installation both confronts viewers with their assumptions about Indigenous art while simultaneously reflecting on the attempted assimilation of the culture by Europeans. Galanin’s contemporary practice builds upon an Indigenous artistic continuum and responsibility to the land, thereby contributing urgent criticality and vision through resonant and layered works. Nicholas Galanin (b. 1979) lives and works with his family in Sitka, Alaska. He earned his BFA at London Guildhall University (2003), his MFA at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand (2007), and he has apprenticed with master carvers and jewelers. Galanin participated in the Venice Biennale (2017) in the Native American Pavilion, in the Whitney Biennial (2019), and the Honolulu Biennial (2019). He has been invited to participate in the Biennale of Sydney (2020). Galanin’s work is in permanent collections such as the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa, the Denver Art Museum, the Peabody Essex Museum in Massachusetts, the Princeton University Art Museum, the Portland Art Museum, the Vancouver Art Gallery, the Anchorage Museum, the Nevada Museum of Art, and the Humboldt Forum in Berlin, among others.

Peter Blum Gallery

As a member of the Art Dealers Association of America (ADAA), Peter Blum Gallery subscribes to the highest standard of connoisseurship, scholarship and ethical practice, and offers an effective and confidential alternative for the resale of important works of art from and on behalf of private individuals and institutions.

Gallery profile

Location New York, United States

Founded in 1980

1. Things Are Looking Native, Native's Looking Whiter, 2012 giclée 40 x 28 1/2 inches (101.6 x 72.4 cm) Courtesy the artist and Peter Blum Gallery, New York 2. Land Swipe, 2019 acrylic on deer hide 36 x 60 inches (91.4 x 152.4 cm) Courtesy the artist and Peter Blum Gallery, New York

3. The Imaginary Indian (Totem Pole), 2016 Indonesian-carved replica of a Tlingit totem pole, hand painted to match Victorian wallpaper Totem: approx. 72 inches tall Wallpaper: Dimensions variable Courtesy the artist and Peter Blum Gallery, New York

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