INFORMATION TO USERS

This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer.

The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction.

In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion.

Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand corner and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book.

Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6" x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order.

University Microfilms International A Beil & Howell Information Company 300 North Zeeb Road. Ann Arbor. Ml 48106-1346 USA 313/761-4700 800/521-0600

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Reproduced with with permission permission of the of copyright the copyright owner. owner.Further reproduction Further reproduction prohibited without prohibited permission. without permission. Order Number 1349430

The National Museum of the American Indian Smithsonian Institution: The establishment of a national museum

Mitchell, Jean, M.A.

The American University, 1992

Copyright ©1992 by Mitchell, Jean. All rights reserved.

300 N. Zeeb Rd. Ann Arbor, MI 48106

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Reproduced with with permission permission of the of copyright the copyright owner. owner.Further reproduction Further reproduction prohibited without prohibited permission. without permission. THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION:

THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A NATIONAL MUSEUM

by

Jean Mitchell

submitted to the

Faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences

of The American University

in Partial Fulfillment of

the Requirements for the Degree of

Master of Arts

in

Arts Management

Signatures of the Committee:

Chair: ______

( O '- r : L a ug./yu

Jean of the College %-/ Date

1992

The American University 1333 Washington, D.C. 20016

?HS AMEBICM UII7ERSITY LIBRARY

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. © COPYRIGHT

by

JEAN MITCHELL

1992

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. To Grandpa

(Carl E. Miller)

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN:

THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A NATIONAL MUSEUM

BY

Jean Mitchell

ABSTRACT

Changes have been taking place within the museum

community in response to a new focus toward public

programming and "client-centered" museums. The National

Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) can be considered a

model of this new focus with a mandate to form a collabora­

tion with the Native American community in planning the new

museum. Such a collaboration has rarely worked before.

Methods used for gathering information for this study

included conducting interviews with key staff members of

NMAI, attending consultation planning meetings, and using

information obtained from museum documents. The findings of

the study show that the museum is creating a venue for

different perspectives of Native American cultures, and

attempting to re-educate the general public. The

development of NMAI will change the way museums are

structured, the planning process for programs, the way

museums view their collections, and will re-evaluate

constituencies and audiences.

ii

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I have gained so much from this project, and must not

let the opportunity go by to thank the many individuals who

shared their insights, philosophies, and experiences with me

so that I could compile this thesis. I will be forever in

debt to Fred Nahwooksy, a dear friend who first suggested the

topic of NMAI as a full thesis. He has gone out of his way to

refer me to contacts within the museum, as well as provide

documents and information that alone, I would never have been

able to obtain. He has been a source of guidance and

stability at a very stressful and difficult time in my life.

I would like to thank James Volkert, Acting Assistant

Director of Public Programs at NMAI, for allowing me to attend

several consultation meetings in the Washington area, as well

as the xice of NMAI documents to assist in this project.

Last, but not least, I so appreciate the support and

encouragement from my sister, Martha, and my dear friend, Gay.

iii

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT ...... ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS...... iii

Chapter

1. FROM HOBBY TO PUBLIC MUSEUM ...... 1

2. NEGOTIATIONS FOR A NATIONAL MUSEUM . . . 8

3. FOUNDING S T A F F ...... 21

4. THE CONSULTATION P R O CESS ...... 30

5. PROGRAMMING FOR A BROADER AUDIENCE . . . 42

6. "POINTS OF VIEW" - AN EXAMPLE OF INNOVATIVE PROGRAMMING ...... 54

7. EXHIBITIONS: GIVING DIRECTION FOR PRESENTATIONS ...... 62

8. MUSEUM FACILITIES: THE CHALLENGE OF SPACES ...... 71

9. A MUSEUM COLLECTION WHICH BELONGS TO ITS P E O P L E ...... 81

10. CONCLUSION...... 90

APPENDICES...... 95

BIBLIOGRAPHY ...... 172

iv

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER ONE

FROM HOBBY TO PUBLIC MUSEUM

George Gustav Heye, a Wall Street banker, made a

fifty-four-year hobby of collecting Indian artifacts from

South, Central and North America from 1903 to his death in

1957. Heye drove from New York City across the country to

Indian reservations, buying virtually everything he could

from the tribes, including pots and pans and clothing.1 In

addition, he purchased many collections consisting of

predominantly archeological pieces.2

Heye had been the heir to a multi-million dollar

inheritance from his father, an executive of Standard Oil.

He had the money to hire the preeminent anthropologists of

the time, and sent them on fieldwork expeditions to excavate

at various archaeological digs around the United States,

Canada, the Caribbean, Central and South America. Heye's

earliest attempts at collecting were purely for his own

personal interest, and he originally had no intention of

!Kevin Wallace, "A Reporter at Large, Slim-Shin's Monument," (New York, N.Y.: The New Yorker, 1960).

2A listing of collections are listed in appendix I.

1

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. sharing his collection with outside scholars, or the

public.3

However, in the years spent working with "his"

anthropologists, he learned a great deal about Indian

material culture. Very detail-oriented, he was the only

person allowed to register each object acquired with

catalogue numbers. At one point, he was the only person who

knew exactly what was in the collection.4

After acquiring nearly 400,000 artifacts, and having

nowhere to safely store his growing collections, a new

building was proposed and later built on 155th Street and

Broadway in New York City (Audubon Terrace) with funds from

future Trustees, and friends.5 Archer M. Huntington, who

later became one of the outstanding contributors to the

Museum of the American Indian (MAI), donated the tract of

land for the new facility. Realizing that this permanent

location for the collections would be useful for science and

education, Heye created the Museum of the American Indian,

Heye Foundation.

Heye endowed the new organization and transferred his

3Kevin Wallace, "A Reporter at Large, Slim-Shin's Monument," (New York, N.Y.: The New Yorker, 1960).

4Ibid.

5Anonymous, The History of the Museum of the American Indian. 1956, 1.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. holdings to its Board of Directors in 1916.6 The Museum was

structured as a tax exempt non-profit and received financial

support for its costs of maintenance and activities from

personal contributions, grants-in-aid for special projects,

and its endowment fund.7 The museum opened to the public in

1922 "devoted solely to the collection and preservation of

cultural material relating to the aborigines of the Western

Hemisphere."8

Even before the new facility opened, there was not

enough storage and display space for the ever-growing

collections.9 To assist in providing additional space for

research and collections overflow, another tract of land, on

Bruckner Boulevard in the Bronx, was donated to the

Foundation in 1925. This land also belonged to Dr. Archer

Huntington, who, in turn, contributed funds for the erection

of a new building and the maintenance of the fireproof annex

facility (the Research Branch) .10

Only 10% of the collection could be displayed at any

6George H. Pepper, "The Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation,11 (New York, N.Y. : The Geographical Review. December 1916), Vol. II, No. 6, 417.

7Anonymous, The History of the Museum of the American Indian. 1956, 2.

8Kevin Wallace, "A Reporter at Large - Slim-Shin's Monument," (New York, N.Y.: The New Yorker, 1961.)

9Anonymous, The History of the Museum of the American Indian. 1956, 1.

I0Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. one time, leaving other objects at the annex facility

available to students by appointment.11 The artifacts were

stored in vaults, lockers and drawers over the years, which

prevented the infestation of worms, moths and mildew.

During the time the museum was built, conditions for museum

storage at MAI were considered "state-of-the-art.1112

By 1930, the Foundation Library had also become too

large for the Audubon Terrace space. It was relocated and

combined with the Huntington Free Library and Reading Room ■

at Westchester Square, the Bronx. Dr. Huntington

contributed funds for this building as well, and created an

endowment for maintenance and acquisitions.13

Even after the museum was built, Heye continued to

finance excavations all over the Western Hemisphere. The

colonization and development of the "New World" had helped

destroy Native cemeteries, mounds and other burial places.

Fieldworkers for Heye noted that these burial sites

attracted "ruthless treasure seekers" that added to the

elimination of objects which students needed for

"Ibid., 2.

12R. Fred Nahwooksy, Jr., NMAI Exhibition Coordinator, Presentation to The American University Museum Studies Class, April 1992.

"Anonymous, The History of the Museum of the American Indian. 1956, 2.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. reconstructing the life histories of earlier cultures.14

Because the collection was the most complete and

comprehensive in the world, many doctoral candidates came to

MAI to fulfill their fieldwork studies.15 Artifacts

representing the cultures of such tribes as the Comanche,

Iroquois, Zuni, Hopi, Navajo, Blackfeet, and Porno and

Coastal Algonquin were available to scholars. Collections

included impressive numbers of objects such as over eighty

buffalo robes; 250 snowshoes; and 1500 kachina dolls; all

obtained for study and preservation at the museum.16

The Museum fell on hard times due to the stock market

crash of 1929, as Mr. Heye lost the bulk of his fortune at

that time. A majority of the staff and anthropologists were

let go, although excavation projects and acquisitions to the

collections still continued. Heye found the money to

continue collecting, but these expenditures were a drain on

the Museum. Many times, personal funds of the Museum's

Financial Officer were used to meet payrolls or to advance

14George H. Pepper, "The Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation, (New York, N.Y.: The Geographical Review. 1916), Vol. II, No. 6, 405.

lsKevin Wallace, "A Reporter at Large - Slim-Shin's Monument," The New Yorker. 1961.

16Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. payments to obtain freight shipments of artifacts off wharfs

or freight cars.17

George Heye, upon his death in 1957, left a sizeable

amount of money to the MAI, Heye Foundation, which

alleviated its financial troubles for a number of years.18

starting with the 1970's, however, the Trustees of the Heye

Museum began looking into solutions for the organization's

recurring financial troubles, and the continued crowded

conditions of the collection. Many options were considered,

including an offer by billionaire H. Ross Perot to move the

collection to a well-funded, new facility in Dallas, Texas.

However, Heye had made a stipulation in his will that

the museum remain in New York City. The New York State and

City governments would not allow a reversal of the location

provision in Heye's trust, nor were they willing to lose the

collection and its potential as a cultural resource and

tourist attraction.19

Another alternative that was considered was to

affiliate with the American Museum of Natural History (AMNK)

in New York City. AMNH proposed to build a new wing to

17E.K. Burnett, Taped Notes of Early History of MAI. (Washington, D.C.: National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution), 11.

,8Ibid., 12.

19Master Facilities Programming, Phase 1 Report, "The Way of the People," National Museum of the American Indian, (Washington, D.C.: Office of Design and Construction, Smithsonian Institution, 1991), 26.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. house the collection, but Native American leaders objected

to the collection being grouped with exhibits of natural

history, dinosaurs, and insects. Also, the Heye Museum

board felt that the new wing would not afford enough space

for the collection.20 This was a time of considerable

controversy for the Museum of the American Indian, Heye

Foundation, especially surrounding any move of the

collection.

20Ibid., 26.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER TWO

NEGOTIATIONS FOR A NATIONAL MUSEUM

Since 1980, there were discussions of a possible

affiliation between the Heye Museum and the Smithsonian

Institution (SI), including keeping the museum an indepen­

dent part of the Heye Foundation while collaborating on

scholarly and educational programs.1 On May 4, 1987, a

resolution was adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Heye

Foundation establishing an affiliation between its museum

and SI, calling for the relocation of its collections to a

new facility on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.2

A motion was approved by the SI Board of Regents on

May 11, 1987, for the Secretary to "continue discussions

with representatives of the Museum of the American Indian,

Heye Foundation, about the prospect of a formal institu­

tional relationship between the museum and the Smithson­

ian."3 The Secretary of SI was prompted "to explore the

concept of a national museum of Native American history and

]The National Museum of the American Indian - History of Events." Washington, D.C.: Office of Public Affairs, Smithsonian Institution, 1989.

2Ibid.

3Ibid.

8

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. culture with members of Congress, representatives of the

Executive Branch, tribal leaders and other interested

parties, including responsible authorities in New York."4

Following discussions between the Heye Foundation's

Board of Trustees and SI, Senator Daniel Inouye introduced,

on September 25, 1987, S.1722, a bill to "establish a

National Museum of the American Indian within the

Smithsonian Institution on the National Mall in Washington,

D.C."5 Robert McCormick Adams, Secretary of SI, testified

on the measure on November 12, 1987.6 During 1988,

negotiations took place, in Washington, D.C. and in New

York, to work out the language of the legislation and the

affiliation agreement between the Heye Foundation and SI.7

Congress adjourned at the end of 1988 without taking final

action on the bill.

On January 30, 1989, the board of regents of SI

approved an agreement in principle to transfer the contents

of the Heye Museum to SI. Julie Johnson Kidd, the Heye

Foundation's Board Chairman signed the agreement on March 16

of that year. A memorandum of understanding between the two

institutions was signed on May 8, 1989.8

4Ibid.

sIbid.

6Ibid.

7Ibid.

8Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 0

Bill #S.978 was then introduced in the Senate by

Senator Inouye on May 11, 1989, and companion legislation

H.R.2668 was introduced in the House of Representatives by

Representative Ben Nighthorse Campbell on June 15.9 The

Senate approved S.978 on October 3, and the House passed

H.R.2668 with amended language on November 13. The Senate

accepted the amendments on November 14, which cleared the

measure for presidential action. President George Bush

signed Public Law 101-185 on November 28, 1989, establishing

the National Museum of the American Indian as part of the

Smithsonian Institution.10

Public Law 101-185, which is structured in seventeen

sections, established NMAI as an institution and became a

guide for planning and developing the organization.11 The

language was not mandatory, but provided basic concepts to

strive for or take direction from. The figures for budgets

for certain activities were only approximations, as NMAI

must go through the government budgeting and appropriations

process like any other government agency or SI bureau.12

The Act described the origination of the title and the

reasons for the establishment of the Museum, which are

9Ibid.

I0Ibid.

“Public Law 101-185 is listed in its entirety in appendix A.

12Pablita Abeyta, NMAI Government Affairs Specialist, interview by author, September 1991.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 1

listed as "findings." Congress found that there was a need

for a national museum devoted solely to Native American

cultures, including their histories and art.13 SI currently

offers several programs covering Native American cultures,

however, no facility which is devoted exclusively to Native

Americans and their cultures. Since the Heye Museum in New

York City has one of the largest Native American collections

in the world, and is in need of larger facilities for

exhibition, storage and scholarly research, the merging of

the Heye collection and SI would create an opportunity for a

national institution with an unrivaled collection and

capability for both exhibition and research.14

The new museum would give the public, both Native and

non-Native, the opportunity to learn and understand the past

and contemporary cultures, as well as the history, of Native

Americans. The proposed facilities would provide for

presenting performing arts, scholarly research and meeting

places which would create curatorial and educational oppor­

tunities for Indians, as well as allow for collaboration on

traveling exhibitions around the country.15

The last finding was that the final vacant site "on

the National Mall in the District of Columbia (U.S. Govern­

13Public Law 101-185, 101st Congress, United States. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1989.

14Ibid.

15Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 12

ment Reservation No. 6) is reserved for the use of SI and is

available for the construction of NMAI."16 The site is

located next to the National Air and Space Museum, on the

side nearest to the U.S. Capitol.

Section three of Public Law 101-185 described the

establishment of NMAI. The museum will be a living memorial

to Native Americans and their traditions by advancing the

study of Native Americans in such areas as language,

literature, history, art, anthropology and life. NMAI will

collect, preserve and exhibit Native American objects and

artifacts; provide for research and study programs; and

provide the means to carry out all of the above in the

District of Columbia, the State of New York, and various

other locations deemed appropriate.17

Congress gave official permission to the SI Board of

Regents to enter into the agreement of transfer of the Heye

collection to SI, as documented in Section 4 of the Act. It

was stipulated that "the agreement shall be governed by, and

construed in accordance with, the law of the State of New

York."18 Since the Heye Foundation and its collection

16Ibid.

17Ibid.

18Ibid. , 1337.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 3

originated in New York City, Congress and SI must defer to

the laws of the state.19

The next section dealt with the governance of NMAI by

a Board of Trustees which would assume such duties as

recommending annual operating budgets for NMAI, and

reporting on the acquisition and display of the collection's

objects to Si's Board of Regents. The Board of Trustees

would work in cooperation with the Board of Regents by

advising them on matters such as administration, operation,

maintenance, and preservation of the Museum, as well as

issues and concerns regarding repatriation.20 The Trustees

were allocated the general responsibilities of adopting

bylaws and selecting a chairman and officers from among the

board's members.

Congress assigned to the Board of Trustees the sole

authority to "lend, exchange, sell, or otherwise dispose of

any part of the NMAI collections.1,21 Suggestions for the

proceeds from these transactions included using them for

additions to the collections or applying them towards a

proposed endowment for NMAI.22 The Trustees were also

,9Pablita Abeyta, NMAI Government Affairs Specialist, interview by author, September 1991.

20Ibid.

21Public Law 101-185, 101st Congress, United States. (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1989), STAT 1338.

^Further discussion of an endowment appears in Chapter 3: National Campaign/development section.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 14

mandated to establish criteria and a policy for the nse(s)

of the collections such as "research, evaluation, education

and method of display."23

Public Law 101-185 suggested the membership of the

initial, or founding, Board of Trustees of NMAI as

consisting of

(A) the Secretary of the SI, Robert McCormick Adams; (B) Tom Freudenheim, Assistant Secretary of SI, appointed by the Board of Regents; (C) eight individuals appointed by the Board of Regents; and D) fifteen individuals, each a member of the Board of Trustees of the Heye Museum, appointed by the Board of Regents from a list of nominees recommended by the Board of Trustees of the Heye Museum.24

Also stipulated was that at least seven of the twenty-three

appointed members be Indians. The Law suggested three-year

terms for all newly appointed members, to start when the

Heye Foundation collection would be transferred to SI.

Policies and rules for NMAI's Board of Trustees were left to

the actual board, established in its by-laws, and approved

by Si's Board of Regents.25

Section Six of the Law outlined in very general

language, requirements for the Director and staff of the

National Museum. Currently, NMAI has a core staff in

Washington, D.C., and has kept the staff at the Research

“Public Lav.1 101-185, 101st Congress, United States, (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1989), STAT 1338.

24Ibid.

“The Bylaws of the Board of Directors of NMAI are listed in their entirety in appendix B.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 5

Branch in New York, who were previously Heye Foundation

employees before the transfer of assets.

The Law stated that "the Secretary of SI shall appoint

1) a Director who, subject to the policies of the Board of

Trustees, shall manage NMAI; and 2) other employees of NMAI,

to serve under the Director."26 Employees of the Heye

Foundation in New York City were also offered employment

with SI before the date of transfer of the Heye Foundation

assets.

Museum facilities were covered in Section Seven of the

Act, which described the National Mall Facility (the actual

National Museum building); the Old United States Custom

House at One Bowling Green, New York, New York; the Museum

Support (storage/housing) Center facility in Suitland,

Maryland; and the Audubon Terrace space (the current loca­

tion of the Heye Foundation). The National Mall Facility

will be located "on the area bounded by Third Street,

Maryland Avenue, Independence Avenue, Fourth Street, and

Jefferson Dr., Southwest, in the District of Columbia."27

Si's Board of Regents will not pay more than two-thirds of

Federal funds for the total cost of planning, designing, and

constructing the facility. Non-Federal sources will be

26Public Law 101-185, 101st Congress, United States, (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1989), 1338.

^Ibid., 1340.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 6

raised to pay for the remainder of the costs.28

The Old United States Custom House at One Bowling

Green, New York, New York (to be called the "George Gustav

Heye Center of NMAI"), will be leased to SI by the Admini­

strator of General Services (GSA), (since Federal property

is administered by GSA).

The term of the lease shall not be less than 99 years. GSA may reimburse the Federal Buildings Fund established by section 210(f) of the Federal Property and Admini­ strative Services Act of 1949 (40 U.S.C. 490(f)) for the difference between the amount charged to SI for leasing the space and the commercial charge under section 210(j) of such Act which otherwise would apply to leasing the space.29

Included in the construction and renovation of the

U.S. Custom House will be an auditorium and loading dock to

be shared among the occupants of the building. (Besides the

National Museum space, offices will also be leased to other

tenants.) After the initial renovation and construction,

all other repairs and alterations will be the responsibility

of Si's Board of Regents. SI must also reimburse GSA for

its share of costs for utilities, maintenance, cleaning,

etc. incurred at the New York Custom House.30

From funds appropriated to SI, NMAI will be respon­

sible for one-third of the planning, design and construction

costs, with the balance coming from non-Federal sources.

28Ibid.

29Ibid.

30Pablita Abeyta, NMAI Government Affairs Specialist, interview by author, September 1991.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 7

Those non-Federal sources will include New York City and

State, who each agreed to pay one-third of the construction

costs of the Custom House.31 The availability of the

appropriated funds are contingent upon the payment of all

non-Federal monies to Si's Board of Regents.

This provision has delayed the scheduled inaugural

exhibitions by one year, due to unforeseen delays within the

New York State and City legislative processes.32 The

exhibitions are now set for early 1994, with a smaller

preview show in the Fall of 1992.

Section Ten of the Law provided for priority to be

given to the following: Indian organizations regarding the

lending of artifacts and objects from any of Si's collec­

tions; sponsorship and planning of traveling exhibitions;

and training and technical assistance. The Law states that

Indian organizations will include "Indian tribes, museums,

cultural centers, educational institutions, libraries, and

archives."33 In providing loans or services, it urges SI to

furnish them at little or no cost to those organizations.

Outreach programs which will serve Indian tribes and

communities outside of the Washington, D.C. area are

suggested in Section Ten. These programs are to be planned

31Ibid.

32Ibid.

33Public Law 101-185, 101st Congress, United States, (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1989), 1342.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 18

in conjunction with educational institutions such as

"tribally controlled community colleges (as defined in

Section Two of the Tribally Controlled Community College

Assistance Act of 1978)."34

Section Eleven mandated that an inventory be done of

all Indian human remains and funerary objects in the

possession of SI, in any of its collection. (At this

writing, an inventory is still being done.) Indian tribes

and Native communities will be contacted regarding the

process of identification and repatriation once the

inventory is completed. Section Twelve outlined the

repatriation process by suggesting that a committee be

established to review the inventory, identification, and

return of Indian human remains and funerary objects.

Section Thirteen outlined the same principles and

procedures described in Sections Eleven and Twelve for

Native Hawaiian human remains and funerary objects. SI is

to enter into a similar agreement as with Indian tribes,

including Native Hawaiian organizations such as the Office

of Hawaiian Affairs and the Malama I Na Kupuna 0 Hawai'i Nei

(meaning "the nonprofit, Native Hawaiian organization) which

was incorporated under Hawaiian State Law in 198S for the

purpose of providing expertise in decisions regarding

cultural issues, including burial issues.35

^Ibid., 1343.

35Ibid., 1345.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 19

Though not applicable at this writing, Sections

Fourteen and Fifteen described granting programs to be

created by the Secretary of the Interior in respect to

repatriation and museum facilities renovations for Indian

organizations. In addition, there was outlined the

establishment of a Tribal Museum Endowment Fund.36 Section

Sixteen listed definitions of terms used throughout the Act,

and Section Seventeen spelled out the initial authorization

of appropriations.37

From the above analysis, Public Law 101-185, which

created NMAI, was clearly thought out to address issues

concerning Native American individuals and communities, as

well as the museum world. The legislation was a creative

solution to the dilemma of what was to become of the highly

sought-after Heye Museum collection. The Act firmly

established the Smithsonian Institution as having the most

comprehensive collection of Indian objects in the world.

The Law provided the groundwork for a museum that

would serve and reach out to Native American communities, as

well as educate the general public. NMAI has been mandated

36Ibid. , 1346.

37$10,000,000 for Fiscal Year 1990; and such sums as may be necessary for each succeeding fiscal year . . . and will be available without fiscal year limitation for any period prior to the availability of the facilities to be constructed.

Public Law 101-185, 101st Congress, United States, 1989, 1347.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. from its inception to grow away from the more traditional

museum structure of internal exhibition development and

collection storage/access. The Law acts as a guide for its

foundation and structure.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER THREE

FOUNDING STAFF

The organizational structure of NMAI is still in its

formative stages. The museum is made up of a Board of

Trustees, a core staff in Washington, D.C., a staff at the

current Audubon Terrace location in New York City; and at

the research branch in the Bronx, New York.

Twenty-five trustees were appointed to the new Board

of Trustees of NMAI on January 29, 1990.1 The initial

members of the board include eight appointees of Si's Board

of Regents and fifteen appointees of the Heye Foundation

Board of Trustees.2

The Board will guide the development and implementa­

tion of policies and planning for the museum in such areas

as research, education, collections, administration and

budget. The Bylaws of the NMAI Board of Trustees were

approved on October 1, 1990. The Bylaws will assist in

structuring the Board's function within the organization.

Currently, there is a staff of approximately seventy-

lHBoard Appointed for New Museum," Smithsonian Runner. (Washington, D.C.: Office of Public Affairs, Smithsonian Institution, 1990), No. 90-2, 1 and 4.

2The Bylaws of the Board of Directors of NMAI are listed in their entirety in appendix B.

21

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. five, who serve under the leadership of the founding

Director, W. Richard West, Jr., who was appointed to NMAI on

May 21, 1990.3 NMAI's staff will grow and evolve as the

Museum itself develops. By the year 2000, the staff will

grow to 350 people, with fifty located in New York.4

The Washington offices are located in the SI Arts and

Industries Building and at L'Enfant Plaza. A National

Campaign Office is located in Arlington, Virginia and

handles all aspects of development and fundraising for NMAI.

NMAI's Government Affairs Specialist, Pablita Abeyta,

works in Si's Office of Government Relations in the SI

"Castle." Her responsibilities include monitoring the

appropriations process, on the Federal level and also in New

York State and New York City (each committed $8 million

toward construction and renovations costs of the U.S. Custom

House).5 She also works with the NMAI Board of Trustees and

its committees. The Office of Government Relations keeps

abreast of current issues, legislative issues, is respon­

sible for congressional correspondence, and keeps Congress

up to date with the management and policies of the Museum,

3"Smithsonian Institution Announces Appointment of W. Richard West Jr., Albuquerque Attorney Active in American Issues, as Director of the National Museum of the American Indian," Smithsonian Institution News, (Washington, D.C.: Office of Public Affairs, 1990).

4R. Fred Nahwooksy, Jr., NMAI Exhibition Coordinator, interview by author, November, 1991.

5Pablita Abeyta, NMAI Government Affairs Specialist, interview by author, September 1991.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2 3

including the repatriation process and the Museum's

collections. Ms. Abeyta assists in getting legislation

through sub-committees such as the Interior, House Admini­

stration and Public Works committees. (An example is the

1992 Interior Appropriations Bill HR-2686 and Public Law

102-154— November 13, 1991.)

Planning and design of the Custom House facility will

cost approximately $1.2 million. Due to the slowdown of New

York State and New York City appropriations, Congress

allowed for only $600,000 to be used toward the Custom House

renovations in 1992. The delay in New York City funding is

due to the process for release of city funds which takes

thirty days at the City Comptroller; two to three weeks for

the release of funds; an issuance of a request for payment;

advertising bids; and issuing a notice to proceed. The

project is expected to take 550 calendar days to complete.6

NMAI's National Campaign Office is planning to begin

its campaign for major gifts in the Fall of 1992. Its

primary goal is to raise the $60-100 million in matching

funds for the construction of the Museum facility on the

National Mall. In addition, it is planning to raise $25-30

million for an education endowment fund, and has received

6Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 24

its first Endowment gift from Consolidated Edison Company of

New York, Inc.7

The Campaign Office is currently using for its

campaign, materials such as Si's news articles about the

Museum, a letter of support by President Bush and the

legislation, Public Law 101-185, which established NMAI. A

campaign newsletter will be published in four issues

starting in 1992. The newsletter will be sent to friends

and supporters of NMAI around the country.

A general brochure will soon be available which gives

an overview of NMAI, and will be distributed to potential

donors, members, and volunteer committees. A "ways-of-

giving" brochure will be available to prospective donors by

fall 1992, which will outline various ways of making gifts

to NMAI, and describe the tax and estate consequences of

giving. A case statement will soon be implemented in the

Campaign's major fundraising brochure which will state the

Campaign mission and focus on significant giving

opportunities.8

The Campaign Office has distributed a flyer describing

its Charter Membership Program. By becoming a Charter

Member of NMAI, individuals receive a year's subscription to

Native Peoples, a quarterly magazine dedicated to the art

7John Colonghi, NMAI National Campaign Director, interview by author, September 1991.

8Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2 5

and lifeways of American Indians. Other benefits of

membership include free admission to smaller exhibits of the

Heye Collection in New York (before the Custom House

opening), and to the Cooper-Hewitt Museum, also in New York

City.

In addition, Charter members receive a 10% discount on

purchases through SI Museum Shops and its mail order

catalog; are eligible for SI study tours around the world;

and receive advance invitations to Museum outreach programs.

Members contributing $35 or more receive the Smithsonian

Runner — the newsletter covering all of Si's Native

American projects and exhibitions. The office anticipates

that it will attract over 100,000 members in two years.9

The NMAI National Campaign Office has also created an

Honorary Committee, which is a list of highly visible

individuals who have given permission to lend their names in

support of the Museum,10 and an International Founders

Council, a group of "hemispheric leaders who will provide

the principal leadership for the Campaign's marketing,

public relations, and fundraising activities.1,11 National

Campaign Director, John Colonghi, stated that NMAI's

9Ibid.

10A list of the Honorary Committee appears in Appendix B.

"National Museum of the American Indian Campaign News, (Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, Winter 1992), Vol. 1, No. 2, 1 and 5.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2 6

Campaign Office had raised over $1 million by the fall of

1991.12

Several special events have been held in the last

year. A widely publicized event was the world premiere of

the Academy Award-winning film "Dances with Wolves,"

attended by actor/director Kevin Costner.13 The benefit

screening raised $30,000 for NMAI and Si's Resident

Associate Program. Other benefits have also been held such

as "Celebration for the Native American," a weekend-long

event in Aspen, Colorado, which raised over $20,000 for

NMAI.

In September 1991, a blessing ceremony was held at the

Old Custom House in New York City. Chief Jake Swamp of the

Mohawk Nation performed the ceremony, as NMAI staff from

Washington, D.C. and New York observed. Chief Swamp used

smoldering sweet grass to purify the building "to rid the

old spirits and purify the work we will be involved in the

future."14

A speech and fundraising event was held in Anchorage,

Alaska at the Alaska Federation of Natives. In addition, a

speech and fundraising event was held in Oklahoma City for

12John Colonghi, NMAI National Campaign Director, interview by author, September 20, 1991.

13Ibid.

14Nadine Brozan, "A Rite of Passage at the Custom House," Chronicle, (New York: New York Times National, September 27, 1991.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2 7

the annual meeting of Allied Arts, a coalition of Oklahoma

City arts organizations. An art auction and sale is planned

for June 1992 by Washington Art Works, a group of

Congressional wives, whose husbands (members of Congress)

will match their fundraising goal. Proceeds from the sale

will be donated to NMAI.15

According to John Colonghi the fundraising campaign

does not receive assistance from SI and its Office of

Membership and Development. NMAI's campaign is breaking

ground for SI, similar to a "start-up company," and will

have regional offices in place in one year (Fall 1992).

Fundraising is the strongest bridge between communities and

NMAI, putting a "new face" on the museum by 1) making sure

it is built; 2) establishing a "footprint" in philanthropic

giving for Indians; and 3) expanding interest in SI.16

Attracting an even broader audience will be the role

of the relatively new public programming area. The Acting

Assistant Director for Public Programs, James Volkert, is

responsible for overseeing the construction and renovation

of the New York facilities, and for the consultation

meetings, which are held around the country to allow for

input from all Native communities and experts in the field.

Mr. Volkert also oversees exhibition planning and

,5NMAI Campaign Newsletter, 6.

16John Colonghi, NMAI National Campaign Director, interview by author, September 1991.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 28

future education, training and outreach programming for

Native American communities outside the D.C. area. Mr.

Volkert has stated that he is the clients' representative in

the New York renovations process, overseeing the architect

to be hired, deciding on the signage and the design.17

Currently, the Exhibitions Office is well underway in

planning its first exhibitions.

The Exhibitions staff is responsible for the planning

and coordination of upcoming exhibitions including display

methods, presentations of artists, and exhibit publications/

materials. Consultation meetings are organized by the

Exhibitions office, however, there are also plans to create

a Field Hearing Coordinator position specifically for

handling all aspects of consultation planning. This position

will fall under the purview of an Outreach Coordinator who

will oversee areas such as educational programs,

international programs, traveling exhibitions, training

programs and field hearings.18

Every aspect of the museum — administrative staff,

government relations, fundraising, exhibition planning,

consultations, and the NMAI Board of Trustees — must

include participants from the diverse Native American

communities. Opportunities in training for Native Americans

17James Volkert, NMAI Acting Assistant Director for Public Programs, interview by author, August 1991.

!8Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2 9

will become available through fellowships, internships, and

museological training in areas such as curating, cultural

preservation and administration/management, as well as

recognition of contemporary Indian artists.

The start-up staff and Board of Directors of NMAI have

the important task of molding the new museum, by creating it

from "scratch" — not patterning itself from any other

museum structures. Each department, from the Campaign

Office to the Exhibitions Office, is establishing the unique

concept of the National Museum with its constituency: Native

American communities; and its audience: the general public.

Positions such as the Government Relations Specialist enable

the planning and development of the museum to go forward.

The Campaign Office has extreme importance in the

future of the museum, as it is responsible for obtaining

one-third private matching funds for the construction of the

museum facilities. The campaign staff also represents the

new museum to the general public.

Public programming has begun through the implementa­

tion of consultation meetings around the country. From

these planning meetings the facility designs will be drawn,

as well as further ideas for programming. In addition, the

exhibitions staff has established a direction for the museum

in the planning and development process of inaugural

programs.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER FOUR

THE CONSULTATION PROCESS

...Native communities will determine what NMAI will become. NMAI Technology Consultation Meeting, September 1991

A concept which makes NMAI's practices different from

those of many museums is the Field Hearing Program.

Regional consultation meetings, or field hearings, are a

unique aspect of the planning process for the new museum and

are also part of NMAI's public programming and outreach

services. The planning process has started by going to

NMAI's constituents — the communities it serves and can

learn from — Native communities who have the most at stake

in this effort.1

Consultation meetings bring together the planning

staff from NMAI and Native communities to obtain an under­

standing of the different needs and wishes of the respective

communities, i.e. reservation, rural, and urban. The field

hearings also include museum professionals with expertise in

museum administration, education, and research and

collections, as well as artists.

The first phase of the planning process in 1991

]Master Facilities Phase 1 Report, NMAI, 5.

30

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 3 1

involved a dozen consultations "focusing on goals and

recommendations for activities, architectural design,

operations and policies...to initiate the programming of

spaces for each facility to be built."2

Phase Two will continue the regional consultation

process and refine technical investigations and analysis of

all aspects of the sites and facilities. A third phase may

include further testing of the program in preparation of the

design process.3

The focus of the meetings has been on gaining input

from Native Americans, who have comprised the majority of

invited participants from outside SI.4 The invitees were

determined by NMAI's staff and Director. The staff produced

and distributed background materials, such as the Notebook

for Consultations, which allows participants to express

their opinions and share ideas regarding program matters.5

The consultation meetings were moderated by NMAI staff

and were assisted by three Native American "transcending"

co-facilitators, who participated in each meeting, as well

as the planning and evaluation of consultations.6 Si's

2Ibid., 58.

3Ibid.

4Ibid.

5Notebook for Consultations, (Washington, D.C.: NMAI, 1991), 1-2.

faster Facilities Phase 1 Report, NMAI, 58.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 3 2

Office of Design and Construction, along with the architec­

tural firm, Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates (VSBA),

assisted in the consultations by facilitating discussion on

architectural issues, and recording and analyzing the

discussions for consolidation into the Master Facilities

Programming Reports.7 Documents produced from those

meetings were reviewed by participants, NMAI Board, and SI

and NMAI staff and their consultants.8 NMAI staff designed

the participation formats for consultations, including the

selection of experts for panels and facilitators who also

attended pre-planning sessions.

One of the initial consultation meetings was held on

May 2, 1991 with museum directors, administrators and

designers from around the U.S. and Canada. Twenty-five

participants attended, in addition to NMAI staff members, SI

representatives, and architects from the programming firm

VSBA.9 The group was encouraged to consider how NMAI might

be structured differently from traditional museums in terms

of outreach and public programming.10 Participants were

asked for their insights based on their experience; ways of

7Ibid.

8Ibid.

Meeting Notes-Museum Directors, Administrators and Designers Consultation: National Museum of the American Indian, (Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, May 2, 1991), 1.

10Ibid., 2.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 3 3

collaborating with their institutions and communities; ways

of using technology for information delivery.11

The areas discussed were exhibition approaches; museum

examples to use as potential models; entrances and lobbies;

museum cafe and shop(s); fires and ceremonies; collections;

the Mall and Suitland relationship; the relationship with

Indian communities; and building and design/image.12

Some of the concerns and comments from a May 3, 1991

Contemporary Artists Consultation included sharing and

collaborating on the one million item collection of NMAI,

and the two million item collection of NMNH. Relations

between the two museums remain good, making the sharing of a

data base for access to the collections feasible. The two

collections will not be commingled, but will be available to

outside parties and loaned to each other temporarily.13

Concerns were voiced regarding the lack of contemporary art

in the Heye Collection, which stopped collecting in the

1940s.

A Researchers Consultation, held May 30, 1991,

discussed three areas of the NMAI Board's Research Policy:

Encouraging Indian People to document and use NMAI's collections to study and preserve their cultures;

"Ibid.

12Ibid., 2-12.

13Meeting Minutes - Contemporary Artists Consultation, National Museum of the American Indian, (Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, May 3, 1991), 3.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 3 4

Providing technical assistance;

Honoring tribal policies on care and access to sacred materials while acknowledging potential conflicts with academic freedom-of-information issues.14

Other areas of research addressed were: existing NMAI

resources, expanding resource needs, NMAI relationship with

other research groups, technology and research methods,

priorities, facilities, current use of the Mall site,

addressing non-Indians, and addressing urban Indians.15

Participants at the June 27, 1991 Educators

Consultation expressed the need to document and locate other

federal agencies with which NMAI could collaborate. The

Museum is seen as a facilitator in education and training

for Native Americans and Native communities, thus the

importance of training facilities and resource areas for the

distribution of educational materials.16 Areas for

discussion in the Educators Consultation were concepts of

Indian education, the "Fourth Museum" — Outreach, schools'

needs, cultural resource needs, technology, museum learning,

NMNH and SI relationships, staffing, and buildings.17

The Consultation for Libraries/Archives/Collections on

July 8-9, 1991 discussed the areas of existing collections,

14Ibid.

15Ibid., 3-13.

16Ibid., 7.

17Meeting Minutes - Educators Consultation, NMAI, June 27, 1991, 2-8.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 3 5

information needs for collections, physical facilities for

collections storage and care, technological issues,

exhibitions and public presentations, communications to non-

Indians, NMAI relationships with tribal museums, training,

staffing, museum image and symbols, and amenities.18

Further discussion addressed the need for a

media/publication center offering on-line visual and text

data on collections, electronic data connections to other

collections and tribal museums, a photography studio, space

for fellows and non-traditional scholars for collection

interpretation, tape and video recording, and a legal and

archival records library.19

The Southwest Regional Consultation was held in Santa

Fe from July 15-16, 1991 for input from representatives of

southwest tribes. At the consultation, NMAI Director Rick

West emphasized that "NMAI must reach out into Indian

country," and that "the consultations are a bottom-up

planning process to do that."20 The group divided into sub­

groups to develop a description of a vision of what the

Museum might be.

Areas of discussion for Southwest Regional represen­

tatives consisted of views on what NMAI's role would be in

18Meeting Minutes - Libraries/Archives/Collections Consultation, NMAI, July 8-9, 1991, 3-12.

19Ibid., 3-5.

20Meeting Minutes - Southwest Regional Consultation, NMAI July 15-16, 1991, 2.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 3 6

ethical and philosophical terms: NMAI as a sacred place,

symbolism, NMAI relationships with nature, collections, NMAI

control — within the federal process — as well as NMAI

Board power, and the Museum's public message.21

The July 23-24, 1991 Washington, D.C. Urban Consulta­

tion brought Native Americans together from the Capital area

to discuss such topics as facility building schedules, site

plans, the program process, and project decision processes.

Other areas addressed were project funding, staffing, museum

viewpoint — i.e. the Native American perspective —

repatriation, sharing materials, Museum atmosphere and

design, collections, sales, the Mall Museum entrance. In

addition, outdoor features, sacred places, performance

spaces, local Washington Indian traditions, and the Fourth

Museum were areas of discussion.22

The NMAI Technology Consultation met at SI in the Fall

of 1991 to discuss technology assumptions such as using the

power of technology to enhance cross-cultural understanding

and for the reciprocal flow of information from schools,

organizations, and communities. The Technology group

divided into three "break-out" sections to develop technolo­

gical criteria and structure for meeting the "twenty needs"

21Ibid., 4-14.

^Washington, D.C. Urban Consultation, NMAI, July 23-24, 1991, 3-10.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 37

of NMAI.23 An overview of the section discussions found

that NMAI needs to survey the communities regarding what

type of technology is currently available — what already

exists in communities — as well as creating a two-way

information base and disseminating consultation outcomes.24

The Technology participants suggested that NMAI look

into high-tech and low-tech needs, and develop pilot

programs that could be used as models/catalysts.25 Tech­

nology can control the environment and provide accessibility

to information and items, however, it was stated many times

that content should determine the type of technology used.26

Other important comments included the need for flexibility

which allows for technology to grow and change with needs.

From the Technology hearing, it was determined that

communications between Indian communities and with NMAI will

be possible by implementing technological means such as

computer networks, the Educational Native American Network

(ENAN), radio, television, video, and an electronic bulletin

board system already in place in reservation schools. In

addition, NMAI will consider in-house video/film and audio

production studios as well as facilities for satellite

^The Twenty Needs of NMAI appear in Appendix C.

24NMAI Technology Consultation, September 9-10, 1991.

“ ibid.

26Ibid,

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 3 8

uplink and other capabilities for communicating with remote

areas.27

The comments and suggestions made at each of the

consultation sessions were recorded and analyzed by VSBA,

the architectural firm responsible for creating the planning

program for facilities. In September 1991, representatives

of VSBA, NMAI and ODC met to begin the "program synthesis"

of Phase One, and to identify issues and challenges to be

explored in Phase Two of the planning process.28 The

preliminary findings and requirements from the consultations

were summarized into a Master Facilities Programming Report,

Phase One.29

Further consultations resulting in Phase Two will

assist in refining design and programming requirements.30

NMAI Exhibition Coordinator Fred Nahwooksy has explained

that the first consultations held in 1991 were primarily to

assist in developing the architectural program plan. The

1992 meetings will begin to address outreach with such

topics as traditional collections care requirements;

planning approaches for Latin America, in preparation for

developing NMAI's mission regarding Central and South

^Master Facilities Phase 1 Report, NMAI, 82-83.

28Meeting Minutes - Programming Work Session, September 16, 1991, 1.

29Master Facilities Phase 1 Report, NMAI.

30Ibia., 5-6.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 3 9

America; and a regional meeting with community leaders in

Michigan.31 The 1993 consultations will focus on

exhibitions, their development and subjects.

At the beginning of 1992, the NMAI staff and consult­

ants met to discuss and review the Museum's Consultation

Program. The review concluded that the emphasis is now

shifting from discussion of architectural-related matters to

a variety of programmatic concerns, including outreach and

program development; that further evaluation methods need to

be developed; and that Indian organizations need more

involvement in tlie pirocess — involvement 11 nepnesentincj

various viewpoints, geographical distribution, age levels,

professional and cultural authorities, etc."32

The review session highlighted several benefits from

the consultations, the most important being

the opportunity for Indians to express their deeply held concerns about how their history and cultural artifacts have been treated and interpreted.33

In addition, the consultations accomplished the following:

established relationships and dialogues useful for future advice and programming;

provided public relations information and opportunities;

identified sources of potential employees, interns, and contractors;

3iR. Fred Nahwooksy, Jr., NMAI Exhibition Coordinator, interview by author, March 1992.

32NMAI Consultation Program Status Report & Projected Schedule, (Washington, D.C.: NMAI, SI, 1992), 1 & 5.

33Ibid., 2.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 4 0

identified and created networks for disseminating future products and services;

identified collaborative opportunities.34

Reviewers also encouraged the implementation of formats to

reach informational sources such as tribes, elders, centers,

groups and individuals.35 Finally, the reviewers noted the

importance of the initial consultations to lay the

groundwork for tribal endorsements of NMAI programs.36

Some suggestions were made from the Phase 1 Start-up

Meeting including the concept of the Museum providing a

forum for discussions of AIDS, alcoholism, and suicide.37

The Technology Consultation suggested that there should be

exhibitions which address genocide directly, and the

Researchers Consultation suggested such areas of research

and archives as:

Treaty rights, government relations, and legal issues; Individual family histories; Local oral history documentation Tribal histories; Languages; Local land use; Programs and curriculum materials for schools that pertain to each tribe and region (not generic Indian) .38

From the earliest days of planning, NMAI has sought

"Ibid.

3SIbid., 4.

36Ibid., 5.

37Meeting Minutes-Start-up Meeting, NMAI, March 28, 1991, 5.

38Meeting Minutes-Researcners Consultation, NMAI, May 30, 1991, 6.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. out community representatives for consultation about NMAI

policy, goals and programmatic directions.39 Planners on

staff, and consultants from Native communities have also

outlined collaborative possibilities such as exhibitions and

public programs for both the Museum and local cultural

centers.40 According to the Notebook for Consultations,

ongoing consultations with Indian people must be built into

each program and a tradition of consultations to review the

overall policies and programs must continue as standard

practice of the museum.41

The consultation process allows for input from all

regions. In addition, while gleaning ideas and recommenda­

tions from various experts from the museum and art

communities, those participants may return to their

organizations with further ideas for museum and art fields.

39Notebook for Consultations, (Washington, D.C.: National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, 1991) 4.

40Ibid., 5.

4IIbid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER FIVE

PROGRAMMING FOR BROADER INCLUSIVENESS

...While some are planning a celebration of when Christopher Columbus got lost in the ocean, you are planning this museum for Indians and non-Indians. Senator Daniel Inouye (D-Hawai'i)

...The museum will be a rebirth for us. Our people across the country know the importance of this. Representative Ben Nighthorse Campbell (D-Colorado)

There has never been a national museum which

exclusively represents Native Americans. In designing

programs for the new museum, the notion of one stereotypical

Indian perspective on culture, spirituality, art, etc. is a

misconception which NMAI must continually be aware of and

assist to dispel when educating the general public. With

the many Federally recognized and unrecognized Indian

nations, each is considered its own culture and they cannot

be grouped together. However, Indian communities must also

acknowledge the complex task NMAI has in representing and

presenting a broad view of those cultures.

NMAI will be representing two separately distinct

groups: its Native American constituencies and its audience

— the general public. Its programming is driven by the

following mission statement:

42

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 4 3

The National Museum of the American Indian shall recognize and affirm to Native Communities and the non- Native public the historical and contemporary culture and cultural achievements of the Natives of the Western Hemisphere by advancing, in consultation, collaboration and cooperation with Natives, knowledge and understand­ ing of Native cultures, including art, history, and language, and by recognizing the Museum's special responsibility, through innovative public programming, research, and collections, to protect, support, and enhance the development, maintenance, and perpetuation of Native culture and community.1

The mission statement was adopted by the founding NMAI

Board of Trustees, which first convened in January, 1990.

NMAI not only has the task of transforming the mission of

the Heye Museum to that of NMAI, but also has the responsi­

bility of presenting over 400 Indian nations in exhibitions,

performances and events. Dr. David Warren, former NMAI

Deputy Director, stated that NMAI will be a "hemispheric

institution," as it will encompass Native cultures from

North, Central and South America. He said that, in philoso­

phical terms, the museum will be developed on a community-

based, or people-based, approach which will vary consider­

ably from standard museum structure. An important factor in

planning the new Museum is the incorporation of public

programming, a relatively new and progressive concept in the

museum field, which has had very encouraging results for

other museums such as Chicago's Field Museum of Natural

History.

•Bylaws of the Board of Directors of the National Museum of the American Indian, (Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, 1990), 1.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 4 4

Public programming has changed museum management

structures to a "team approach" or "power sharing." NMAI

has incorporated its own form of the team approach in its

organizational structure by the formation of the position of

Assistant Director for Public Programs, as well as develop­

ing the regional consultation process for planning input.

Since NMAI is not being created from any previous examples

or structure, the first programs will be the theoretical

models for the future.2

Elaine Heumann Gurian, former NMAI Director for Public

Programs, has stated that public programming "invents

structures that empower people who are not in management

positions...the attention is to the audience...it creates

responsive, client-centered museums."3 She mentioned that

excellent models for client-centered programs are children's

museums. The power sharing structure of the exhibition team

represents the content, the design, and the audience(s).4

In planning NMAI, the staff acts as the organizers and

facilitators in the programming process, in addition holding

consultation meetings, and looking to the Native American

2David Warren, (former) NMAI Deputy Director, interview with author, August 1991.

3Elaine Heumann Gurian, (former) NMAI Assistant Director for Public Programming, interview by author, August 1991.

4Elaine Heumann Gurian, "Let's Empower all Those Who Have a Stake in Exhibitions," Museum News. Vol. 69, No. 2, March/ April 1990, 90-93.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 45

community for direction and expertise. In the case of the

upcoming NMAI inaugural exhibitions, the design advocate

will be a contractor; the content advocate will be part of

the NMAI Exhibitions Office;5 and the audience advocate(s)

will be experts and artists from the Native American

community.

Acting Assistant Director for Public Programming,

James Volkert stated that exhibitions and programs will not

always be content/object-driven, and will take a non-tradi-

tional approach to planning.6 This will be accomplished by

looking outside of the standard curator-driven exhibition

process, to Native communities and artists. Mr. Volkert

explained that the notion of having consultants/'selectors

for exhibitions broadens the notion of "expertise" in

museums and promotes the idea that not only scholars can be

experts.7 Mr. Volkert added that the tradition of museums

has been to focus primarily on accountability. This,

however, started to change in the late 1960's with the

introduction of the issue of accessibility, which has now

sProject Manager, Exhibition Coordinator, and Heye Museum Curators and Educators.

6James Volkert, NMAI Acting Assistant Director for Public Programs, interview by author, August 1991.

7John Barrat, "Native Americans to Tell Their Own Stories," The Torch, (Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, No. 91-8), 3.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 46

developed into a new concept of public programming and

education.8

A model for comparison in public programming is the

Field Museum's Kellogg Foundation Project. The Project's

organizational plan outlines the museum community's growing

responsibilities to both collections and public education,

with the "team approach."9 The Field Museum's philosophy

provided for many outcomes including audience satisfaction,

the meeting of design objectives and requirements for

subject accuracy, and collections care.10

Although the concept of the team approach is not new,

the success of this approach is achieved through the process

— identifying shared goals, finding an appropriate balance

of responsibilities, and working together to achieve them.11

The mix of people on the team was of utmost importance, as

each represented a particular area of expertise, and point

of view. Through compromise, collaboration, and consensus

agreement, the team shared a common commitment to the

project.12

8James Volkert, NMAI Acting Assistant Director for Public Programs, Presentation to The American University Museum Studies Class, April 1992.

^ary Ellen Munley, Catalysts for Change. The Kellogg Projects in Museum Education, 1986.

10Ibid.

"Ibid., 31.

!2Ibid., 31-32.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 47

Another guide for public programming has been the Task

Force on Museum Education Report, sponsored by the American

Association of Museums. An important element in the Report

is the concept of "equity" which is described as the

inclusion of a broader spectrum of society, i.e. greater

inclusiveness.13 This concept is a guide to the creation of

partnerships. For NMAI, the concept will help create

partnerships between museums, within and outside of

communities, between organizations, and between cultures.

Public programming is part of NMAI's mission

statement. Public partnerships will be primarily with

Native American communities, both in consultations for

exhibitions in New York City and at the National Mall

Museum, and for the "Fourth Museum," the Outreach Program.

Partnerships are also being created with other museums such

as Arizona's Heard Museum, which produced the traveling

exhibition, "Shared Visions," a comprehensive survey of the

major artists, schools, traditions, and styles of twentieth

century Native American painting and sculpture.14 The

exhibition will tour the U.S., ending in 1994 at NMAI's U.S.

Custom House space in New York City for eleven weeks.

13"Excellence and Equity: Education and the Public Dimension of Museums" - A Report from the American Association of Museums Task Force on Education, (Washington, D.C.: American Association of Museums, 1991).

14Preliminary Exhibition Planning - U.S. Custom House (NYC). (Washington, D.C.: National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution), 1990, 4.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 48

NMAI is currently working with other SI museums and

bureaus such as the Office of Folklife Programs (OFP). The

two bureaus co-sponsored the 1991 Festival of American

Folklife Quincentenary Program "Land in Native American

Cultures." The presentation focused on Native American

knowledge of the land, the relationships existing between

the land and the people, and the cultural traditions that

make up the link between Native peoples and the Earth.15

Another program co-sponsored by NMAI and OFP, "The

Changing Soundscape of Indian Country," will be a series of

performances showing the influences of other cultures on

Indian music. This program will be presented at both the

1992 Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C. and at the Custom

House in New York City in 1994. An additional program being

researched for the 1993 Folklife Festival is "U.S. Border­

lands," which will explore the Native cultures bordering the

U.S. NMAI will jointly produce this portion of the 1993

Festival with OFP.16

NMAI is incorporating many concepts related to the

American Association of Museums' Task Force on Education

Report, including concepts of the meanings of objects,

heightened cultural sensitivity, and presenting and testing

15Festival of American Folklife, 1991 Volunteer Handbook. (Washington, D.C.: Office of Folklife Programs, Smithsonian Institution), 10.

16R. Fred Nahwooksy, Jr., NMAI Exhibition Coordinator, interview by author, May 1992.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 4 9

alternative ideas and addressing controversy. The way

museums communicate about objects is changing. Objects are

no longer viewed as existing by themselves, but as having

complex contexts and associated value-laden significance,

due to changing approaches to interpretation.17

An important topic in the AAM Task Force Report was

the need for "heightened cultural sensitivity in research

and interpretation, which is struggling to shed the limiting

cultural biases and ethnocentrism of the past...The return

of cultural patrimony is one of a number of issues that will

fundamentally alter the way museums interpret their

collections in the future."18 A related issue for NMAI was

to make information about collections more accessible to

non-traditional scholars, i.e. families and individuals,

museum professionals, and the public. The museum will

establish liberal access to the collections for Native

American elders, medicine people, scholars, students, and

lay people.19 In addition to planning programs to reach

visitors with varying levels of knowledge, other aspects

such as learning styles, language, and time to spend at the

museum will also be incorporated into the planning process.20

Excellence and Equity, Task Force on Museum Education, 5.

18Ibid., 13.

19R. Fred Nahwooksy, Jr., NMAI Exhibition Coordinator, interview by author, March 1992.

20Master Facilities Phase 1 Report, NMAI, 68.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 5 0

Along with contemporary art and historical themes,

exhibitions will include contemporary social issues in a

broad interpretation of culture.21 Programs at the new

museum will assist in presenting and testing alternative

ideas and addressing controversy. NMAI will communicate the

Native American experience, as well as address larger

universal, humanistic issues such as survival and social and

political flexibility in the face of change.22

Programming will attempt to "debunk” contradictory

stereotypes of Indians held by wide audiences.23 These

stereotypes may be rooted in how other cultures perceive

Native Americans.24 In an October 1991 interview on the Fox

Morning News, (WTTG Television) NMAI Director, Richard West,

spoke of the controversies over the Columbus quincentenary

"...the history that followed from the encounter that

occurred between Columbus and his voyages and what came

after is not a pretty picture. And I don't think anyone

will dispute that...we want to be sure that we, on the

occasion of the quincentenary, represent to everybody what

was here

2IIbid.

“ibid., 36.

“Ibid., 36.

24Ibid., 37.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 5 1

at the time this encounter actually occurred, as well as

what is here now.1'25

It was also suggested that, due to the "problematic"

relationship between the Indian community and U.S. govern­

mental agencies, trust for NMAI must be earned, therefore,

continuity in programs should be assured so that the

communities can count on services once established.26 "The

successful establishment of the Museum's identity within the

Indian community will depend largely on the success of its

outreach programs.1127

The NMAI Outreach Program has already begun through

the consultation process and the development of its

inaugural exhibitions. The consultation process reinforced

that "the Fourth Museum is already in place — 400 units

A A n r* ^ VI

The "Fourth Museum" - Outreach Program will be one of

the most important aspects of NMAI and will be a resource

devoted to the service of Indian communities. It is

possible that a majority of the Museum's Native constituency

will not have the opportunity to visit the Museum facilities

in Washington, D.C. and New York. For this reason NMAI will

^Richard West, Jr., NMAI Director, Fox Morning News Interview Transcript, (Washington, D.C.: WTTG Television, 1991).

26"Preliminary Thoughts," Orientation Packet for Consultation Participants, NMAI, 9.

^Master Facilities Phase 1 Report, NMAI, 66.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 5 2

plan and provide hemisphere-wide outreach programs which

will allow for the sharing and exchange of the collections

and human and technical resources with both urban and

reservation-based Indians through traveling exhibitions,

educational materials and programs, and training and

collaborative projects such as loaning artifacts and

exhibits to Indian museums, cultural centers, and

educational institutions.28

NMAI will act as a facilitator as well as an umbrella/

advocate for Indian programs and events.29 The Outreach

Program will encourage a reciprocal flow of information from

Indian communities, schools, cultural centers and organiza­

tions through technology, as well as the enhancement of

cross-cultural understanding.30 Organizing principles

listed in consultation participants packets stated the need

for "programs that foster cross-generational communication,

enrichment in the schools, reestablishment of traditions,

language, ceremonies and crafts production."31

The program will provide technical support rather than

funding, as well as initiate its own programs.32 "NMAI must

28Ibid., 3 & 28.

29Elaine Heumann Gurian, (former) Assistant Director for Public Programming, interview with author, August, 1991.

30Ibid.

31|,Preliminary Thoughts," Orientation Packet for Consul­ tation Participants, NMAI, 8.

32Ibid., 65.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 5 3

be the recipient of programs produced by the local community

as well as the producer of programs for community use."33

The establishment and programming of the new museum

will create a venue, on a national scale, to give much

deserved recognition and representation to the many cultures

of the Americas. In addition to its location in Washington,

D.C., the association with the Smithsonian Institution gives

the museum a presence and legitimacy.34

33Ibid., 8.

^NMAI Technology Consultation, September 9-10, 1991.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER SIX

"POINTS OF VIEW" - AN EXAMPLE

OF INNOVATIVE PROGRAMMING

A unique aspect of the new museum is the progressive

development concept of one of its inaugural exhibitions,

"Points of View" (POV), which will be presented at the U.S.

Custom House in New York in 1994. NMAI will not use the

standard museum structure of an in-house curator, who is

responsible for content; and in-house design; but will bring

in outside "selectors" for its exhibition development. This

exhibition development process could be a model for other

museums.

NMAI will provide a variety of perspectives and

interpretations in the development of POV, by having several

selectors comment on objects they have chosen from the

collection. There will be several selectors and

commentaries per object, which will present multiple

perspectives, creating a richer experience and the

realization that any object can be approached from many

different points of view.1

Selectors represent diverse disciplines, geographic

Preliminary Exhibition Planning - U.S. Custom House (NYC), (Washington, D.C.: NMAI), 1990, 2.

54

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 5 5

regions, and points of view.2 Mr. Volkert said, in

selecting the participants, the exhibition staff looked at

the life experiences of the selectors — artistic, spiritual

— to tell the staff what is important in their cultures.

NMAI wants them to be able to express their ideas without

any mitigating, third-person labels from the museum.3 The

exhibition is being produced by the NMAI Exhibitions Office

in Washington, D.C., the curatorial, media production, and

collections management staff at the Bronx Research Branch,

and the Exhibition Design Firm, Krent/Paffett Associates.

As the centerpiece of the opening series of exhibits,

"Points of View" will communicate through interactive

display. The emotional experiences for the consultant/

selectors will be passed on and shared with museum visitors.

An example of the process for the selectors included a tour

of the Research Branch; examination of artifacts of

interest; comments on techniques, materials used, design,

types, distinguishing characteristics; selection of pieces

for "POV"; comments regarding the selectors' experiences,

stories, how the selector learned the craft, their opinion

about NMAI; a tour of the U.S. Custom House; and an informal

video-taped interview.

One of the selectors, Susan Billy, a Porno basket

weaver from Northern California, focused her selections and

2Ibid., 3.

3Ibid., 3.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 56

comments on the Porno basket collection. She inspected and

commented on weaving techniques used by the respective

weavers — the materials and fibers used, how they were

finished off — and how the baskets communicated traditional

values from within the culture.4 She commented that she saw

the baskets as living things since they are "a real

connection to the past."5

Ms. Billy also examined other artifacts such as a

Potawatomi choker and beaded vest to compare the techniques

of beadwork to basket weaving.6 When examining baskets from

the collections, her comments focused on the incorporation

of design motifs, weaving tools used and handed down to her,

the location of the Dau, or spirit door, and taboos.7

During her video-taped interview, Ms. Billy described the

meaning of the word Porno ("people") a name given to a group

of seventy Northern California tribes by anthropologists,

based on languages spoken and baskets made.8

The common element in the baskets was the Dau. a

place where a bad feeling has a way of getting out of the

basket, and where good spirits can enter and circulate

4George Arevalo and Nancy Rosoff, "Susan Billy: Summary Report," Selector's Log - "Points of View" Exhibit, (New York, N.Y.: NMAI, SI, 1991).

5Ibid.

6Ibid.

7Ibid., 2.

8Ibid., 6.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 57

within the basket.9 Sometimes it is an obvious change in

the pattern, or one not easily identified.10 Additional

comments during the interview described how a home is like a

basket, since summer homes were made from willow brush

lashed together; she also commented on how long it takes to

make a basket.11

Abe Conklin, a Ponca/Osage Indian, also toured the

research facility. Mr. Conklin, a dancer, storyteller and

traditionalist, was interested in Ponca and Osage items in

the collection from the turn of the century. While

examining many trays of leggings, beadwork, shirts, pipes

and dolls, he commented on how much his people had lost,

'•something that the generations before me don't realize."12

While Mr. Conklin identified designs on woven-fiber

bags, he told how oil royalties that the Osage began

receiving in 1906 played a part in the loss of the

distinctive woven designs in their clothing and bags.13

"After receiving royalties, the Osage got other people and

tribes to make their items for them...and in doing so, mixed

9Ibid., 16.

I0Ibid.

nIbid.

12John Barrat, "Native Americans Tell Their Stories," The Torch, (Washington, D.C.: SI, No. 91-8 August 1991), 3.

13Ibid., 3.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 58

in their own designs.. .Osage families lost their designs."14

Another factor which changed the way items were made was

money, since Osage craftspeople did not have to rely on the

materials they had on hand, they could buy what they

needed.15

Another selector, Linda Poolaw, a Delaware/Kiowa

playwright, studied the designs of beaded Kiowa bags. She

noted that the geometric designs were made "mostly from

their dreams and visions," and that "they were nomadic and

had to have many bags to carry their things."16 She also

added that the items were taken at the turn of the century,

"that it's been good to look back...My chest was hurting the

first night, because there is a sadness that you feel...some

of the objects are very religious, but I don't know enough

to talk about them. Perhaps there is no one left who knows

about them."17

After the participants made comments as to technique,

design, story, and/or history of the objects, their comments

were documented, and a second group of consultants/selectors

were invited to comment on those same objects. Second-round

selectors were a diverse group made up of museum curators,

anthropologists, academicians, spiritual leaders,

14Ibid., 3.

15Ibid., 3.

16Ibid., 3.

17Ibid., 3.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 5 9

folklorists, artists and art historians.18 From the second-

round comments, the exhibit design firm established three

theme areas: Preserving — cultural identity, spirituality,

gender roles; Focus — the selections, diversity/the

selectors; and Aesthetics — process and techniques,

meanings.19

Most of the original selectors and the objects they

chose will be represented within a particular area, as well

as cross-referenced to show inter-relationships throughout

the exhibit. 891 objects were identified by the twenty-

eight selectors.20 Of those, 30% of the originally selected

objects will be displayed, with the rest available for

viewing in other media such as video tapes and

photographs.21

This process builds layers around the object for

richer understanding, according to Mr. Volkert. It also

adds to the notion that experts do not have to be scholars.

18Pesiqn Development Procrram. "Points of View Exhibition,11 (Boston, MA: Krent/Paffett Associates, NMAI, SI, 1992), 2.

19Pesiqn Development Program. Phase II, "Points of View" Exhibition, (Boston, MA: Krent/Paffett Associates, NMAI, SI, 1992), 3.

Exhibition Diagrams are listed in Appendix E.

20Conceptual Development Program, Thematic Organiza­ tional Strategies, "Points of View" Exhibition, (New York, N.Y.: NMAI, SI, 1991), 1.

21Pesign Development Program. "Points of View" Exhibi­ tion, (Boston, MA: K/PA, NMAI, SI, 1992), 2.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 6 0

From the refining process during the second-round, many

spiritually sensitive objects were removed from the exhibit,

based on comments and new information made available from

the first-round selectors.22 From the comments gathered

through the selection process, the staff and design firm

have suggested that the exhibition''s title be changed from

the working title of "Points of View" to "All Roads Are

Good," to reflect selector Abe Conklin's phrase about the

many points of view on Native American cultures and

objects.23

Artifacts selected for the exhibit include a "mile of

moccasins." Selector Gerald McMaster commented that since

there were 5,280 moccasins in the collection, that would be

equivalent to a mile of moccasins.24 The concept will be

presented as its own sub-theme under the theme Aesthetics:

Process and Techniques.

An Apache bull roarer was chosen by two selectors.

Edgar Perry, a White Mountain Apache Leader/Elder, noted

that the bull roarer was used in the Devil dance and used by

the Clown to make the sound of the wind in all four

^Ibid., 6.

^Design Development Program. Phase II, "Points of View" Exhibition, (Boston, MA: K/PA, NMAI, SI, 1992), 2.

24R. Fred Nahwooksy, Jr., NMAI Exhibition Coordinator, Presentation to The American University Museum Studies Class, April 8, 1992.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 61

directions.25 Susan Billy commented that the wooden bull

roarers are similar to Hopi rainmakers.26

The production phases of POV will include the concep­

tual design, content and design planning, fabrication and

production, and installation.27 The catalogue for the

Points of View exhibition will provide biographical informa­

tion about each of the twenty-eight selectors, preserve

excerpts from their commentaries, and include five to ten

photo images of works they selected.28 "POV" will run for

an indefinite period of time.

^Design Development Program. Phase II, "Points of View Exhibition," (Boston, MA: K/PA, NMAI, SI, 1992), 32.

26Ibid., 32.

^Preliminary Exhibition Planning, U.S. Custom House, 10- 11.

28Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER SEVEN

EXHIBITIONS: GIVING DIRECTION FOR PRESENTATIONS

The inaugural exhibitions at the George Gustav Heye

Center in the U.S. Custom House will be the first generation

of programs for the Museum.29 NMAI exhibitions will feature

Indian interpreters, incorporate multisensory techniques, be

updated frequently, and focus on hemisphere-wide Native

cultures, their history and contemporary lives.30 The Heye

Collection may be mixed with objects and materials from

other collections, as well as with contemporary art.

Two programs are currently planned for as early as

r i T i PT*T XTrvrro,mI,>o>*** v » 1009 ^ • ll'Da4-V\T.7a^70 v* ujr ^ o>-P fPvy;*^ i f i H r>yovi w # ^«*

exhibition, and a dance program. NMAI will open the Rotunda

of the U.S. Custom House to preview the collection and

communicate the future of the new museum.

The "Pathways of Tradition" exhibit will focus on the

meaning of museums for living, diverse cultures. It will

convey what Native Americans expect, honor, fear, treasure,

29David Warren, (former) Deputy Director, NMAI, interview by author, 1991.

30Master Facilities Phase 1 Report, NMAI, 9.

62

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 63

and hope for from NMAI.31 The preview exhibition will be

developed from research conducted for the "POV" exhibition,

and use approximately 100 objects chosen from POV.32

The two major themes of "Pathways of Tradition" are

"Cultural Symbolism" and "Indian World Views". "Cultural

Symbolism" will present the use of symbols in Indian art

which represent group/tribal identity through works made of

stone, bone, ceramic, wood, as well as paintings. Objects

will represent earliest forms of art with particular beliefs

in celestial, animal and spirit figures, as well as

contemporary works.

"Indian World Views" will show how the many diverse

cultural views affect the art of the respective peoples, and

how art serves as the background for beliefs.33 The world

view is made up of cultural values, spiritual beliefs and

social patterns of the community.34 Indians define their

world views through their clothing, the designs on the

objects they use, the style of their homes, and the ritual

objects they use.35

"Pathways of Traditions" will showcase Indian

31R. Fred Nahwooksy, Jr., NMAI Exhibition Coordinator, interview by author, 1992.

32Ibid.

33Pathwavs of Tradition. Design Development Program, 1992 Exhibition, (Boston, MA: K/PA, NMAI, SI, 1992).

^Ibid., 7.

35Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 64

diversity by representing traditions encompassing land, art,

family, and animals. Traditions related to animals

represent the belief that animals have spirits similar to

humans.36 These animal spirits can share spiritual and

medical power, as well as a common identity.37 Animal

totems as clan effigies are used by Native Americans, and

are meant as tools to assist in learning from the behavior

of animals.38

An example of objects used for the exhibit in

interpreting animal symbolism include a Crow thunderbird

shield and featherwork used by many diverse cultures. The

design of the thunderbird shield shows lightening flashing

from the thunderbird's eye, and a rainbow, representing

rainmaking or the power to prevent bad storms from

striking.39 In this way the shield represents the owner's

vision and the power of the animal spirit as a guardian.40

Shields were also used in a spiritual way to protect the

warrior.41

•'Feathers are used as a metaphor for the spiritual

power of birds, and the connection of the Indian to those

3SIbid.

37Ibid.

38Ibid.

39Ibid.

40Ibid.

41Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 6 5

powers."42 The exhibition will use objects to show the use

of feathers as a form of spiritual adornment and

empowerment.43

Other objects showing Indian diversity in using animal

symbolism include a Winnebago bag with the design of an

underwater panther; Northwest Coast hats; Seneca Headdress;

Kiowa shield and feather fan; Delaware bear costume; and a

Mimbres bowl.44 Other objects will be displayed in a

similar manner to show the diversity representing Indian

relationships with family, land and art. The exhibit will

run from November 1992 to January 1993.

In conjunction with "Pathways of Tradition," NMAI will

present contemporary living Native traditions through its

dance program.45 The program will highlight the vitality

and strength of Native cultures in contemporary societies.

Research and documentation is currently being developed with

consultants from selected communities to develop dance

presentations at New York City venues and possibly in

Washington, D.C.

NMAI will invite eight to ten groups of dancers to

present weekend programs, representing diverse geographic

42Ibid.

43Ibid.

“ Ibid.

45R. Fred Nahwooksy, Jr., NMAI Exhibition Coordinator, interview by author, 1992.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 66

and cultural areas such as: Southern Plains (Oklahoma),

Northwest Coast, Tewa (New Mexico), Aymara (Bolivia),

Seneca, Zapotec (Mexico), Northern Plains, White Mountain

Apache (Arizona), as well as contemporary dance. The

program will present contemporary traditional and modern

d a nce.

In traditional Indian dance, there are acceptable ways

of doing each dance.46 An example is the War Dance of the

Comanche Tribe. If the movements fall outside of an

acceptable style, it is considered modern dance.

Dance events will be presented as public programs to

support the 1992 Preview Exhibition at the George Gustav

Heye Center, NMAI.47 The Dance Program will take place at

various venues around the city, as well as offer opportuni­

ties for community outreach by including local Native Ameri­

cans from the New York City area in a pow-wow gathering.48

Ephemera (printed matter) published for 1992 programs

will consist of an exhibition brochure and poster for the

preview exhibition, Pathways of Tradition; a Native American

Dance poster and program announcement; and a brochure

describing the history of the U.S. Custom House.49

Currently in progress is a book providing an overview of the

46Ibid.

47Ibid.

48Ibid.

49Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 67

NMAI collections which serves as a visual documentation of

many of the most significant works in the collection

(working title: "Treasures of the NMAI").

A Native American Dance book will be published in

conjunction with the Dance Program, which will be presented

at the same time as the Pathways of Tradition opening in

1992. Articles will cover dances of the Tewa Pueblo,

Comanches/Kiowas, Northern Plains Indians, Native Alaskans,

Latin American, Iroquois, Northwest Coast Indians, and White

Mountain Apaches, as well as an essay on modern dance.50

Each article will also be accompanied by photo images.

In addition to the previously mentioned exhibit,

"Points of View," the second major inaugural exhibition,

"Celebrations", will speak directly to the continuity and

continuum of the Indian experience through contemporary

Native art and will be developed and produced by Indians.51

The project will explore both the past and the future,

resulting in the creation of new objects and celebrations in

response to tradition.52 Twenty-eight Native American

writers, painters, object makers, storytellers, performers,

and musicians have been invited for residencies in New York

City.

50Ibid.

51Preliminary Exhibition Planning, U.S. Custom House, NMAI, 4.

52Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 68

The participants will have free access to the NMAI

collection as a source to create songs, dance, writings, and

new objects in response to their experiences.53 As with

POV, the process will be documented and organized into an

exhibition by an Indian designer and presented at the U.S.

Custom House with a focus on sources of inspiration,

creation, renewal, and celebration.54 The participants7

experiences and creations will be refined into the

production of a new celebration at the new gallery at the

U.S. Custom House before the opening date. The exhibition

will run for approximately one year.55

"Shared Visions," the final major exhibition to be

presented in the 1994 inaugural presentation at the U.S.

Custom House, will appear as part of a touring exhibit

organized by the Heard Museum of Phoenix. It will be a

comprehensive survey of the major artists, schools,

traditions and styles of twentieth century Native American

painting and sculpture.56 150 objects will comprise two

components of the show focusing on "Encounter and Response;"

1) an overview of the history of twentieth century Indian

53Ibid.

“Ibid.

55Ibid., 15.

56Ibid., 5.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 6 9

art and 2) the reflection of the Quincentenary of Columbus'

voyages by contemporary artists.57

Native American artists from around the country were

commissioned to create new works for the show to reflect the

voyage of Columbus, the Quincentenary, and its meaning to

them. In addition, a comprehensive compilation of earlier

period works were loaned from public and private

collections.

"Shared Visions" originated at the Heard Museum in

Phoenix, Arizona in April 1991. The traveling exhibition

will appear at the following locations before its final

eleven-week showing at NMAI's George Gustav Heye Center:

Eiteljorg Museum of American Indian and Western Arts,

Indianapolis, September 1991; Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa,

January 1992; and Oregon Art Institute, Portland, June

1992.58

The fourth inaugural exhibition, "Orientation," will

go beyond simple identification of areas to interpret the

building facade, sculpture and location of the building.59

In addition, the exhibit will orient audiences to the

mission of NMAI, and interpret the Rotunda, as well as guide

the visitor, through a series of stages, to gallery

57Ibid.

58Native Peoples Magazine. The Arts and Lifeways, (Phoenix, AZ: Media Concepts Group, Spring 1991), 26.

59Preliminary Exhibition Planning, U.S. Custom House, NMAI, 6.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 70

entrances.60 Topics addressed by the "Orientation"

exhibition will include the history of Native Americans in

Manhattan, Native American custom and commerce before and

after 1492, contrasting world views of Native Americans, and

non-Native Americans, and the history and architecture of

the Custom House building.61

The exhibitions development process has attempted to

incorporate varied themes and disciplines into inaugural

programs, such as artifacts, historical information,

contemporary art, dance, and the combination of those

concepts to encourage the creation of a new celebration.

Exhibitions and programs have been chosen for the best

representation of a particular discipline or collection.

The process depends on comprehensive information, as well as

the availability of consultants and experts.

60Ibid.

61R. Fred Nahwooksy, Jr., NMAI Exhibition Coordinator, interview by author, 1992.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER EIGHT

MUSEUM FACILITIES: THE CHALLENGE OF SPACES

NMAI will be an "institution within an institution,

as SI is made up of fifteen museums, as well as bureaus and

research centers around the country. NMAI will be made up

of several centers, which poses many challenges in design,

programming, staffing, and coordinating. NMAI's multi-site

structure varies from standard museums which house all

departments — exhibition, research/collections, education,

public affairs/media, and administration — under one roof.

Facilities will provide a gathering place for Native

Americans, and will be unusual in that the architecture wil

allow for Indian ceremonies and celebrations, i.e. pow-wows

pipe smoking, religious rituals; the safe use of fire; and

the presentations of aspects of living culture.

NMAI's architectural projects will start with an

overall planning "program" summarizing the requirements

gleaned from the consultation hearings.1 Once the spaces

and the design criteria of the individual sites and facili­

ties have detailed descriptions, architects for the design

of each facility will be selected from recommendations by

!Master Facilities Phase 1 Report, NMAI, 5.

71

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 72

Si's Office of Design and Construction (ODC), the NMAI Board

and the NMAI staff, and decided by the Secretary of SI.2

Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates (VSBA) has been

chosen as the architectural firm for the initial program

report. The firm will not be eligible to design for any of

the building projects but may assist as the liaison between

the Museum and the design architects, and in interpreting

program requirements to those firms.3

The George Gustav Heye Center will use two floors of

the restored Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House. The

"beaux arts" building was designed by Cass Gilbert and

completed in 1907. The Custom House has been empty since

1973, when the U.S. Customs Service moved to the World Trade

Center.4

TVto TT Q Pncf nw Um-ic?o 1 1 o-s-'.r t.’ T 1 1 V i f t C f f i i S T P — • — — —w... v — /------—

feet for exhibitions, performances and public programming.

The projects planned for the New York City space will evolve

from research programs, resources and exhibitions from the

Mall Museum and Suitland facility.5

Initial construction work by the General Services

Administration is expected to be completed in July 1992, in

2Ibid., 6.

3Ibid., 6.

4Background Fact Sheet - NMAI, (Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, Office of Public Affairs, 1991) 1-2 .

5Master Facilities Report, Phase 1, NMAI, 45.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 73

time for the preview exhibition installation opening in

October 1992. This construction work includes the historic

restoration of the frescoes in the Rotunda, the walls and

ceilings of the Great Hall and Collector's Reception Room,

and the statues at the front of the facility on Bowling

Green.

Programs planned for the Custom House will include

long-term exhibitions — primarily of objects from the Heye

Collection — shorter-term exhibits, and brief shows that

are part of a traveling exhibition and/or outreach program.6

The exhibition spaces will be flexible to allow curators and

Museum staff to change the galleries' configurations.7 The

Heye Center will also provide reference materials about

Native American topics, as well as technological access to

the collections located at the Suitland facility.8

The official opening of the Custom House will take

place in early 1994, approximately four years before the

completion of the Suitland facility. The exhibitions and

support activities for those transitional years will rely on

the existing storage and staff space at the 155th Street

Museum, "Audubon Terrace," and the Bronx Research Center.9

Once the Suitland storage/support facility is opened in

6Ibid., 45.

7Ibid., 45.

8Ibid.

9Ibid., 73.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 7 4

1997, the collections move will take place on a gradual

basis, and will continue for approximately ten years.10 The

Master Facilities Programming Report states that objects

will be moved by tribe to minimize periods of inaccessibil­

ity and to coordinate with anticipated arrangement of

housing areas at the Suitland facility.11

The Heye Foundations's Library of the Museum of the

American Indian is currently sharing space with the

Huntington Free Library, and will be transferred to NMAI's

Suitland facility in 1997.12 The Suitland facility will be

considered a "home" for NMAI's objects, archival collections

and library, as well as the center for collaborative

projects with Native communities, exhibition and program

production, and education and outreach programs.13 All

research, curatorial and conservation activities will be

based in Suitland, including all staff and "back-of-house

facilities" which are not in daily contact with the public

or SI administration.14

NMAI's Suitland facility will function as a facilita­

tor, clearinghouse and production center for traveling

projects, educational programs and materials consistent with

I0Ibid.

"Ibid., 43

I2Ibid., 40.

13Ibid., 7.

I4Ibid., 8.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 75

the Museum collections and programs and the needs and

resources of Native communities.15 Facilities will allow

for information processing/dissemination much like that of

"a library reference center, publisher, mail order catalog,

think tank and broadcast studio."16 The design for a

flexible space will be implemented due to such factors as a

growing staff, and the fluctuation in the size of the

collection due to repatriation, the addition of contemporary

art to the collection, and traveling exhibits.

Si's Museum Support Center is also located in Suitland

and will be the new storage space for the National Museum of

Natural History (NMNH) collection. It has been proposed

that NMAI's "housing" facility be constructed as an addition

to the Support Center, or adjacent to the Center, with a

connecting tunnel or bridge for access to NMNH's objects and

facilities.17 Access to NMAI and NMNH collections will be

made available to Native and non-Native visitors through

electronic databases and a reference staff.18

The design of spaces will reflect the needs of

artists, ceremonial users, groups and individuals.19 Spaces

will be designed for shipping and receiving, registration

15Ibid. , 7. CO

16Ibid., •

17Ibid., 7.

I8Ibid., 7.

19Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 76

and documentation, conservation labs, exhibit preparation

spaces, and research and curators offices.20 The library

and archival collections will be designed in close proximity

to the object viewing and reference areas. The proposed

square footage of the Suitland site is 200,000 gross square

feet. Due to the growing importance placed on this facility

by the consultation process, the square footage may

increase.21

Congress, in 1975, reserved the last vacant parcel of

land on the National Mall for SI use. Negotiations are

underway to add the small triangle of land southeast of the

site. The Museum on the National Mall will be "the Indian

community's outreach to the international public" — with

the connotations of an embassy.22 According to the

Programming Report, the single most important architectural

and operational challenge will be the "welcoming of visitors

and preparing them to learn about and respect Native

cultures."23 The design of the building will follow a

"spirit of connectedness with the land and an attitude of

respect for relationships between all life forms"...and

20Ibid., 80.

21Ibid., 8.

^James Volkert, NMAI Acting Assistant Director for Public Programs, Presentation to The American University Museum Studies Class, April 1992.

^Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 7 7

prepare visitors to enter a place "where Indian customs and

etiquette govern."24

The Programming Report suggests that there should be a

large gathering place near the entrance where social events

and performances can take place.25 Indian visitors will be

welcomed at a special lounge space where information will be

available about Native American events and the Washington

area.26 Computer terminals will also be made available for

access to resources regarding the collection and other

aspects of the Museum.

A sensory-based transition space for museum visitors

will assist when they first enter the building by blocking

out the city and its noise, while honoring the first inhabi­

tants of the Washington area.27 From the transition area,

visitors will move to an orientation area, which will help

them become familiar with the layout of areas within the

museum.28 Galleries and presentation spaces will then be

the next step in exploring the museum. Performance and

demonstration space will occur throughout the Museum — in

24Master Facilities Phase 1 Report, NMAI, 8.

“ibid., 9.

“Ibid.

“James Volkert, NMAI Acting Assistant Director of Public Programs, Presentation to The American University Museum Studies Class, April 1992.

28Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 78

exhibition areas, outdoors, at the entrance.29 Theater/

auditorium space will present films, lectures, and

performances.

NMAI is discussing with SI the possibility of alterna­

tive arrangements for retail activities and Museum shop

operations. These arrangements include "favorable distribu­

tion of profits to individual artists and Indian communi­

ties."30 Various shops would sell books, crafts, gifts and

contemporary Native American art.31 Vendor areas,

restaurant and self-service food facilities, featuring

Native foods, will also be available at the Mall facility.32

Electronic access to the collections will be available

at the Mall Museum in various locations around the building,

such as information desks, the Native hospitality lounge,

staff work areas, and exhibition areas.33 Staff facilities

in the Mall Museum will be limited to those in direct

contact with the public and SI administration, such as the

NMAI Director and his staff, the membership and development

office, and the public relations office. Conference space

will also be available at both the Mall and the Suitland

29Master Facilities Phase 1 Report, NMAI, 9.

30Ibid., 10.

31Ibid.

32Ibid.

33Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 7 9

facilities. In addition, there will be space available for

support staff who will work with exhibitions, delivery,

staging, repair and storage.34

Design challenges will include overcoming the

distances between all Museum facilities; restrictions posed

by regulatory agencies and strict limits to buildings

located on the National Mall, which insure that the

"architectural design of the Mall facility will meet the

original intent of the L'Enfant plan and its architectural

character.,|35

Other challenges for the design of the building are

locations of public access due to potentially large crowds

(the adjacent Air and Space Museum attracts over 10 million

people per year).36 The museum must provide food services,

life safety precautions, as well as ensure security and

environmental controls for protection of its collections.

Phase Two of the Program began in November, 1991 and

will continue as part of the consultation process. Informa­

tion obtained from Phase Two consultations will also deter­

mine budgets, fundraising targets, construction schedules

and what constraints will impact NMAI site goals.37

^Ibid., 10.

35Regulatory Agencies are Listed in Appendix G.

Master Facilities Phase 1 Report, NMAI, 15.

36Master Facilities Phase 1 Report, NMAI, 104.

37Ibid., 61.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. The Suitland facility design is expected to begin in

1992 and be completed by 1994. Construction is to be

completed by 1997.38 The selection of the architect for the

Mall building will be made in late 1992, with the design to

be completed in 1995 and construction and exhibit

installation by the end of the year 2000.39

38Ibid.

39Ihid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER NINE

A MUSEUM COLLECTION WHICH BELONGS TO ITS PEOPLE

"Many Indians carry with them negative perceptions of

and experiences with museums, anthropologists and the

federal government.1,1 This is perhaps due to the tradi­

tional viewpoint in most museums that objects are meant to

be viewed and not used. Most Indians regard items in the

collections as living objects which need to breath and be

cared for, in order play a part in their respective

cultures.2

The exhibition, care and housing of NMAI collections

will be in accordance with the customs and policies of the

Native American communities.3 Suggestions have included

separating and storing objects by tribe, allowing for tradi­

tional care practices. Traditional care will address such

needs as limitation of access to certain elders; providing

areas for spiritual treatment of, and ceremonies with,

objects; and storing objects in particular materials.4

‘Ibid., 35.

2Ibid., 67.

3Ibid., 66.

4Ibid.

81

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 82

Indian consultants will assist in determining specific

care requirements. Such needs will include the ceremonial

use of smoke and smudging to treat whole collections within

the storage areas.5 NMAI will also be involved in funda­

mental policy setting in the redefinition of conservation.6

An example is in the care and use of objects in the collec­

tion. Instead of conserving static items, the Museum will

allow objects such as pipes to be smoked for ceremonies, and

will structure its conservation activities accordingly.7

Planning for the storage of contemporary art — whether by

tribe or separately — has yet to be determined.

The collection contains approximately one million

artifacts, a photo archive of 86,000 images, 30,000 vintage

prints, and 9,000 transparencies, as well as 450 films and

videotapes, and includes such items as Chitimacha woven

mats; over eighty buffalo robes; 250 snowshoes, and 1500

kachina dolls.8 Approximately 68% of the collection comes

from 49 United States and the District of Columbia; 3.5%

comes from Canada; 10% is from Central America — half

5Ibid., 80.

6James Volkert, NMAI Acting Assistant Director for Public Programming, Presentation The American University Museum Studies Class, April, 1992.

7Ibid.

Collection Summary, National Museum of the American Indian, (Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, 1991.

Kevin Wallace, ”A Reporter at Large - Slim-Shin's Monument."

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 83

comprised from the Mexican collection; 11% is from South

America; and 6% contains Caribbean items — nearly all

archaeological.9

The Library of the Museum of the American Indian

contains 40,000 volumes and audio-visual resources. It has

been located at the Huntington Free Library in the Bronx

since 1930. Suggestions for the acquisition of further

archival materials include "treaties and legal documents,

cylinder recordings, diaries of Spanish conquerors and

missionaries, and duplicates or photographs of items

pertaining to specific tribes from their collections."10

Apart from the newly acquired Heye Foundation

Collection, SI holds around 137 million artifacts and

specimens in its trust for the prescribed "diffusion of

knowledge."11 Of these, two million Native American items

are held by NMNH.12 Although the NMNH collection will be

stored at the Museum Support Center at Suitland (adjoining

NMAI's housing and research facility) and made available

along with NMAI's collection to Native communities and

scholars, the two museums' collections will remain separate.

Currently, 98% of the NMAI collection is stored at the

Bronx Research Branch, which is severely overcrowded. The

Collection Summary, NMAI, 2.

10Master Facilities Phase 1 Report, NMAI, 81.

"Ibid., 23.

12Ibid., 24.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 84

building provides "minimally acceptable environmental

conditions"..."Studies have shown that three to four times

the current amount of space is needed for safe storage of a

collection of this magnitude.1,13 Objects are stored on

steel shelving, wooden trays, and closed cabinets, and

conditions limit adequate care for the collection.14 Older,

antiquated display techniques have been detrimental and

hazardous to the artifacts on display.15 During the 1970s

and 1980s, the Heye Foundation addressed the need for

updated collections care by developing conservation rules, a

collections care program, and a report documenting the

existing conditions of artifacts — these activities were

all limited due to lack of funding.16

In addition to planning the move and making

suggestions regarding the needs at the new facilities, a

conservation department is being formed to assist with the

transition to new quarters. The move from the Bronx

Research Branch to the Suitland facility will take between

ten to twenty years.

Other areas that must be addressed by NMAI conserva­

tors include move-related staff training, handling

procedures, packing methods, special conservation needs,

13Ibid., 25 & 41.

14Ibid., 25.

15Ibid., 42.

16Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 85

photography and condition records, inventory and location

data, stabilization, and emergency treatment.17 Move-

related policies include such elements as the move itself,

the formation and planning of the new museum, and the

continuation of normal Museum functions.18 Access is

another area of concern, especially for Custom House

inaugural exhibitions staff who will need immediate access

to artifacts.19

Packing and storage procedures will also be created

including tasks such as pre-establishing collections groups,

superficial cleaning of objects, photo-imaging, packing of

objects in crates or pallets, and loading onto trucks.20

Some objects may stay packed for long periods of time, and

some crates may remain in permanent storage, which must be

addressed in the designation of space at the new facility.21

In anticipation of additions to the collections, a

Curatorial Council has been created to recommend or deny

gift offers to NMAI, as well as to oversee purchases, loan

requests, and acquisition of non-Indian materials.22

17Ibid., 43.

18Ibid.

19Ibid., 44.

20Ibid.

21Ibid.

^R. Fred Nahwooksy, Jr., NMAI Exhibition Coordinator, interview by author, March 1992.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 86

Recommendations are presented to the Collections Committee

of the NMAI Board, and then approved or denied by the full

Board of Trustees. The Curatorial Council and Collections

Committee assist in drafting collections policy, including

such aspects of collections management as documentation,

acquisition, disposal, access, care and maintenance, risk

management, security, inventory, temporary custody, and

lending and borrowing of collections.23

The area encompassing collections and related matters

will rely on several policies for care, handling, repatria­

tion, and access. It will take many years to implement

these policies, since a comprehensive inventory must be

completed. In addition, NMAI will collaborate with the

respective Indian communities on traditional care require­

ments for storage and display and/or use.

By providing accessibility to a broader public and

creating new policies in collections care and handling, NMAI

will encourage other museums to review their policies

regarding their collections activities, as well as open

questions regarding the definition of museums.

Some items from the collection will return to their

communities through the implementation of the Museum's

Repatriation policy which was adopted by the NMAI Board of

“Ibid.

Smithsonian Institution Collections Management Policy, (Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, 1990), 4.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 87

Trustees on March 4, 1991. The policy builds on repatria­

tion principles set forth in NMAI's establishing legisla­

tion, Public Law 101-185, Section 11 "Inventory, Identifi­

cation, and Return of Indian Human Remains and Indian

Funerary objects in the Possession of SI." The Museum's

policy will raise other repatriation issues, thus making

NMAI a model in this area.24

An important aspect of the fulfillment of NMAI's

mandate for repatriation is the requirement that

all Native American materials, including human remains, funerary objects, ceremonial and religious objects, and communally-owned property, together with all culturally- specific information, be treated as the sole property of the affected Native American culturally-affiliated group.25

This statement has sparked controversy in both the museum

world and archaeological and anthropological fields. A

spokesman for the American Archaeological Association noted

that the preceding statement sounded "as though the museum's

permanent collection doesn't belong to the public at large,

but to American Indians."26

Jonathon Haas of the Field Museum of Natural History

in Chicago has stated that museum officials must think of

24Madeleine Jacobs, "NMAI's New Repatriation Policy," Smithsonian Runner, (Washington, D.C.: Office of Public Affairs, Smithsonian Institution, May-June 1991), 1-6, No. 91-3.

“ ibid., 1-2.

26Eric Gibson, "Giving it Back to the Indians," The Washington Times. 15 May 1991, E2.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 88

themselves not as the owners but as "caretakers" of the

material culture of Native peoples.27 According to Leigh

Jenkins, Director of the Hopi Preservation Center, "the

outside, the public, particularly the art market, sees these

religious objects as objects of art...but to Hopi people

they are living, sacred beings...it is sacrilege to place

monetary value on them."28 The same could also be said of

the concept of "ownership" by anyone other than those whose

cultures produced the objects. Rick Hill, former Museum

Director at the Institute of American Indian Art, Santa Fe,

and newly appointed Assistant Director for Public Programs

for NMAI, has stated that, in many instances, Indian

communities and groups are content to allow museums to care

for ceremonial and religious items, as long as they can be

returned periodically to the tribe for ceremonial use — "a

right so often denied them in the past."29

The procedures for the repatriation process state that

all decisions regarding repatriation rest with the NMAI

Board of Trustees upon the advice of the Collections

Committee and describes the establishment of an inventory

policy to respond to repatriation requests.30 Through a

27Ibid.

28M.S. Mason, "Ceremonial Masks Return Home," The Christian Science Monitor. 12, June, 1991.

29Ibid.

30NMAI Policy Statement on Native American Human Remains and Cultural Materials, SI, 1991, 4.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 8 9

consultation process, NMAI will request input from Native

American peoples and disclose all relevant information

regarding the items identified in the inventory, as well as

provide access to the collections for viewing and

inspection.31 The inventory process of the collections is

currently underway, but the implementation of the repatria­

tion policy will take many years.

Recommendations for repatriation must go through

several stages starting with the staff, the Curatorial

Council, the NMAI Director, the Collections Committee of the

Board, the NMAI Board, and in some cases, to the SI Board of

Regents.

A policy of mutual and shared access and use of mater­

ials will be in effect when repatriation is not requested or

when an agreement has not been reached.32 The collections

management policy developed by the Collections Committee

will address the availability of materials for loan or

examination.33 Technical assistance will be available to

tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations for care,

preservation, use, and disposition of materials in cases of

repatriation.34

3IIbid., 5.

32Ibid.

33Ibid., 7.

^Ibid., 7.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER TEN

CONCLUSION

The National Museum of the American Indian will assist

in the continuance of the goals of the Museum of the

American Indian, Heye Foundation, including collecting and

preserving the cultural material relating to Native cultures

of the Western Hemisphere, and allowing the majority of the

collection to be available to scholars and students.

However, NMAI will attempt to go beyond those goals to allow

for larger access to the collections, by sharing objects

with tribes and cultures, by developing traveling exhibi­

tions, by making items available to interested individuals

and families, tribal elders and spiritual leaders, and for

traditional use such as ceremonies.

Public Law 101-185 established through NMAI a means to

reach out to the Native American communities and create a

museum based on the input and wishes of Native Americans,

while also soliciting expertise from the museum field. A

collaboration such as this has rarely worked before. As a

result, NMAI could become a model for the museum community

by creating new ways of developing and presenting programs,

as well as focusing on public programming for a diverse

constituency, as well as a diverse audience.

90

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 9 1

The development of programs for presentation at NMAI

will strive to give representation to many Native cultures,

as well as assist in breaking stereotypes and myths, by re­

educating the general public about Native cultures and their

histories. NMAI will look outside of its own organization

for ideas from Indian and museum experts from different

backgrounds.

One of the unique aspects of the Museum's development

process has been the establishment of consultation meetings.

The continuance of these regional consultations as an on­

going program long after the Museum is opened will be

necessary in order to assist in keeping both staff and

Native American communities informed of Museum activities

and operations, as well as of activities in the communities.

In addition to consultations, a "regional representative"

program could be considered to assist in channeling informa­

tion from the communities to NMAI and vice-versa. (A

similar program is currently being used at the National

Endowment for the Arts.)

Due to the sensitivity of the relationship with Native

groups, the Museum must keep government bureaucracy at bay,

as well as minimize "institutional" behavior, keeping public

programming and outreach at the forefront of its functions

and sharing resources through other bureaus and museums

within SI.

An important aspect of maintaining a collaborative

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 9 2

relationship with its constituencies, thus serving the

Indian community, will be by preferential, or priority,

hiring of Native Americans for all levels of positions

within the NMAI. Many opportunities for Native Americans

will be available through the Museum's training programs,

part of the Fourth Museum. As the current core staff takes

on more and more tasks, it will be important for NMAI to

continue to create positions. Former NMAI Deputy Director,

Dr. David Warren, has mentioned that the addition of staff

will also be necessary to keep accessibility to and from

Indian communities and the Museum on-going.

Since NMAI does not follow a model for museum

development, its planning and development will change and

evolve over the next decade. Since it has taken on a new

concept of the way museums set structures, plan programs,

exhibits and presentations, consult with constituencies, and

reach audiences, it must continually evaluate its activities

in order to develop and streamline its functions.

It is clearly understood how important it is to

sustain the networks and consultations with Native Americans

throughout and beyond the planning and construction phases.

An additional challenge will be the streamlining of

suggestions from the many cultures represented. Since many

different traditions and perspectives are involved, it may

be difficult to find agreement and consensus on many aspects

of the developing museum. A decision-making process must be

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 9 3

put into place to overcome controversy and problems in

finding agreements, due to the magnitude of diverse cultures

being represented.

The Museum's programs will be presented much differ­

ently than many of those at other U.S. museums. Native

American life is frequently presented as static and non­

changing. Through public programming and the development of

such exhibitions as "Points of View," NMAI may accurately

relate the histories of Indian cultures, and presenting

contemporary Native American arts and lifeways with the

assistance of Native American consultants/selectors.

Another progressive and unusual aspect of NMAI, which

will set a new direction for the museum community, will be

its multi-facility structure, providing spaces for

ceremonies, including private rituals; some that the public

will not be allowed to observe. Objects in the collections

will be handled and used in the way they were intended by

their cultures. NMAI will also set a standard for imple­

menting the new repatriation legislation, by creating its

own policy for the return of objects to their respective

cultures. The new museum will also need fill the void in

its collections of contemporary art (from 1940 to the

present).

The National Museum of the American Indian, Smith­

sonian Institution, is born out of the formative vision of

the peoples it represents. Due to its unique place in the

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. museum world, the challenges will be great in all areas:

organizational structure, policies, design, programming, and

future direction. The potential for its success will also

be great, and will benefit its constituency, its audience,

and the museum field. However, delays and changes in the

process of developing the new museum are to be expected in

establishing a museum of this scope.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. APPENDIX A

PUBLIC LAW

95

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 9 6

103 STAT. 1336 PUBLIC LAW 101-185—NOV. 28,1989 Public Law 101-185 101st Congress An Act

Nov. 28. 1989 To establish the National Museum of the American Indian within the Smithsonian (S. 978] Institution, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the National United States o f America in Congress assembled, Museum of the American SECTION I. SHOItT TITLE. Indian Act. Public buildings This Act may be cited as the “National Museum of the American and grounds. Indian Act”. Historic preservation. SEC 2. FINDINGS. District of Columbia. The Congress finds that— New York. (1) there is no national museum devoted exclusively to the 20 USC SOq note. history and art of cultures indigenous to the Americas; 20 USC 80q. (2) although the Smithsonian Institution sponsors extensive Native American programs, none of its 19 museums, galleries, and major research facilities is devoted exclusively to Native American history and art; (3) the Heye Museum in New York, New York, one of the largest Native American collections in the world, has more than 1,000,000 art objects and artifacts and a library of 40,000 vol­ umes relating to the archaeology, ethnology, and history of Native American peoples; (4) the Heye Museum is housed in facilities with a total area of 90,000 square feet, but requires a minimum of 400,000 square feet for exhibition, storage, and scholarly research; (5) the bringing together of the Heye Museum collection and the Native American collection of the Smithsonian Institution would— (A) create a national institution with unrivaled capability for exhibition and research; (S! give all Americans the opportunity to learn of the cultural legacy, historic grandeur, and contemporary cul­ ture of. Native Americans; (C) provide facilities for scholarly meetings and the performing arts; (D) make available curatorial and other learning opportunities for Indians; and (C) make possible traveling exhibitions to communities throughout the Nation; (6) by order of the Surgeon General of the Army, approxi­ mately 4,000 indian human remains from battlefields and burial sites were sent to the Army Medical Museum and were later t ransferred to the Smithsonian Institution; (7) through archaeological excavations, individual donations, and museum donations, the Smithsonian Institution has ac­ quired approximately 14,000 additional Indian human remains; (8) the human remains referred to in paragraphs (6) and (7) have long been a matter of concern for many Indian tribes.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 9 7

PUBLIC LAW 101-185—NOV. 28,1989 103 STAT. 1337

including Alaska Native Villages, and Native Hawaiian commu­ nities which are determined to provide an appropriate resting place for their ancestors; (9) identification of the origins of such human remains is essential to addressing that concern; and (10) an extraordinary site on the National Mall in the District of Columbia (U.S. Government Reservation No. 6) is reserved for the use of the Smithsonian Institution and is available for construction of the National Museum of the American Indian. S E C 3. NATIONAL MUSEUM O FTIIE AMERICAN INDIAN. 20 U SC80q-l. (a) Establishm ent. —There is established, within the Smithsonian Institution, a living memorial to Native Americans and their tradi­ tions which shall be known as the “National Museum of the Amer­ ican Indian". (b) P u r p o s e s .—The purposes of the National Museum are to— (1) advance the study of Native Americans, including the study of language, literature, history, art, anthropology, and life; (2) collect, preserve, and exhibit Native American objects of artistic, historical, literary, anthropological, ar.d scientific interest; . (3) provide for Native American research and study programs; and (4) provide for the means of carrying out paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) in the District of Columbia, the State of New York, and other appropriate locations. S R C 4. AUTHORITY OK THE BOARD OK KEOENTS TO ENTER INTO AN 20 USC 80q-2. AGREEMENT PROVIDING FOR TRANSFER OF HEYE FOUNDA­ TION ASSETS TO THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. The Board of Regents is authorized to enter into an agreement with the Heye Foundation, to provide for the transfer to the Smithsonian Institution of title to the Heye Foundation assets. The agreem ent shall— (1) require that the use of the assets be consistent with section 3(b); and (2) be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the law of the State of New York. The United States District Court for the Southern District of New Courts. U.S. York shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction over any cause of action arising under the agreement. SEC. S. HOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMER- 20 USC 80q-3. ICAN INDIAN. (a) In G eneral.— The National Museum shall be under a Board of Trustees with the duties, powers, and authority specified in.this section. (b) G eneral Duties a n d P o w e r s . —The Board of Trustees shall— (1) recommend annual operating budgets for the National Museum to the Board of Regents; (2) advise and assist the Board of Regents on all matters relating to the administration, operation, maintenance, and preservation of the National Museum; (3) adopt bylaws for the Board of Trustees; (4) designate a chairman and other officers from among the members of the Board of trustees; and

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 103 STAT. 1338 PUBLIC LAW 101-185—NOV. 28, 1989

Reports. (5) report annually to the Board of Regents on the acquisition, disposition, and display of Native American objects and arti­ facts and on other appropriate matters. Cifts nnd (c) Soi.e A uthority. —Subject to the general policies of the Board projwrty. cf Regents, the Board of Trustees shall have the sole authority to— (1) lend, exchange, sell, or otherwise dispose of any part of the collections of the National Museum, with the proceeds of such transactions to be used for additions to the collections of the National Museum or additions to the endowment of the National Museum, as the case may be; (2) purchase, accept, borrow, or otherwise acquire artifacts and other objects for addition to the collections of the Natural M useum; and (3) specify criteria for use of the collection? of the National Museum for appropriate purposes, including research, evalua­ tion, education, and method of display. (d) A uthority.—Subject to the general policies of the Board of Regents, the Board of Trustees shall have authority to— (1) provide for restoration, preservation, and maintenance of the collections of the National Museum; (2) solicit funds for the National Museum and determine the purposes to which such funds shall be applied; and (3) approve expenditures from the endowment of the National Museum for any purpose of the Museum. (e) Initial Appointments to the Board of Trustees. — (1) Membership. —The initial membership of the Board of1 Trustees shall consist of— (A) the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution; (B) an Assistant Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution appointed by the Board of Regents'; (C) 8 individuals appointed by the Board of Regents; and (D) 15 individuals, each of whom shall be a member of the board of trustees of the Heye Museum, appointed by the Board of Regents from a list of nominees recommended by the board of trustees of the Heye Museum. (2) Special rule.—At least 7 of the 23 members appointed under subparagraphs (C) and (D) of paragraph (1) shall be Indians. (3) T e r m s .—The trustee appointed under paragraph (1KB) shall serve at the pleasure of the Board of Regents. The terms of the trustees appointed under subparagraph (C) or (D) of para­ graph (1) shall be 3 years, beginning on the date of the transfer of the Heye Foundation assets to the Smithsonian Institution. (4) V a c a n c ie s . —Any vacancy shall be filled only for the remainder of the term involved. Any vacancy appointment under paragraph (1XD) shall not be subject to the source and recommendation requirements of that paragraph, but shall be subject to paragraph (2). (f) Subsequent Appointments to the Board o f T r u s t e e s— . . (1) Membership.— Upon the expiration of the terms under subsection (e), the Board of Trustees shall consist of— (A) the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution; (B) an Assistant Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution appointed by the Board of Regents; and (C( 23 individuals appointed by the Board of Regents from a list of nominees recommended by the Board of Trustees.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 99

PUBLIC LAW 101-185—NOV. 28,1989 103 STAT. 1339

(2) S p e c ia l r u l e.—A least 12 of the 23 members appointed under paragraph (1XC) shall be Indians. (3) T e r m s .—T he trustee appointed under paragraph (1XB) shall serve at the pleasure of the Board of Regents. Except as otherwise provided in the next sentence, the terms of members appointed under paragraph (1X0 shall be 3 years. Of the mem­ bers first appointed under paragraph (1X0— (A) 7 members, 4 of whom shall be Indians, shall be appointed for a term of one year, as designated at the time of appointm ent; and (B) 8 members, 4 of whom shall be Indians, shall be appointed for a term of 2 years, as designated at the time of appointment. (4) V a c a n c ie s .—Any vacancy shall be filled only* for the remainder of the term involved. (g) Q u o r u m .—A majority of the members of the Board of Trustees then in office shall constitute a quorum. (h) E x p e n s e s .—Members of the Board shall be entitled (to the same extent as provided in section 5703 of title 5, United States Code, with respect to employees serving intermittently in the Government service) to per diem, travel, and transportation ex­ penses for each day (including travel time) during which they are engaged in the performance of their duties. SE C S. DIRECTOR AND STAFF OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. 20 USC 80q-4. (a) In G e n e r a l .—The Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution shall appoint— (1) a Director who, subject to the policies of the Board of Trustees, shall manage the National Museum; and (2) other employees of the National Museum, to serve under the Director. (b) Of f e r o f E m p l o y m e n t t o H e y e F o u n d a t io n E m p l o y e e s .— Each employee of the Heye Museum on the day'before the date of the transfer of the Heye Foundation assets to the Smithsonian Institution shall be offered employment with the Smithsonian Institution— (1) under the usual terms of such employment; and (2) at a rate of pay not less than the rate applicable to the employee on the day before the date of the transfer. (c) A pplicability o f C e r t a in C iv il S e r v ic e La w s.—The Secretary may— (1) appoint the Director, 2 employees under subsection (aX2), an'd the employees under subsection (b) without regard to the provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing appoint­ ments in the competitive service; (2) fix the pay of the Director and such 2 employees without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter 'III of chapter 53 of such title, relating to classification and General Schedule pay rates; and (3) fix the pay of the employees under subsection (b) in accordance with the provisions of chapter 51 and subchaptcr III of chapter 53 of such title, relating to classification and General Schedule pay rates, subject to subsection (bX2). SEC. 7. MUSEUM FACILITIES. 20 USC 80q-.r.. (a) N a t io n a l M u s e u m M a l i. F a c il it y.—The Board o f Regents shall plan, design, and construct a facility on the area bounded by

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 0 0

103 STAT. 1340 PUBLIC LAW 101-185—NOV. 28, 1989

Third Street, Maryland Avenue, Independence Avenue, Fourth Street, and Jefferson Drive, Southwest, in the District of Columbia to house the portion of the National Museum to be located in the District of Columbia. The Board of Regents shall pay not more than % of the total cost of planning, designing, and constructing the facility from funds appropriated to the Board of Regents. The remainder of the costs shall be paid from non-Fcderal sources, (b) N a tio n a l M u se u m H ey e C e n te r F acility.— (1) L ease o f spa c e fr c m c s a . — (A) T e r m s.—Notwithstanding section 210(j) of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (40 U.S.C. 490(j)), the Administrator of General Services may lease, at a nominal charge, to the Smithsonian Institution space in the Old United States Custom House at One Bowiing Green, New York, New York, to house the portion of the National Museum to be located in the city of New York. The lease shall be subject to such terms as may be mutually agreed upon by the Administrator and the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. The term of the lease shall not be less than 99 years. (B) R eimbursement o f f e d e r a l b u ild in g s fu n d .—The - Administrator of General Services may reimburse the fund established by section 210(0 of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (40 U.S.C. 490(f)) for the difference between the amount charged to the Smithsonian Institution for leasing space under this paragraph and the commercial charge under section 2l0(j) of such Act which, but for this paragraph, would apply to the leasing of such Appropriation space. There are authorized to be appropriated to the authorization. Administrator such sums as may be necessary to carry out this subparagraph for fiscal years beginning after Septem­ ber 30,1990. (2) Construction .— (A) M u se u m fa c il ity.—The Board of Regents shall plan, design, and construct a significant facility for the National Museum in the space leased under paragraph (1). (B) A u d it o r iu m a n d lo a d in c dock facility.—The Administrator of General Services shall plan, design, and construct an auditorium and loading dock in the Old United States Custom House at One Bowling Green, New York, New York, for the shared use of all the occupants of the buitding, including the National Museum. (C) S q u a r e foo ta ce .—The facilities to be constructed under this paraerarjh shall h?ve. ir. the aggregate, a total square footage of approximately 82,500 square feet. (3) Re pa ir s a n d alterations .—After construction of the facil­ ity under paragraph (2XA), repairs and alterations of the facility shall be the responsibility of the Board of Regents. (4) R eimbursement o f c sa.—The Board of Regents shall re­ imburse the Administrator for the Smithsonian Institution's pro rata share of the cost of utilities, maintenance, cleaning, and other services incurred with respect to the space leased under paragraph (1) and the full cost of any repairs or alter­ ations made by the General Services Administration at the rnpiiist of the Smithsonian Institution with res|iect to the space. Ifi) t'llST sharing .—

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 0 1

PUBLIC LAW 101-185—NOV. 28.1989 103 STAT. 1341

(A) G e n e r a l r u l e s.—The Board of Regents shall pay Va of the costs of planning, designing, and constructing the facility under paragraph (2XA) from funds appropriated to the Board of Regents. The remainder of the costs shall be paid from non-Federal sources. (B) R esponsibilities o f n e w y o r k c it y a n d s t a t e.—Of the costs which are required to be paid from non-Federal sources under this paragraph, the city of New York, New York, and the State of New York have each agreed to pay $8,000,000 or an amount equal to Vi of the costs of planning, designing, and constructing the facility under paragraph (2XA), whichever is less. Such payments shall be made to the Board of Regents in accordance with a payment sched­ ule to be agreed upon by the city and State and the Board of Regents. (C) L im it a t io n o n obligations o f f e d e r a l f u n d s .—Fed­ eral funds may not be obligated for actual construction of a facility under- paragraph (2XA) in a fiscal year until non- Federal sources have paid to the Board of Regents the non- Federal share of such costs which the Board of Regents estimates will be incurred in such year. (6) D e s ig n a t io n .—The facility to be constructed under para­ graph (2XA) shall be known and designated as the “George Gustav Heye Center of the National Museum of the American Indian". (c) M u s e u m S u p p o r t C e n t e r F a c il it y.—The Beard of Regents shall plan, design, and construct a facility for the conservation and storage of the collections of the National Museum at the Museum Support Center of the Smithsonian Institution. (d) M in im u m S q u a r e F o o t a g e .—The facilities to be constructed under this section shall have, in the aggregate, a total square footage of at least 400,000 square feet. (e) A u t h o r it y To C o n t r a c t W i t h GSA.—The. Board of Regents and the Administrator of General Services may enter into such agreements as may be necessary for planning, designing, and con­ structing facilities under this section (other than subsection (bX2XB)). Under such agreem ents, the Board o f Regents shall transfer to the Administrator, from funds available for planning, designing, and constructing such facilities, such amounts as may be necessary for expenses of the General Services Administration with respect to planning, designing, and constructing such facilities. ( 0 L im it a t io n o n Ob u c a t i o n o f F e d e r a l F u n d s .— Notwithstand­ ing any»other provision of this Act, funds appropriated for carrying out this section may not be obligated for actual construction of any facility under this section until the 60th day after the date on which the Board of Regents transmits to Congress a written analysis of the totai estimated cost of the construction and a cost-sharing'.plan projecting the amount for Federal appropriations and for non- Federal contributions for the construction on a fiscal year basis. SEC. X. CUSTOM IIOtJSK OFFICE SPACE AND AUDITORIUM. 20 USC 80q-6. (a) Repairs and A l t e r a t io n s .—The Administrator of General Services shall make such repairs and alterations as may be nec­ essary in the |x>rtion of the Old United States Custom House at One Bowling Green, New York, New York, which is not leased to the Board of Regents under section 7(b) and which, as of the date of the enactment of this Act, lias not been altered.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 0 2

103 STAT. 1342 PUBLIC LAW 101-185—NOV. 28,1989

(b) A uthorization o f A ppropriation .—There is authorized to b e appropriated to the Administrator of General Services $25,000,000 from the fund established pursuant to section 210(0 of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 (40 U.S.C. 490(0) to carry ou t this section and section 7(bX2XB). 20 USC 80q-7. SEC. 9. AUUUHON TERRACE. (a) In G enera:- —The Board of Regents sh all— (1) assure that, on the date on which a qualified successor to the Heye Foundation at Audubon Terrace first takes possession of Audubon Terrace, an area of at least 2,000 square feet at that facility is accessible to the public and physically suitable for exhibition of museum objects and for related exhibition activities; (2) upon written agreement between the Board and any quali­ fied successor, lend objects from the collections of the Smithso­ nian Institution to the successor for exhibition at Audubon Terrace; and (3) upon written agreement between the Board and any quali­ fied successor, provide training, scholarship, technical, and otheF assistance (other than operating funds) with respect to the area referred to in paragraph (1) for the purposes described in th at paragraph. (b) D etermination o f C h a r g e s .—Any charge by the Board of Regents for activities pursuant to agreements under paragraph (2) or (3) of subsection (a) shall be determined according to the ability of the successor to pay. (c) D e f in it io n .—As used in this section, the terms "qualified successor to the Heye Foundation at Audubon Terrace", “qualified successor", and, "successor" mean an organization described in section 501(cX5) of the internal Revenue Code of 1986, and exempt from tax under section 5Gl(a) of such Code, that, as determined by the Board of Regents— (1) is a successor occupant to the Heye Foundation at Audubon Terrace, 3753 Broadway, New York, New York; (2) is qualified to operate the area referred to in paragraph (1) for the purposes described in that paragraph; and (3) is committed to making a good faith effort to respond to community cultural interests in such operation. 20 USC 80q-8. SEC 10. HOARD OF REGENTS FUNCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO CERTAIN AGREEMENTS AND PROGRAMS.

* (a) P r io r it y T o B e G iv e n t o I n d ia n Organizations W it h R e s p e c t t o C e r t a in A g r e e m e n t s .—In entering into agreements with museums and other educational and cultural organizations to— (1) lend Native American artifacts and objects from any collection of the Smithsonian Institution; (2) sponsor or coordinate traveling exhibitions of artifacts and objects; or (3) provide training or technical assistance; the Board of Regents shall give priority to agreements with Indian organizations, including Indian tribes, museums, cultural centers, educational institutions, libraries, and archives. Such agreements may provide that-loans or services to such organizations may be furnished by the Smithsonian Institution at minimal or no cost. (b) I n d ia n P r o g r a m s .—T he Board of Regents may establish—

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 0 3

PUBLIC LAW 101-185—NOV. 28, 1989 103 STAT. 1343

(1) programs to serve Indian tribes and communities; and (2) in cooperation with educational institutions, including Schools and tribally controlled community colleges (as defined in section 2 of col,e8e»- the Tribally Controlled Community College Assistance Act of 1978), programs to enhance the opportunities for Indians in the areas of museum studies, management, and research. (c) I n d ia n M u sk u m M a n a g e m e n t F e l l o w s h ip s .—The Board of Regents shall establish an Indian Museum Management Fellowship program to provide stipend support to Indians for training in museum development and management. (d) A uthorization o f A ppropriations .—There is authorized to be appropriated $2,000,000 for each fiscal year, beginning with fiscal year 1991, to carry out subsections (b) and (c). S E C II. INVENTORY. IDENTIFICATION. AND RETURN O F INDIAfy HUMAN 20 USC80q-9. REMAINS AND INDIAN FUNERARY OBJECTS IN THE POSSES­ SION OFTHRSMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.

(a) I n v e n t o r y a n d I dentification .—The Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, in consultation and cooperation with tradi­ tional Indian religious leaders and government officials of Indian tribes, shall— (1) inventory the’Indian human remains and Indian funerary objects in .the possession or control of the Smithsonian Institu­ tion; and (2) using the best available scientific and historical docu­ mentation. identify the origins of such remains and objects. (b) N o t ic e in C a s e o f I dentification o f T r ib a l Or ig in .—If the tribal origin of any Indian human remains or Indian funerary object is identified by a preponderance of the evidence, the Secretary shall so notify any affected Indian tribe at the earliest opportunity. (c) R e t u r n o f I n d ia n H u m a n R e m a in s a n d A s s o c ia t e d I n d ia n F u n e r a r y Ob je c t s .—If any Indian human remains are identified by a preponderance of the evidence as those of a particular individual or as those of an individual culturally affiliated' with a particular Indian tribe, the Secretary, upon the request of the descendants of such individual or of the Indian tribe shall expeditiously return such remains (together with any associated funerary objects) to the descendants or tribe, as the case may be. (d) R e t u r n o f I n d ia n F u n e r a r y Ob je c t s N o t A sso c ia t e d W it h I n d ia n H u m a n R e m a in s .—If any Indian funerary object not associ­ ated with Indian human remains is identified by a preponderance of the evidence as having been removed from a specific burial site of an individual culturally affiliated with a particular Indian tribe, the Secretary, upon the request of the Indian tribe, shall expeditiously return such object to the tribe. (e) Interpretation. —Nothing in this section shall be interpreted as— 111 limiting the authority of the Smithsonian Institution to return or repatriate Indian human remains or Indian funerary objects to Indian tribes or individuals; or (2) delaying actions on pending repatriation requests, denying or olherwi.se affecting access to the courts, or limiting any procedural or substantive rights which may otherwise be secured to Indian tribes or individuals. (f) A uthorization of Appropriations.—There is authorized to be appropriated $ 1.01)0.000 for fiscal year 1991 and such sum s as may Ik? necessary for succeeding fiscal years to carry out this section.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 104

103 STAT. 1344 PUBLIC LAW 101-185—NOV. 28, 1989

20 USC 80q-10. SEC. IZ. SPECIAI. COMMITTEE TO REVIEW THE INVENTORY. IDENTIFICA­ TION. ANI) RETURN OF INDIAN HUMAN IIKMAINS AND INDIAN funkuaicy oiiJKurs. (a) E stablishment ; D u t ie s.—Not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution shall appoint a special committee to monitor and review the inventory, identification, and return of Indian human remains and Indian funerary objects under section 11. In carrying out its duties, the com m ittee sh all— (1) with rcsj>ect to the inventory and identification, ensure fair and objective consideration and assessment of all relevant evidence: (2) u|>on the request of any affected party or otherwise, review any finding relating to the origin or the return of such remains or objects: (3) facilitate the resolution of any dispute that may arise between Indian tribes with respect to the return of such remains or objects: and (4J perform such other related functions as the Secretary may assign. (bJ M e m b e r s h ip .—T he comm ittee shall consist of five members, of w h o m — (1} three members shall be appointed from among nomina­ tions submitted by Indian tribes and organizations: and ( (2) the Secretary shall designate one member as chairman. The Secretary may not appoint to the committee any individual who is an officer or employee of the Government (including the Smithso­ nian Institution) or any individual who is otherwise affiliated with f ^rv\a 1c At vtiitbitdV IU O M tiiOVIIpUblV/iU (c! A c c e s s .—The Secretary shall ensure that the members of the committee have full and free access to the Indian human remains and Indian funerary objects subject to section 11 and to any related evidence, including scientific and historical documents. (d) P ay a n d E x p e n s e s or M e m b e r s .—Members of the committee s h a l l — (1) be paid the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay payable for grade GS-18 of the General schedule under section 5332 of title 5, United States Code; and (2) be entitled (to the same extent as provided in section 5703 of such title, with respect to employees serving intermittently in the Government service) to per diem, travel, and transportation expenses; for each day (including travel time) during which they arc engaged in the performance of their duties. Regulations. (c) Rui.es AND Adm inistrative Sui’PORT.—The Secretary shall prescribe regulations and provide administrative sup|H>rt for the c o m m itte e . (fi Report and Term ination. —At the conclusion of the work of the committee, the Secretary shall be so certify by report to the Congress. The committee shall cease to exist 120 days after (lie submission of the report. (g) Nonappi.icaiiii.ity ok tiie Federal Advisory Committee Am'.—The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply lo I lie committee.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. PUBLIC LAW 101-185—NOV. 28,1989 103 STAT. 1345

(h) Authorization ofA ppropriations.— There is authorized to be appropriated $250,000 for fiscal year 1991 and such sums as may be necessary for succeeding fiscal years to carry out this section. SEC. 13. INVENTORY. IDENTIFICATION. AND RETURN OF NATIVE IIAWAI- 20 USC 80q-ll. IAN HUMAN REMANS AND NATIVE HAWAIIAN FUNERARY OIJ- JF.CTS INTIIE POSSESSION OFTHESMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.

(a) I n G e n e r a l .—The Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution sh a ll— (1) in conjunction with the inventory and identification under section 11, inventory and identify the Native Hawaiian human remains and Native Hawaiian funerary objects in the posses­ sion of the Smithsonian Institution; (2) enter into an agreement with appropriate Native flawai- Contracts, ian organizations with expertise in Native Hawaiian affairs (which may include the Office of Hawaiian Affairs and the Malama I Na Kupuna O Hawai’i Nei) to provide for the return of such human remains nd funerary objects; and (3) to the greatest extent practicable, apply, with respect to such human remains and funerary objects, the principles and procedures set forth in sections 11 and 12 with respect to the Indian human remains and Indian funerary objects in the possession of the Smithsonian Institution. (b) D efinitions. —As used in this section— (1) the term "Malama I Na Kupuna O Hawai’i Nei” means the nonprofit, Native Hawaiian organization, incorporated under the laws of the State of Hawaii by that name on April 17, 19S9, the purpose of which is to provide guidance and expertise in decisions dealing with Native Hawaiian cultural issues, particularly burial issues; and (2) the term "Office of Hawaiian Affairs" means the Office of Hawaiian Affairs established by the Constitution of the State of Hawaii. S E C 14. CRANTS BY THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR TO ASSIST 20 USC 80q-12. INDIAN TRIBES WITH RESPECT TO AGREEMENTS FOR THE RETURN OK INDIAN HUMAN REMAINS AND INDIAN FUNERARY OBJECTS. (a) I n G e n e r a l .—The Secretary of the Interior may make grants to Indian tribes to assist such tribes in reaching and carrying out agreements with— (1) the Board of Regents for the return of Indian human renrains and Indian funerary objects under section 11; and (2) other Federal and non-Federal entities for additional re­ turns of Indian human remains and Indian funerary objects. (b) A uthorization o f A ppropriations .—There is authorized to be appropriated $1,000,000 for fiscal year 1SS1 and such surps as may be necessary for succeeding fiscal years for grants under sub­ section (a). SEC. 15. GRANTS BY THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR TO ASSIST 20USC80q-13. INDIAN ORGANIZATIONS WITH RESPECT TO RENOVATION AND REPAIR OF MUSEUM FACILITIES AND EXHIBIT FACILITIES. (:i) G r a n t s . —The Secretary of the Interior may make grants to Indian organizations, including Indian tribes, museums, cultural centers, educational institutions, libraries, and archives, for renova­ tion anti repair of museum facilities and exhibit facilities to enable

permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 0 6

103 STAT. 1346 PUBLIC LAW 101-185—NOV. 28, 1989

such organizations to exhibit objects and artifacts on loan from the collections of the Smithsonian Institution or from other sources. Such grants may be made only from the Tribal Museum Endowment Fund. (b) Indian Organization Contribution. —In making grants under subsection (a), the Secretary may require the organization receiving the grant to contribute, in cash or in kind, not more than" 50 percent of the cost of the renovation or repair involved. Such contribution may be derived from any source other than the Tribal Museum Endowment Fund. (c) T ribal Museum Endowment Fund.— (1) Establishm ent. —There is established in the Treasury a fund, to be known as the "Tribal Museum Endowment Fund” (hereinafter in this subsection referred to as the "Fund”) for the purpose of making grants under subsection (a). The Fund shall consist of (A) amounts deposited and credited under paragraph (2), (B) obligations obtained under paragraph (3), and (C) amounts appropriated pursuant to authorization under para­ graph (5). G ifts and (2) Deposits and credits. —The Secretary of the Interior is property. authorized to accept contributions to the Fund from non- Federal sources and shall deposit such contributions in the Fund. The Secretary of the Treasury shall credit to the Fund the interest on, and the proceeds from sale and redemption of, obligations held in the Fund. (3) Investm ents. —The Secretary of the Treasury may invest any portion of the Fund in interest-bearing obligations of the United States. Such obligations may be acquired on original issue or in the open market and may be held to maturity or sold in the open market. In making investments for the Fund, the Secretary of the Treasury shaii consult the Secretary of the Interior with respect to maturities, purchases, and sales, taking into consideration the balance necessary to meet current grant requirements. (4) Expenditures and capital preservation.—Subject to appropriation, amounts derived from interest shall be available for expenditure from the Fund. The capital of the Fund shall not be available for expenditure. (5) A uthorization of appropriations. —There is authorized to be appropriated to the Fund $2,000,000 for each fiscal year beginning with fiscal year 1992. (d) A nnual Report.—Not later than January 31 of each year, the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall submit to the Congress a leport of activities under this section, including a statement of— (1) the financial condition of the Fund as of the end of the preceding fiscal year, with an analysis of the Fund transactions during that fiscal year; and (2) the projected financial condition of the Fund, with an analysis of expected Fund transactions for the six fiscal years after that fiscal year. 20 USC 80q-M. SKC. 1C. IIKKINITIONS. As used in this Act— (1) the term “Board of Regents” means the Board of Regents of 1 lie Smithsonian Institution;

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 0 7

PUBLIC LAW 101-185—NOV. 28, 1989 103 STAT. 1347

(2) the term “Board of Trustees” means the Board of Trustees of the National Museum of the American Indian; (3) the term “burial site” means a natural or prepared phys­ ical location, whether below, on, or above the surface of the earth, into which, as a part of a death rite or ceremony of a culture, individual human remains are deposited; (4) the term “funerary object" means an object that, as part of a death rite or ceremony of a culture, is intentionally placed with individual human remains, either at the time of burial or later; (5) the term “Heye Foundation assets” means the collections, endowment, and all other property of the Heye Foundation (other than the interest of the Heye Foundation in Audubon Terrace) described in the Memorandum of Understanding between the Smithsonian Institution and the Heye Foundation, dated May 8. 1989, and the schedules attached to such memo­ randum; (6) the term “Heye Museum” means the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation; (7) the term “Indian" means a member of an Indian tribe; (8) the term "Indian tribe” has the meaning given that term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act; (9) the term "National Museum" means the National Museum of the American Indian established by section 3; (10) the term “Native American” means an individual of a tribe, people, or culture that is indigenous to the Americas and such term includes a Native Hawaiian; and (11) the term “Native Hawaiian” means a member or descendant of the aboriginal people who, before 1778, occupied and exercised sovereignty in the area that now comprises the S tate o f H awaii. SEC. 17. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 20 USC 80q-15.

(a) Fundinc .—There is authorized to be appropriated to the Board of Regents to carry out this Act (other than as provided in sections 7(bXlXB). 8, 10. 11. 12. 14. and 15(cX5))— (1) $10,000,000 for fiscal year 1990; and (2) such sums as may be necessary for each succeeding fiscal year. (b) P e r io d o k A vailability .—Funds appropriated under subsec­ tion (alshall remain available without fiscal year limitation for any period prior to the availability of the facilities to be constructed under section 7 for administrative and planning expenses and for ll.L cr.rc and custody of the collections of the Notional Museum. Approved N ovem ber 28, 1989.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—S. 078 (H.R. 2GC8): HOUSE RETORTS: No. 101-340, Pt. 1 (Comm, on Public Work and Transportation) and Pt. 2 (Comm, on House Administration). SENA Th RETORTS: No. 101-14.1 (Select Comm, on Indian Affairs and Comm, on Rules and Administration). CONGRESSIONAL RECORD. Vol. 135 (1080): Oct. 3. considered and p:isscd Senate. Nov. !.!. U.K. 2(X»K considered and passed House; proceedings vacated and S. 078, amended. p:issed in lieu. Nov. 14. Senate concurred in House amendments WEEKLY COMPILATION OK PRESIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS. Vol. 25 (10.30): Nov. 28. Presidential statement. o

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. A P P E N D IX B

MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

BYLAWS OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

WASHINGTON STAFF LIST

NATIONAL CAMPAIGN OFFICE STAFF LIST

NEW YORK CITY STAFF LIST

NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT LIST

HONORARY COMMITTEE

108

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 0 9

The initial members of the board include eight

appointees of Si's Board of Regents:

SI Secretary, Robert McCormick Adams Assistant Secretary, Tom Freudenheim Dr. Frederick Hoxie, Chicago Dr. Jennie Joe, (Navajo) Tucson, Arizona Dr. Alfonzo Ortiz, (San Juan Pueblo) Albuquerque, New Mexico Janine Pease Windy-Boy, (Crow) Crow Agency, Montana Dr. Helen Sheirbeck, (Lumbee) Pembroke, North Carolina Dr. David Hurst Thomas, New York City Dr. Arturo Warman, Mexico City Rosita Worl, (Tlingit) Juneau, Alaska

Fifteen appointees, each a member of the Heye

Foundation Board of Trustees are:

Dr. Ernest Leroy Boyer, Princeton, New Jersey Dr. Roger Buffalohead, (Ponca) Minneapolis, Minnesota Barber B. Conable, Jr., Washington, D.C. Dr. Vine Deloria, (Sioux) Tucson, Arizona Suzan Shown Harjo, (Cheyenne/Creek) Washington, D.C. Dr. Norbert Hill, (Oneida) Boulder, Colorado Senator Daniel K. Inouye of Hawai'i Alvin M. Josephy, Jr., Greenwich, Connecticut Julie Johnson Kidd, New York City Dr. Clara Sue Kiaweil, (Creek/Choctaw) Berkeley, California Dr. Navarre Scott Momaday, (Kiowa) Santa Fe, New Mexico Curt Muser, New York City Waldemar Nielsen, New York City David Rockefeller, New York City Thomas R. White, (Pima/Maricopa) Sacaton, Arizona1

lnBoard Appointed for New Museum," Smithsonian Runner, (Washington, D.C.: Office of Public Affairs, Smithsonian Institution, 1990), No. 90-2, 1 and 4.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 1 0

BYLAWS OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN

PREAMBLE The National Museum of the American Indian, as established by Congress in 1989, shall be devoted exclusively to the indigenous peoples of the Americas. All of its activities shall support, protect and enhance the cultural legacy of Native Americans, past, present and future. The basic missions of.the Museum are:

To promote awareness of cultures, traditions and contemporary expressions of Native American peoples. To ensure that Indian spiritual beliefs and traditional religious rights are respected and protected. To advance knowledge and scholarship in Indian arts, cultures, histories and languages. To facilitate and broaden the exchange of knowledge and information among American Indians and between Native communities and the general public. ' To promote the involvement and participation of indigenous peop.les in all activities through dialogue and collaboration, both nationally and internationally.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. I l l

To provide opportunities for American Indian people in the field of museum administration and research through programs of training and Indian preference in employment. To promote the cooperative development of and affiliations with tribal museums and other cultural institutions. To enlist the cooperation of all appropriate tribal, federal and international entities in carrying out the mission of the Museum. To conserve and protect the Museum's collection and develop and promote policies and standards for culturally sensitive conservation, exhibition, interpretation and treatment of the Native American materials.

This Museum embodies the unique relationship between the United States and American Indian peoples which has evolved through a long history of treaties and an ongoing fiduciary responsibility.

This Museum exists to serve the needs of Indian peoples and for the edification of the world community of peoples with respect to the Native American continuum.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 1 2

ARTICLE I.

Establishment By an Act of Congress of the United States, entitled "An Act

to establish the National Museum of the American Indian within

the Smithsonian Institution, and for other purposes," approved

November 28, 1989, it is established that "The National Museum

shall be under a Board of Trustees."

ARTICLE II.

Functions, Powers and Duties

Section 1'. The general duties and powers of the Board of

Trustees shall be as set forth in Section S(b) of the Act. The

Board of Trustees shall (1) recommend annual operating'budgets *

for the National Museum to the. Board of Regents; (2) advise and

assist the Board of Regents on all matters relating to the

administration, operation, maintenance, and preservation of the

National Museum; (3) adopt bylaws for the Board of Trustees; (4)

designate a chairman and other officers from among the members of

the Board of Trustees; and (5) report annually to the Board of

Regents on the acquisition, disposition and display of Native

American objects and 'artifacts and on other appropriate matters.

Section 2. Subject to the general policies of the Board of

Regents, and the Statement of Policy of the Museum of the

American Indian, the Boapd of Trustees shall have the sole

authority, as provided by Section 5(c) of the Act, to (1) lend,

exchange, sell or otherwise dispose of any part of the

collections of the Museum, with the proceeds of such transactions

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 1 3

to be used for additions to the collections of the Museum or

additions to the endowment of the Museum, as the case may be; (2)

purchase, accept, borrow or otherwise acquire artifacts and other

objects for addition to the collections of the Museum; (3)

specify criteria for use of the collections of the Museum for

appropriate purposes, including research, evaluation, education

and method of display. The Board may, by resolution, delegate

these powers, in whole or in part, to the Director of the

Museum.

Section 3. Subj ect to the general policies of the Board of

Regents, and the Statement of Policy of the National Museum of

the American Indian, the Board of Trustees shall have authority,

subject to Section 5(d) of the Act, to (1) provide for

restoration, preservation and maintenance of the collections of

the Museum; (2) solicit funds for the Museum and determine the

purposes to which such funds shall be applied; and (3) approve

expenditures from the endowment of the Museum for any purpose of the Museum.

Section 4. The Board of Trustees shall consult with and

advise the Director of the Museum on annual operating budgets to

be recommended to the'Board of Regents and to Congress, and^

otherwise consult with, advise .and support the Director in the

operation of the Museum. The Director shall be responsible for

the management of the Museum subject to the policies of the

Board, in accordance with Section 6(a)(1) of the Act. The Board

may, by resolution of a majority of the Trustees, delegate its

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 1 4

powers under Sections 2 and 3 of this Article III, in whole or in

part, to the Director of the Museum, but any such delegation

shall be revocable by a majority of the Board of Trustees.

ARTICLE III. Membership on the Initial Board of Trustees

■ Section l. The initial membership of the Board of Trustees

shall consist of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, an

Assistant Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution appointed by

the Board of Regents, eight (8) individuals appointed by the

Board of Regents, and fifteen (15) individuals, each of whom

shall be a member of the board of trustees of the Heye

Foundation, appointed by the Board of Regents from a list of nominees recommended by the board of trustees of the Heye Foundation. At least seven (7) of the twenty-three (23) members

appointed under this Section 1 shall be Indian people. Indian

people, for purposes of the these Bylaws and in accordance with

the Act, shall mean citizen of an Indian tribe.

Section 2. The terms of the initial Board of Trustees shall

be three (3) years, beginning on the date of the transfer of the

Heye Foundation assets to the Smithsonian Institution.

Section 3. The 'Assistant Secretary of the Smithsonian

Institution appointed to the initial Board by the Board of

Regents shall serve at the pleasure of the Board of Regents. Any

member of the initial Board, other than the Secretary of the

Smithsonian Institution and such Assistant Secretary, may be

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 1 5

recommended for removal from the Board by vote of a majority of the Trustees, but only the Board of Regents has the power to remove any Trustee of the Board. Section 4. When vacancies occur on the initial Board, the Board of Trustees shall submit nominations to the Board of Regents for consideration. The Board of Regents shall appoint Trustees to fill such vacancies, but only for the remainder of the term involved. An appointment to fill a position vacated by one of the fifteen (IS) Heye Foundation trustees referenced above In. Section 1 shall be subject to the requirement that a total of at least seven (7) of the Trustees shall be Indian people. All members of the initial Board shall serve until their respective successors are duly appointed. t

ARTICLE IV. Membership on the Board of Trustees Section 1. Upon expiration of the terms of the initial Board of Trustees set forth in Article IV, the Board of Trustees shall-consist of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, an Assistant Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution appointed by the Board of Regents and twenty-three '(23) individuals appointed by the Board of Regents from a list of nominees recommended by the Board of Trustees. At least twelve (12) of the twenty-three (23) Trustees appointed under this Section shall be Indian people. /•

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 1 6

Section 2. The terms of the Trustees appointed under

Section 1 shall be three (3) years, except that of the twenty-

three (23) Trustees, seven Trustees, four (4) of whom shall be

Indian people, shall be appointed for a term of one (1) year, as

designated at the time of appointment;' and eight (8) Trustees,

four of whom shall be Indian people, shall be appointed for terms

of two (2) years, as designated at the time of appointment.

Section 3. The Assistant secretary of the Smithsonian

Institution appointed to the Board by the Board of Regents shall

serve at the pleasure of the Board of Regents. Any Trustee may

be recommended for removal from the Board by vote of a majority

of the Trustees of the Board, but only the Board of Regents has the power to remove any Trustee from the Board. t

Section 4. When vacancies occur among Trustees, the Board

of Trustees shall submit nominations to the Board of Regents for

consideration. The Board of Regents shall appoint Trustees to

fill such vacancies. If a vacancy occurs before the expiration of a term, any appointment to fill that vacancy shall be only for

the remainder of the term involved. All Trustees shall serve

until their respective successors are duly appointed. After any

of the twenty-three (23) Trustees serves any two consecutive full

terms, that Trustee must be off the Board for one year before

being eligible for reappointment to the Board.

Section 5. No Trustee shall receive any compensation for

that Trustee's services /as a Trustee or as a Member of any

Committee, but Trustees of the Board shall be entitled to per

diem, travel and transportation expenses for each day (including

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 1 7

travel time) during which they are engaged in the performance of

their duties. Non-Trustee Members of Committees of the Board may - be entitled to reimbursement of such expenses, as Board policy

and available resources may provide. Section 6. A Trustee shall disclose in writing to the Board

any transaction or dealing with the Museum or with the

Smithsonian Institution in which such Trustee has a direct

interest or involvement, and such Trustee shall not vote in any

matters in which that Trustee has a conflict of interest.

ARTICLE V .

Officers of the Board

Section 1. The Officers of the Board shall be a Chairman, a

vice Chairman and a Secretary who shall be elected annually by the Trustees from the membership of the Board.

Section 2. The Chairman of the Board shall preside at all

meetings and shall have the usual powers of a presiding officer.

Section 3. The Chairman of the Board shall serve as an ex­

officio Member of all Committees of the Board, and shall have the

right to vote.

Section 4. The vice Chairman of the Board, in the absence

or disability of the Chairman, shall perform the Chairman's

duties. In the absence of the Chairman and vice Chairman, the

Chairman of the Board shall designate an Acting Chairman.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 1 8

Section 5. The Secretary of the Board shall perform the

duties of recording secretary by maintaining the official minutes, records and proceedings of the Board. The Secretary

also shall be responsible for authorizing and disseminating

information among the Trustees.

Section 6. Officers of the Board shall be elected at the

first meeting of the calendar year and their terms shall run for

one year or until the next election.

ARTICLE VI.

Meetings of the Board

Section l. The Board shall hold no fewer than two regular Meetings each year. Notice of regular Meetings of the Board shall be given in writing to each Trustee at least twenty (20)

days prior to such Meetings, although the Board will endeavor to

establish a meeting schedule one year in advance. The Board also

may hold Special Meetings as shall be called in accordance with the following procedure:

a. By the Chairman or vice Chairman by notice served

personally upon or mailed to the usual address of each

Trustee not less than twenty (20) days prior to ttie Meeting.

b. By the Chairman, in the same manner, upon the written

request of three or more Trustees of the Board.

c. By the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, in the same manner.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 1 9

Section 2. A majority of the Trustees of the Board then in

office shall constitute a quorum, and the act of a majority of

the Trustees present at any Meeting at which there is a quorum

shall be the act of the Board. Meetings shall be conducted in

accordance with Robert's Rules of Order. Section 3. Any action required or permitted to be taken at

any Meeting of the Board may be taken without a Meeting if prior

to such action notice of the proposed action is mailed,

telegraphed, telephoned or telefaxed to all Trustees and a written consent thereto is signed by two-thirds of the Trustees

and such written consent is filed with the Minutes of the

proceedings of the Board.

Section 4. Following each Board Meeting, proposed Minutes,

shall be circulated to Trustees, with the request that corrections or approval of the Minutes, be submitted in time for

submission at the next Meeting of the Board. Copies of Minutes

as approved will be presented to the Board at the next Meeting.

ARTICLE VII.

Committees

Section l. The" Standing Committees of the Board are:

Administration and Budget Committee

Collections Committee

Development Committee

Executive Committee

Information and Communications Committee Nominations Committee.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 2 0

Program Planning Committee Research Committee

Section 2. Committee Appointments: a. The Executive Committee shall consist of the chairman of the Board, the vice Chairman of the Board, the Secretary of the Board, the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, and the Chairmen of all of the other Standing Committees. The Chairman of the Board shall serve as the Chairman of the Executive Committee. Six (6) Members of the Executive Committee shall constitute a quorum for meetings. b. The Chairmen and Members of the Committees shall be elected annually at the first meeting of the calendar year and their terms shall run for one year or until the next election. The Board shall elect the Committee Chairmen upon presentation of nominees by the Chairman of the Executive Committee and the Director of the

- . Museum. c. Except for the Executive and Nominations Committees, which shall be comprised only of Trustees of the Board, membership on all other Committees need not be limited to Trustees, but the Chairmen of these Committees shall be Trustees of tie Board. If a Committee Member is unable to attend a Meeting of that Committee, that Member may name a designee to attend as an observer

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 2 1

only. Committee Members who are not Trustees of the Board may participate in and vote only with respect to Committee business, d. The Director of the Museum ot his designee shall attend Meetings of the Committees and shall otherwise assist the Committees in the conduct of their affairs. Section 3. Committee Responsibilities a. Executive Committee- 1. The Chairman of the Board shall be Chairman of the Executive Committee. 2. With respect to any matter as to which the Members of the Committee find that action should not be deferred, the Executive Committee may exercise • during the intervals between meetings of the Board of Trustees all of the powers of the Board of Trustees, except that it shall have no power to nominate candidates to fill vacancies on the Board of Trustees or to amend or repeal the Bylaws. 3. Meetings of the Executive Committee shall be called by the Chairman and held at such times'and places as may be fixed by the Chairman. The Chairman shall call a Meeting upon request of two or more Members of the Executive Committee. Notice of such Meetings shall be communicated by mail, telegram, telephone or telefax /to all Trustees of the Board at least three days in advance of the Meeting. A waiver of notice of meeting, signed or confirmed by the person

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 2 2

entitled thereto, whether before or after the time

stated therein, shall be deemed equivalent, thereto.

The Committee shall keep regular Minutes of its

proceedings which shall be sent by the Director to

all Trustees of the Board after the Meeting is

adjourned.

4. The Executive Committee shall have the power to

adopt rules for the conduct of its business with

respect .to all matters not provided for in the

Bylaws or by rules adopted by the Board of Trustees.

Such rules shall be subject to approval by a majority of the Board of Trustees.

b. Administration and Budget Committee. •

The Administration and Budget Committee shall oversee

and consider and recommend policy to the Board regarding the Museum’s finances and facilities. It shall consult

with and advise the Director with respect to annual

operating budgets to be recommended to the Board of

. . Regents and to Congress. Its duties also shall include

such audit functions as the Trustees may determine.

c. Collections Committee. ' ^

In accordance with the spiritual and religious rights of

indigenous peoples, and the Institution's policies and

procedures on collections management and such other

policies as from time to time may be adopted by the

Board, the Collections Committee shall consider and

recommend to the Board policy regarding conservation

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. and the acquisition of items for the collections, and

the deaccession and disposition of items by sale, gift,

exchange or otherwise and make recommendations thereon

to the Board.

d. Development Committee.

The Development Committee shall consider and recommend

to the Board policy with respect to fundraising and

public relations activities and provide assistance to

the Director in carrying out these functions.

e. Information and Communications Committee.

The information and Communications Committee shall

consider and recommend policy to the Board regarding all

dimensions of Museum programming to assure that ,

efficient, effective and culturally sensitive uses of

technology prevail. The Committee shall review Museum

programs and plans, to the greatest extent feasible, to

encourage the interdisciplinary organization of programs and publications through the use of traditional and

- - technical means. The Committee also shall consult with

and advise the Director on matters related to

development of broad bandwidth communication with^Indian

peoples and cultural institutions through expanded

operation of existing .networks and other communications methods.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 2 4

Nominations Committee. 1. The Nominations Committee shall recommend to the Chairman of the Executive Committee and the Director of the Museum persons to serve as Chairmen of each Standing Committee other than the Executive Committee and the Nominations committee. The Committee shall nominate persons to fill vacancies on the Board, to serve as Officers of the Board and to serve as Members of each Standing Committee other than the Executive Committee and the Nominations Committee. 2. The Nominations Committee shall consist of not less than five (S) Trustees, including the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. Four (4) of the Members of the Nominations Committee, other than the Secretary of the Smithsonian, shall be elected by the Board. The Board Secretary, on behalf of the Trustees, shall solicit nominations and volunteers for these four (4) Members to be submitted in writing to the Secretary of the Board at least one month prior to the meeting at which they will%be elected. The Secretary of the Board will then inform the Trustees by mail of the names which have come forward- and four (4) out of that group must then be elected by a plurality vote through written ballot prior to the meeting at which they would be elected. Following tabulation of the mail ballots

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 2 5

by the Secretary of the Board, and in the event

there is no plurality vote by the mail ballot, an

election will occur, by as many ballots as

necessary, at the next Board Meeting.

3. In formulating its nominees or slate of nominees for

Trustees, Officers and Committee memberships, other

than the Nominations Committee and the Executive

Committee, the .Nominations Committee will solicit

indications of interest and nominations, in writing,

from the full Board. It will present its nominees

to the full Board, but will also entertain

nominations from the floor. In the event that

additional nominations are made from the floor, ,

voting will be by secret ballot.

g. Program Planning Committee.

The Program Planning Committee shall consider and

recommend to the Board policy regarding the public

educational and scholarly programs of the Museum, as set

- ■ forth in the enabling Act, concerning both programs for

the general public and those specifically designated as

Indian programs and concerning the facilities of the

Museum. These will include, but are not limited to. the

display of collections, educational outreach programs,

cooperative programs with Indian peoples and cultural

institutions, the Museum Library and Archives and training programs.

h. Research Committee.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 2 6

The Research committee shall consider and recommend policy to the Board regarding research standards and practices which Incorporate the basic policies and missions of the Museum. These policies will cover, but are not limited to, research on the collections, including the Museum Library and Archives, and cooperative programs with Indian peoples and cultural

institutions.

ARTICLE VIII. Amendments Section 1. Proposals for the amendment of these Bylaws shall be made by the Chairman of the Board upon the recommendation of an Ad Hoc Committee, whose Members the Chairman may appoint, and shall be filed with the Secretary of the Board. Section 2. These Bylaws may then be amended at any Meeting of the Board by an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the Trustees of the Board present, provided notice of intention to amend shall have been contained in the notice of the Meeting and such notice shall have been mailed to each Trustee of the Bpard not later than twenty (20) days prior to such meeting.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 2 7

ARTICLE IX. Indemnification Members of the Board of Trustees may be indemnified for any and all liabilities and reasonable expenses incurred in connection with any claim, action, suit, or proceeding, arising from present or past service for the National Museum of the American Indian, in accordance with the Revised Indemnification Resolution of the Board of Regents.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 2 8

The staff of NMAI in Washington, D.C. consists of the

following positions (as of January 1992):

Director Secretary to the Director Special Assistant to the Director Congressional and Legislative Affairs Specialist Deputy Director Budget Analyst Fiscal Technician Personnel Specialist Receptionists (2) Computer Specialist Assistant Director for Public Programs Exhibitions Project Manager (pending) Publications Manager Outreach Coordinator (pending) Exhibitions Coordinator Administrative Assistants (2) Information/Technology Manager (pending) Native American Staff Development and Training (pending) Field Hearings Assistant2

2Voikert, James, NMAI Acting Assistant Director for Public Programs, interview by author, 1991.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 2 9

The National Campaign Office is made up of the following positions:

National Campaign Director Assistant Director for Public Relations and Special Events Assistant Director for Foundation and Corporate Relations Special Assistant for Community Relations Program Manager Secretary to the Director Clerk Typist Secretary to the Assistant Director for Public Relations and Special Events Campaign Associate Information Resources Specialist Special Assistant for Public Relations in New York City Director of Membership Services Staff Membership Services Assistant

The New York City Staff is divided as follows:

Administration Assistant Director Secretary to the Assistant Director Assistant Controller Bookkeeper (2) Receptionist

Collections Associate Curator (North American Ethnology) (4) Assistant Curator (Middle and South American Ethnology)

Registration and Collection Support Registrar Assistant Registrar Registrar's Assistant Conservator

Public Affairs Public Affairs Assistant Membership Secretary

Exhibits Curator of Exhibits Exhibits and Graphics Designer Exhibits Preparator

Education Head of the Education Department Manager, Indian Information Center/Museum Educator I Assistant Educator Educational Assistant Appointment Secretary

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Film and Video Center Associate Curator Assistant Curator Technical Assistant

Photography Assistant Curator Photographer (2) Curatorial Assistant

Security and Maintenance; 10 - 15 staff

Huntington Free Library: 5 - 7 staff

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 3 1

From the NMAI Organizational Chart for New York City,

departments are arranged under the Assistant Director as

follows:

Public Programming; Exhibitions and Graphics Film and Video Education Resource Center Museum Shop

Administration: Public Relations Administration and Finance Facilities

Collections and Research: (to move to new Suitland, Maryland, facility in 1997) Curatorial Collections Management Photography Registration3

Organization Chart for New York Staff, National Museum of the American Indian, (New York, N.Y.: Smithsonian Institution).

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 3 2

The Honorary Committee consists of the following:

The Honorable Ben Nighthorse Campbell - Chair President George Bush The Right Reverend Robert Marshall Anderson, D.D. Mr and Mrs. Robert 0. Anderson Willard L. Boyd Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Ralph T. Coe Kevin Costner President Gerald R. Ford and Mrs. Ford Honorable Barry Goldwater R.C. Goreman LaDonna Harris The Honorable James A. Joseph Doris Leader Charge Dr. George F. MacDonald Wilma Mankiller Jose' Matos Mar Paul Newman President Richard Nixon and Mrs. Nixon Arnold Palmer Octavio Paz Janine Pease-Windy Boy President and Mrs. Ronald Reagan Robert Redford W. Ann Reynolds Rabbi A. James Rudin Douglas W. Schwartz The Honorable Sargent Shriver Martin Sullivan Maria Tallchief Stewart L. Udall James D. Wolfensohn4

4Colonghi, John, NMAI National Campaign Director, interview by author, 1991.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. APPENDIX C

THE "TWENTY NEEDS" of NMAI

QUOTATIONS FROM CONSULTATION PARTICIPANTS

SI BUREAUS PROVIDING SUPPORT TO NMAI

133

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 3 4

The "Twenty Needs" of NMAI express what the Museum

should embody in the following principles:

1. Flexibility for changes and renewal in its organization, programming and architecture.

2. Commitment to facilitate hemisphere-wide exchange and communications among Native American communities.

3. Forum where Indian voices speak to Indians and non- Indians in a multilateral communications setting.

4. Programs that celebrate the continuum and contemporary vitality of Indian cultures.

5. Four interconnected and fully supported museums: the Custom House, the Reserach Center at Suitland, the Mall Museum, and the "Fourth Museum."

6. Access to technical and human resources in support of community driven efforts.

7. Access to collections for traditional and non-traditional researchers on-site and electronically, through traveling exhibitions and in some instances repatriation.

8. Collections care and housing meeting high museological standards as well as the diverse requirements of the Indian communities who produced the materials.

9. Presentations that are contextual and multisensory; paced and respectful, and creatively used technology to better tell the museum/s stories.

10. Community produced exhibitions and presentations supported financially and technically by the Museum when needed.

11. Debunking stereotypes and re-educating the public about all aspects of Indian history and culture.

12. Information organized to accomodate the needs of multiple users.

13. Node and clearinghouse roles in the flow of information among international Native communities.

14. Generating and collaborating roles in producing new information through diverse research programs.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 3 5

15. Training for Native Americans and Smithsonian staff in cultural resources development.

16. Support of community efforts at cultural preservation, maintenance and revival.

17. Support of educational and cultural institutions in Indian communities.

18. Support of artistic recognition and market expansion for artists.

19. Buildings and landscape that reflect Native values, design traditions, symbolism and spatial qualities.

20. Architectural and site designs with appropriate settings for ceremonial activities at all sites.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 3 6

The following quotations are from consultation participants. They provide a wide range of recommendations for the design of the facilities, and even if they are not literally incorporated into the architecture, they should serve to inspire thoughtful and creative solutions.

& Washington, DC Contest, Mall Museum Exterior and Entry "An Indian child has to come here and be proud We have nothing here fa capital' "The Museum is being given birth, not being planned^. The land where it willsit has a spirit—. This Museum has to be connected not ody to us as the people but to our children-reconnecting the umbilical corf of our . children." "Because of the Museum's location near the Capitol its exhibits should address the history of relationships beaveen the government and Native peoples and the contiibuticas of some, such as the Iroquois, in creating the American form of government and by others, such as Navajo code talkers, and Cfcpctaw coders in past war efforts." "Incorporate n monument dedicated to Indians o f the past here in Washington, DC - dramatic." "This buildiag competes with ssoaameatsef&ercrid !t mast be compatible; is lh*t seeing, as She monument to Narive Americam.* "I see a stgn not a building. A building that says somtthin* - » »tJko&£' "I see the limitations of the MalL -Tint the building purple." "It’s sot what’s on the outside that matters, but whai'j on the inside and written." "Say who we are visually.' "A living Museum, not formal and quiet Noise and eonfuaco are OK. Processkasa! ceremonies in pfcas - activity excites."

"Yob should bear &e dogs tasting." Theyoothandinepecgfccssfeingjhsplacsjolife. Ttatwillbe impcrtaes," •Present central Native American vainer- the Individual as part of the cfimmunhy^riha and wspanrfhalftfeg'

"Close 10 nature, not set apart in the universe."

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 3 7

'We need a trarisidcn space, a decompression area for little kids whooping it up (hat saysVou are entering oar space.' Asenseofceremony.spteeio leave behind stereotypes. Music could help calm chlltfcea.* 'Maybe use water (from the site's underground stream?) to make this transition. Not creating a acred space but projecting the notion of the spiritual* There could be many entries and at different levels, with tamps and passages that draw one in like a sculpture.* The building should take advantage o f outdoor space. It will be SO" in Aprill* 'Consider a covered outdoor introduction area to explain areas o f the country and to slow people down. The door should be infonnaL* •Programs that reach Indian communities are mere important than buildings.* •Consider having display o f eibal seals or flags near the entrance-like the UN.* •Consider acquiring the triangle o f land south of Maryland Avenue for use as an environmental exhibit that would also connect to the adjacent Botanic Cardens.* •Use the MaB site sow » •Have a lawn with a circle inside for dancing - like a Pilcher's mound, a place in the center for drums, lighting. PA system anda fence for charging admission. Fumit A anlih't o nin th» luf..«s»»m * Tbe architectural design should not intrude.* T he architects should design in accordance with the rntemariooal way, with contemporary and traditional materials. It should be in tune with tbe year2000-upiodaie. •Look at bow v tt'rt living today. Individual cultures inside..sand out in modem design.”

•We should think o f ourselves as modems, or a composite cf the past.* ‘One could enter the Museum like a Kiva, with a sense of stepping down into the womb.” The Building should have an entrance with an abundance of light.' *Not bright light, but soothing.' 'I think the entrance should be first daric.„ihcn light.' 'Slow the pace down so people think of the Museum as a significant place where they will have an experience.*

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 3 8

H ave Indian languages written on the building.’ T ve never seen a tipi oat o f other materials lo c i goodL* 'Provide x homelike reception room, with water. Tale a few minutes to fed a borne. The Air and Space Museum reminds a e of a warehouse- it projects the idea o f storage. We want lo welcome people that should be in the entrance.® *We need a dose of reality. We will have seven million people trampling the docents. Can we consol the volume o f visitors?* •The old Smithsonian is inviting. The others are like open vaults. The Castle has that element of hospitality ~ the Secretary actually lived there.’ ’If this place does nothing else but be a living entity that transmits human respect and sensitivity, then all the work we do and will do will be a success. We cannot compare this to other museums. We should create iL* "Plant life has power.* ’ Buildings should enhance relationships and activities •• not draw atienu'on to themselves or their architect.* T h e building design should be done by an Indian architect’ *Tbe Museum should confront know-it-all tourists with the shock of nature, getting back to a primordial time and the kind o f complexity that created the boric! mounds. The canssee should have waier flowing; it should show LnspLratiss. The entrance should b o s place where people choose to g a Maybe there are outside exhibits for shore tourist visits by know-it-all kids.* "It should be a natural experience to go there, juxtaposed to tbe Neo Greek around ii. It should touch children and have the blessing o f spiritual leaders. Cne should feel the Jove o f Indian people for who they are. These things are alive and pan of today. Test the design with children and elders, then w ell know the power. Smell sweet grass and sage.* •You should smell sage, wood, fislu * Terrain, colors, textures, snelis._a giant'scratch and sniff.** *Wa!ter Chsriey’s (as Alaskan elder) stories should be here.0 “Our scries should be tdd la quiet and strong vdces.~as a mosaic.* T h e MaB Museum should incorporate a ritual like that o f a mosque where ooe takes one's shoes off before entering, symbolizing leaving something o f oneself outside the building.* "Entering the Museum should be analogous to entering someone's home in the respect that is given by the visitor." ’ Adopt our values while you're here-.hosts with the ’Aloha’ spirit’ T h e entrance should allow transition...siow or fast..to take off my business suit and pul on Indian dress.*

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 3 9

'Conflict and diversity should not be watered down.* "Humor is also very important to be integrated into the inspiration of design." "Use Mali site now as an opportunity to create routing exhibit] in, far example, a temporary bughouse. TOs could be a period o f training and experimenting and of constituency buMag.* T b e groond should be bfcoed before cocaroctioa.* "Sweedawf should reflect the ideas of 4 e Mali - not separateness - but continuity.*

T f tbe Mall Museum is ttadidcruUSweedamf can be abstract*

b. Native Symbols and Traditions "My grandparents were my collection, my museum. Tbe museum shouldn't mean a loss of community and family.” ' "Would our grandparents see themselves here in the right way?” 'Adaptability and stsvivaL How can we portray that inner strength?* "It takes four years to even learn about water without the text boohs - the Apache way; it takes four more yearn to learn about nature - herbs, plants, animals; another four years for the stare and heavens. The last four years am the hardest pan - to team about ourselves, you and me. When you have eompieicd sixieen years under a medicine man, you can sing the songs.* ’Fire symbolizes who we are.* "Directional alignments are important Sclsdcial/equinoxial alignments, as well as pole” *Doat generalize from one tribe’s architecture. For Northwest peoples, the rectangle is tbe main shape of rooms and buildings.” •Recognize diversity. It’s especially apparent in Alaska.” "Kodiak people like informality. They protest having agendas at meetings.* T lingit people like structure.0 "Everything doesn’t have to be universal to be marvelous.” ’Introduce me to other tribes and what they do today. Then go beck in time.* , "Have ooe floor that is earth from this place. Everything doesn’t need to be concrete and marble.* •Some tribes would want entry from the east - the sunrise.* "Our (Southeast Alaska) door has to (ace the beach.”

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 4 0

"Spaces should adapt to different seme* o f Indian spaces - an Iroquois longhouse measures 2 7 high x 2 7 wide x ISO* long. a wigwam has a 17 ceiling, a tipi is 3C high. Think of an airplane hangar with tinker toyi within ©makespace*.* T h e Copper River people of Alaska build bouses with ..a place for smoke in the middle, with a big steam bath right behind." "Indian traditional spaces tend to be communal space. Foe in the middle is important as the spiritual center of the house* "Consider bringing dirt fonn various places and commissioning an opera for the opening dirt ceremony* "A revereaee for things like planting com and beans is important, but don't reinforce the stereotype that Indians are the spiritual gurus of the world. People want our ceremonies; if a complicated." Tin a loogbcuse] four elements are important: Food, Fire, Floor - dirt for F ire-so d Dance.® • TradirioosHy, most native groups do not display their art objects. They tend to be kept sa trunks until needed for a ceremony*

"For Apache, there are always four o f things: four sacred colon corresponding to directions: East» Black, South ■ Blue, West ■ YeOow, North ■ White; four saints; four sacred trees: East - Pinion. South ■ Walnut, W e::= Cedar, Norw * Poplar: our door is East; four bridges. Things always go clockwise. Everything we do is round* "For Keetoowah Band o f Cherokee, seven is the critical number - seven days of the week, seven directions." "If the entrance is on the East, then it wiS also face the ooly hill around.* "Museum for my tribe (Lakota) is a big stone. Lakots want all pipes, remains returned. My grandad died in 1913 in Washington as part of a delegation petitioning the government - o f pneumonia or by poison - we don't know. Three years ago his pipe came back. The family now has an annual sundance. The pipe is kept in a frame building without environmental controls - 1 donT call it a Museum - It’s k2 dive." *We say we look to the seventh generation to benefit from resources.* "The s e e d Should be at the center with people moving clockwise around it.* °Diflerent tribes may have different connotations for various symbols. The use o f symbols has to be on a broader and deeper level and reflect actual use. Beth Suitland and the Mall Museums should incorporate this.* "Colors can be representative of direction, as for the Apache. Some of us have six directions or seven.* ,

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 4 1

"The circle is almost universal and dominant. It is the shape o f Kivas and ceremonial spaces for Pueblos and Hopi.® 'Reflect tbe solar calendar and equinoxes in the design - not just as a sym bol-but in actual use. For instance, the sun might faSoo a west- facing wall in a particular way at a certain time of year.® *An eastern orientation and eastern entrance is critical for many tribes.® There could be a circle of rocks for the equinox.* "We have a totem pole tradition here (local DC Native peoples) that many people don\ know about We have larse carved panels with sheds and incised designs.* *It is very important to have a room to take things out to talk with so the family who owns them won't get sick. My northwest people would want a salmon pit outside the Museum and a cedaMined room for objects.* "Many Indians do not have positive experiences with the conventional buildings in their lives —HUD Houses etc. Lodges for religious ceremonies are loved, as are churches and homes.” T h e building designs should drew on the symbols and traditions o f many people and yet not be Pan-Indian' designs.* "The East has a worldwide significance, though it is not always materially expressed in the same way.* "We are using two terms that bother me - Native and Indian." "This place should have a different name than NMAJ - The National Museum o f the Life and Land of Native American Culturcs—The People's Way of Being.*

c. Spatial Character and Interior Spaces "Bring the outside in, avoid all rectangular walls. Make spaces adjustable.* *For Inuit people - a dome on top. Not all squares...but roundnesx* "Interiors should be finished with natural materials from all over the United States - an adobe wall, plants from another area, stone, wood - not dominating, but giving a feel to the place.” "Simple, elegant lines. Not busy, busy. Our soul is elegant.* "Think about technology to come—the possibility of huge y r r n ? to create sensory entries. The possibility of creating landscapes to walk through with holography." "There should be no shortness of opportunities to learn. Don't use westers fragmentation. Computers are an opportunity to teach an organic way o f dealing with the world.* "nave a sense of calming light streaming down from above."

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 4 2

"Recognize distinctions in tribal architecture in tbe exhibition areas.* I *NMATs Museum shops should be like « maritet.” *A bomey feeling, sand, colon of tbe earth.* "Smallness fits our way of life-wood greys with aging - color is important and tied to our Nadveaess.” "I don't mind tbe feeling o f stone~Jft tbe values that are attached. Stone ■ Greek.* "In Central and South America, our monuments are natural elements.* "Tbe building shouldbe pcnnaaenL.it should last" "Skylights could be used to gives sense of the sky." * A huge skylight to watch the sunrise and sunset." * A crater with a dome." *We need an opening to the sky and to the bottom. We need the warmth of wood rather thus the coldness of stone. The underground spaces of the East Wing are relieved by the presence of water. Tbe Ripley Crater, in contrast, feels claustrophobic - you feel the shea weight of the building oo top of you." "There needs to be some flexibility in tbe program and design to re-plan spaces at a momentfs notice." ’Space Itself - iafinks pcssiuuiues.-£aany roiea.=

*The Museum should address environments. How many people know there are mountains where you can took without seeing a house or see tbe ocean and the horizon? If you don't experience this you've missed what life is about* "Present our contemporary lives counter the view that 'you're not living the life you're supposed to.*" "A whale illustration in 8 museum would be making fun o f it; showing disrespect We might not be able to get that whale*

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 4 3

NMAI will have the expertise and support of other SI

bureaus and offices during the consultation phases of the

development process, as well as for the operation of NMAI's

programs and buildings. Some of the many bureaus and

offices involved include:

Business Management Office (BMO) Conservation and Analytical Laboratory (CAL) Museum Support Center (MSC) Offices of Facilities Services (OFS) Office of Design and Construction (ODC) Office of Information Resource Management (OIRM) Office of Plant Services (OPLANTS) Office of Protection Services (OPS) Office of Registrar (OR) Smithsonian Archives (SA) Smithsonian Institution Travelling Exhibitions Service (SITES) Office of Exhibits Central (OEC) Office of Telecommunications (OTC)5

sMaster Facilties Phase 1 Report, NMAI, 38.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. APPENDIX D

OUTREACH SUPPORT

144

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 4 5

Outreach support for cultural activities may include:

Language preservation (to be directed locally) Music and dance documentation and support Oral history recording, especially through film and video Development/dissemination of curricula materials for schools-(print, audiovisual, telecommunications, etc.) Technical assistance and training programs to benefit tribal museums, libraries, schools, cultural centers Traveling performances, exhibitions and loans to and from communities Artist-in-residency programs for production of replicas of objects for use and exhibition by tribes Access to and input on Museum collections and information such as geneological data Advocacy for authenticity in the use and copyright of Native art, stories, writings and performances Leadership in standardizing language use and database formats to foster the broadest sharing of resources Programs directed towards youth Access to information about economic and career opportunities created by the Museum, such as artists cooperatives Production of 30-second "spots" on a variety of subjects for public television broadcast6

6Ibid., 65-66.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. A P P E N D IX E

"POINTS OF VIEW" DESIGN DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM DIAGRAM: THEME AREAS

"POINTS OF VIEW" EXHIBIT DIAGRAM

146

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 147 00|tC1 MEANINGS Tiarufomution AESTHETICS P R O C E SA S TECHNIQUES Design Design Analysis Anisli'Rwourco Fomi ItFomi Function/ 'MrftOl Moccasin*' SELECTORS OrVERSITY/TH£ GOOD THESELECTIONS ALL ALL P0A03 I s o la tio n GENDERROLES PfM o SPIRITUALITY PRESERVING Krent/Paffett Krent/Paffett Associates Major Theme Areas - Flow Chart DESIGN DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM TA BLE 1. A d v tm ty Amthotet Abovt D«»gr> Continuly D«»gr>

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission 1 4 8

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. \D V/' VIEW OF A Conceptual Relationships POINTS NATIONAL MUSEUM OFTHE AMERICAN INDIAN INDIAN AMERICAN OFTHE MUSEUM NATIONAL AESTHETtCSiProc— o :===iJ :===iJ L fM t* Owftfer AtSTHirrtCStUAMntnff PRESEJlVINQt \ 1—Un - FOCUS \ / | _ Dhrvntty/Th* tv — 1

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. APPENDIX F

LIST OF FUTURE EXHIBITIONS

150

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 5 1

NMAI's Exhibition Review Committee met in the spring of 1991 and accepted the following exhibitions for future shows at the George Gustav Heye Center:

A Day in the Life of Native America A documentation project by Native American photographers addressing the state of their own communities 500 years after Columbus arrived. The exhibit will focus on the diversity of Indian lifestyles and how Native Americans see themselves. (Toured by the Native Indian/Inuit Photographers Association)7

The Changing Soundscaoe of Indian Country A combined exhibition with live performances identifying new forms and styles which have emerged in Native American music since the arrival of Europeans in the New World. The exhibit will show the changes in Native American music resulting from contact with non-Indian cultures by addressing the history of Indian musical traditions, the Euro-American elements of each tradition, and the implementation of these elements in Indian music. Included in the exhibit will be musical instruments, record album covers, wax cylinders, and hymn books. (Organized by the Office of Folklife Programs and NMAI)8

Reflections of a Weaver's World: Gloria F. Ross Collection of Navajo Weaving Thirty rugs and tapestries by Navajo artists will be featured in this exhibit, all created from the late 1970s to the present. The exhibit will address the cultural background of the artists and the meaning weaving gives to modern reservation life. (Toured by the Denver Art Museum)

Navajo Blankets: Woven from Life Fifty 13th-century Navajo wearing blankets from the NMAI collection will be shown to document weaving techniques, dye, and fabric content. The show "will interpret the use and pattern design from a multi-dimensional perspective by incorporating anglo and Indian views from today as well as the distant past."9 (Produced by NMAI)

Our Land/PurseIves Sixty-six framed works on paper by Native American artists will focus on land and its inhabitants through

7Nanwooksy, R. Fred, Jr., NMAI Exhibition Coordinator, interview by author, 1992.

8Ibid.

9Ibid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 5 2

"metaphysical, metaphorical, allegorical, and political perspectives." New perspectives will be presented to encourage an understanding and appreciation for the landscape and Indian art; as well as reflect the diversity of contemporary American art; as well as show the perspective of land and its inhabitants from contemporary Indian artists. (Toured by Exhibits USA)10

Kiowa Culture in Transition: Photographs of Horace Poolaw The photographic exhibit will document the transition and profound changes of tribal culture from 1925 to 1955. Photographs show the "events of daily life for the young and old, as well as traditional ceremonies, dances, rodeos, etc." Seventy-two black-and-white photographs will comprise the exhibit. (Toured by the American Federation of the Arts)11

I0Nahwooksy, R. Fred, Jr., NMAI Exhibition Coordinator, interview by author, 1992.

nIbid.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. APPENDIX G

SCHEDULE OF SPACES

REGULATORY AGENCIES

153

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 5 4

3. Schedule of Spaces - Suiiland

Tbe following list summarize* tbe specea and activity areas proposed through the consultation process.

l Site Needs - Bridge, tunnel or direct connection to NMNH collections areas at the Museum Support Ceuter - Visitor and staff parting - Shuttle bus stop -Loading area - Path connections to shared and related facilities and future Metro stop. b. Entrance and Welcoming Area -Entrance vestibule - Entrance lobby and reception desk -Hospitality lounge - Visitor orientation area (Collections reference area?) - Dining facilities or access to shared conference and cafeteria areas - Security station -Restrooms.

c. Collections Reference Areas - Collections access computer terminals - Reference librerian/Curetor offices - Library collections reference area Of Integrated with objects Reference Area).

d. Collections Viewing and Use Areas -L obby - Circulation and staging spaces &r access to objects in housing areas - Research carrels - short term users - Research carrels - long term users - Specialized carrels as needed - Group study gase(s} and conference rooms

i - * - 5 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission 1 5 5

- Artins sudio(s) - Ceremonial spaces) with outdoor area - Dressing rooms for ceremonial uses - Staff coSec&os use and viewing area* - Assisting curator and security stiff areas - Object handling equipment storage *• Restrooms.

e. Collections Housing end Care Areas ~ Objects bousing areas by tribe -Specialized shared objects housing areas - Objects organized in other ways - Shipping and receiving areas - Registration and photography areas - ConservariooAestoratioaAtpIicatioa areas - Objects handling equipment storage, freight elevators, etc.

f. Library and Archives Collections ~ Reference area (if not intcgrsico with objects collections reference area) - Reading, viewing and listening areas - Copying and photographing area - Weed processing area - Display ares - Circulation desk ~ Book stacks - Photographic collections storage - Audiovisual materials storage - Other archival materials storage - Library and archive staff offices - Materials processing and conservation area, including a digital processing center -Restrooms. •

i

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 5 6

g. Exhibit Support Areas - Exhibit design offices and studios - Exhibit production workshops - Storage and staging areas - Loading dock access.

h. Fourth Museum Support Areas - Staff offices and workrooms - Film/viico production studios - Audio production studios - Publications production and storage - Computer demonstration and training center .. Education laboratory and learning resource center - Computer network room - Satellite uplink facilities.

L Staff Work Areas - Director's office - Ait minis trativft m tt - Computer and telecommunications staff - Conference rooms and classrooms - Volunteer and viator w est g s s e s QS not provided elsewhere).

j. Building support systems and areas (to be developed in Phase 2).

k. Possible shared residential and conference center (probably a separate building).

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 5 7

4. Schedule of Spaces - the M ali

t. Site Development and Outdoor Space*

(Tbe distinction between the outdoor and indoor activities should be blurred) The site could include: - Native plants, water, host traditions - Performance area with dirt surface —Exhibitions - Introductory information -Shadedplaces to sit -B u s stop for Suitiand shuttle and school and tour Buses - Loading dock access.

b. Entrance and Welcoming Areas

(Elements o f the site should penneate the interior) - East facing main entranoe - Entrance lobby(s) and information dealt -Cos? check -Public restrooms -Public telephones

T«

c. Gathering Spaces - Main gathering circle - Place of remembrance, honor and celebration - Group orientation spaces -Conference center.

d. Exhibition Galleries - Introductory galleries - Large volume galleries -Intimate galleries

- Exhibition-related Interpretation, demoosaatios and performance areas

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 5 8

.. sitting and viewing place* - Exhibition technology service and access spaces.

e. Performance Areas - Performance »psct(*) - Audience space(s) - Dressing rooms - Rehearsal are* - Equipment, storage and support spaces.

t . Resource Center - Electronic collections and other databases access area - Reference collections - Reading and viewing room(a) -Librarians’desk and work areas - Hands-on materials storage and access -Classrooms - Computer network comroL

g. Retail Spaces and Potomac Center (Parts of these activities could expand to the outdoors fa spring and summer) -C entral gathering and drculatioa space - Native American restaurant - Food veodora (fried bread esc.) - Native - Food vendors or self-service - noo-Nafive - Performance and demonstration areas -Bookstore - Shop with children's educational materials and other m^tchand;«a» —Contemporary fine art gallery (traditional and non-traditiona] artists) - Information area t o tribal museums and membership - Potomac Center support, kitchens and storage.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 5 9

h. Museum Offices and S&fif Facilities - Staff facilities for public space staff - Director and immediate saff offices - Development office -Membership office - Public Relation* office - Public Education staff offices - Conference and board room - Volunteer work spaces - Staff entrance and shuale stop.

L Building Support These system* and spaces will be largely developed** part of the more detailed technical requirements of Phase 2 programming work. They will Include: •• Exhibition staging, support and repair workshops -- Outdoor activity support spaces ~ Resource conservation suppoa spaces - Security offices -Loading dock -Plantservices.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 6 0

The regulatory agencies which will have preservation oversight over the design and construction of NMAI, as well as all other SI buildings include:

1) The District of Columbia Historic Preservation Office 2) The New York State Historic Preservation Office 3) The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation 4) The National Capitol Planning Commission 5) The Commission of Fine Arts 6) National Landmarks Program 7) New York City Landmarks Commission

Other agencies which SI relates to are:

The Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation D.C. Preservation League The Committee of 10 012

12,lRegulatory Agencies With Preservation Oversight of Smithsonian Institution,11 NMAI, 1991.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. APPENDIX H

POLICY STATEMENT ON REPATRIATION

EXAMPLES OF COLLECTIONS

161

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 6 2

National Muaeun of the American Indian Policy Statement on Native American Hunan Remains and Cultural Materials I. PREAMBLE In November 1989, the National Museum of the American Indian Act became lav. Public Law 101-135 provided for the transfer to the Smithsonian Institution of title to the assets of the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation. The National Museum of the American Indian (hereinafter "Museum"), established by the Act, has a Board of Trustees which, subject to the general policies of the Smithsonian Board of Regents, has the sole authority to lend, exchange, sell, or otherwise dispose of any part of the collections of the Museum; purchase, accept, borrow, or otherwise acquire artifacts and other objects for addition to the collections of the Museum; and to specify criteria for use of the collections of the Museum for appropriate purposes, including research, evaluation, education, and method of display. Integral to fulfillment of that mandate is the affirmation that: * Native American cultures and the collections that reflect those American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian cultures provide a context for and constitute a rich part of the activities of the Museum. * The goal sf the Museum's repatriation policy is to support the continuation of ceremonial and ritual life among Native American peoples, to foster and support the study by Native Americans of their own traditions, and to forge consensus among the Museum and Native American communities while accounting for and balancing the interests of each. * The wishes of Native American peoples with respect to the human remains and funerary objects of their own ancestors must be honored. * The wishes of Native American peoples with respect to access to and treatment and use of ceremonial and religious materials needed in the practice of their religion must be granted.

* The Native American community must have broad access to and use of information pertaining to collection materials to ensure that informed decisions can be made regarding the treatment a n d disposition of Native American materials. * All Native American materials, including human remains, funerary objects, ceremonial and religious objects, and communally-owned property, together with all culturally-specific information, must be treated as the sole property of the affected

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 6 3

Native American culturally-affiliated group and with the utmost respect by scholars and interpreters of those cultures, whether in collections research, scientific study, exhibitions, or educational programs. * Respect for Native American peoples and cultures and principles of law prohibit the retention of Native American naterials that were acquired by or transferred to the National Museum of the American Indian illegally or under circumstances that invalidate the Museum's claim to them. * The Museum has, as one of its highest priorities, the expeditious implementation of its repatriation policy. To carry out this policy, there must be continuous dialogue between the Museum and Native peoples to assure that all viewpoints and beliefs are considered in its implementation.

* with respect to Native American peoples beyond the borders of the United States, this policy shall be carried out in accordance with the following procedures and applicable treaties and international agreements.

This statement describes the National Museum of the American Indian policy and procedure for: (1) the repatriation of Native American human remains and funerary objects; (2) the repatriation of objects of religious, ceremonial, and historical importance-.to Native American peoples, communally-owned tribal property, and other property acquired by or transferred to the Museum • illegally; and (3) the treatment and display of Native American materials.

II. BACKGROUND

Over the years, a set of principles has evolved within federal policy regarding Native American religious freedom and the treatment and the repatriation of cultural materials. Certain of those principles, pertaining to human remains and funerary objects, were codified into law by Public Law 101-185. The National Museum of the American Indian is committed to a policy that extends the principles of the law to other categories of Native American objects, namely, ceremonial and religious materials and communally-owned Native property.

\ The initial focus of all repatriation requests involves the nature of the material in question and the circumstances of its acquisition by the Museum. Each repatriation request carries with it unique facts, circumstances, and legal and ethical considerations. Thus, each request of necessity must be reviewed individually within the Museum's overall policy framework.

III. POLICY

The National Museum of the American Indian is committed to the disposition, in accordance with the wishes of culturally- based Native Americans, of (i) Native American human remains of

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 6 4

known individuals; (ii) human remains of individuals who can be identified by tribal or cultural affiliation with contemporary Native peoples; (iil) funerary objects; (iv) communally-owned Native property; (v) ceremonial and religious objects; and (vi) objects transferred to or acquired by, or hereafter transferred or acquired by, the Museum illegally or under circumstances that render invalid the Museum's claim to them. Considerations associated with each type of material follow. A. Human remains. The Museum will repatriate any human remains that are reasonably identified as being those of a particular individual or of an individual culturally affiliated with a particular American Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization, upon request of living descendants of the individual or of the particular tribe or organization. In addition, the Museum will repatriate to an appropriate descendant, tribe, or organization, upon request, any other Native American remains found to have been transferred to the Museum or otherwise acquired by the Museum illegally or under circumstances that render invalid its claim to them. Remains excavated pursuant to lawfully-issued permits under the Antiquities Act of 1906 will be deemed to have been acquired under color of law, but will be subject to repatriation if individually or tribally identifiable. B. Funerary objects. The Museum will repatriate any funerary objects associated with human remains, to be repatriated in accordance with paragraph A above, including any funerary object which is a surrogate for a deceased person. With respect to funerary objects not associated with human remains, with the exception of surrogates addressed above, the Museum will repatriate to a particular American Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization, upon request, any funerary object that is reasonably identified as having been removed from a specific burial site or culturally affiliated with that tribe or organization. In addition, the Museum will repatriate any other funerary objects found to have been acquired by or transferred to the Museum illegally or under circumstances that render invalid its claim to them. C. Communally-owned Native American property. The Museum recognizes that it holds in its collections certain objects that are communally-owned property of an American Indian tribe. Native Hawaiian organization, or Native American group itself, rather than property owned by an individual Native American person. If such property belonged to the entire tribe, organization, or group, or was held for communal purposes and could not have been legally alienated, transferred, or conveyed by any individual Native American, the Museum's claim to it is invalid, and such items will be repatriated upon request according to procedures established herein.

ceremonial and Religious Objects. This category of materials consists of objects that are needed by Native American religious leaders for the practice of traditional Native American

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 6 5

religions, including the purpose of ceremonial renewal. Because objects regarded as ceremonial and religious by any given tribe nay vary substantially from the objects so regarded by other tribes, this category of objects does not lend itself to a fixed set of guidelines. Thus, in keeping’with the American Indian Religious Freedom Act, each request must be considered on a case-by-case basis in consultation with Native traditional religious leaders and practitioners. The Museum will seek the counsel of other tribal elders, members of the governing bodies and other representatives of the tribe making the request, and any other individuals who can provide relevant information to the specific request at hand.

E. Objects acquired illegally. The Museum will repatriate upon request to an appropriate American Indian tribe, Native Hawaiian organization, or Native American group any materials acquired by or transferred to the Museum illegally or under circumstances that render invalid the Museum's claim to them. Each request for materials so acquired will be considered on a case-by-case basis and take into account all relevant evidence submitted by the particular tribe, organization, or group and available to the Museum.

F. Duplicate or Abundant objects. When the Museum has duplicate material, numerous similar objects in its collection, or an abundance of a certain type of material, and a Native American, American Indian tribe. Native Hawaiian organization, or Native American group that is culturally affiliated with the material requests its repatriation, the Museum will consider disposition.

IV# PROCEDURES

All repatriation decisions are made by the Museum Board of Trustees upon advice of the Collections Committee.

A. inventory. The policy outlined above requires the Museum to have in place efficient procedural mechanisms to respond to repatriation requests. The National Museum of the American Indian will prepare an inventory of religious and ceremonial objects, funerary items, and all other cultural materials covered by this policy. The steps of such inventories are as follows:

1. Using the best available scientific and historical information, the Museum will identify the origin of human remains, funerary objects, and other objects covered by this policy.

2. Identification will be based on a reasonable belief standard.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 6 6

3. The inventories will be made available to all affected American Indian tribes and Hawaiian Native organizations at the earliest opportunity. 4. The Museum will include in its inventories items that are not positively identifiable as being associated with a particular American Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization but, given the totality of information about the materials, make it more likely than not that the item once belonged to that American Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization or that the human remains are culturally affiliated with that group.

B. Consultation. During the inventory process and following its completion, the Museum will consult widely with Native American peoples. The Museum will disclose all relevant information pertaining to collection objects identified in the inventories, and curatorial staff will be available to respond to additional requests for information. Physical access to materials will be provided, as requested. In addition, a special area will be made available for Native American people to view or otherwise inspect their culturally affiliated materials. Every effort will be made to reach agreement through informal consultation and cooperation. Where issues remain after gobd faith discussions, those pertaining to human remains, funerary objects and other objects covered by this policy will be referred to a Special Review Committee established by the Board of Trustees.

C. Claimants. Claims for materials may be submitted by descendants and by those who can demonstrate a cultural affiliation to the materials. This group of claimants includes, but is not limited to Native tribal, religious, ceremonial ar.d Hawaiian organizational leaders. If the Museum is uncertain about the cultural affiliation of the party requesting the materials, the Museum may request information about affiliation. If a request is made by one Native American group for the return of materials that the Museum believes may be more closely affiliated with another Native American group, the Museum will advise both parties of the request. All parties with a demonstrable interest will be invited to join in the negotiation and decision-making process. Where competing claims exist that cannot be resolved through informal consultation, the parties will submit the dispute to the Board of Trustees.

D* Burden of Proof. The initial burden of proof with respect to any repatriation request shall be on the requesting individual or tribe to establish, on a reasonable basis, a connection to the material in question. This connection may be lineal descent, tribal affiliation, and/cr cultural affiliation. In some cases, this burden can be satisfied by reference to the

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 6 7

Museum's inventory which shall, wherever possible, identify descent, tribal origin, and/or cultural affiliation. Where the inventory is inconclusive or cannot determine affiliation, the requesting party may satisfy its burden through evidence of geography, descent, kinship, archaeology, anthropology, linguistics, folklore, oral tradition, historical patterns of ownership and/or control, and any other relevant information or expert opinion. For human remains and funerary objects, once cultural affiliation has been satisfactorily established, the requesting party has met its burden of proof and the material shall be repatriated or otherwise disposed of in accordance with the wishes of the affiliated individual or tribe. In the case of ceremonial and religious materials, the claimant must show that the materials are needed by traditional Native American religious leaders for the practice of traditional Native American religions. For communally-owned Native property, the requesting party must show that the material has an ongoing historical, traditional, or cultural relevance important to the Native American group or culture itself, rather than property owned by an individual Native American, and which, therefore^ could not have been properly alienated, appropriated, or conveyed by any individual at the time the object was separated from such group. Once the claimant has satisfactorily established its •. case, and the Board of Trustees has affirmed its claim, the claimant is entitled to the material. , E. Special Review Committee on Repatriation. The Board of Trustees, upon being notified by the Museum Director or the American Indian or Native Hawaiian claimant that the discussions concerning repatriation have reached in impasse, shall, within fifteen (15) days, constitute a Special Review Committee to review the nature of the controversy, to examine the evidence presented by the parties in dispute, and to present its findings and recommendations to the Collections Committee within thirty (30) days. The Collections Committee shall then review the findings and recommendations of the Special Review Committee and shall, within fifteen (15) days, submit a recommended course of action to the Board of Trustees for its consideration in accordance with the provisions of Public Law 101-185, Section 5(C)(B), Sole Authority.

p• Acceas and Technical Assistance. The Museum recognizes that certain items in its collections are needed by traditional Native American religious leaders for the practice"”of Native American religions. The Museum is committed to a policy of repatriation of these and other cultural materials. Where repatriation is not requested, or where a repatriation agreement is not reached, the Museum is committed to a policy of mutual and shared access and use of these materials, as culturally appropriate. Access and use, in the form of availability of

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 6 8

materials for examination or for loan, will be within the purview of the collections management policy developed by the Collections Committee. The Museum also is committed to a policy of offering American Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations to which materials are repatriated, technical assistance in the care, preservation, use, and disposition of materials. Such assistance may encompass advice to tribal museums and training programs, where requested. Where repatriated materials may be altered or destroyed because of their sacred or traditional nature and function, the Museum shall obtain permission from the Native American owners prior to conducting any destructive analysis or documenting the existence of the materials through reproduction or graphic representation. V. TREATMENT, CARE AND EXHIBITION The National Museum of the American Indian will develop and adopt a collections management policy that describes detailed procedures for accession, deaccession, gifts, exhibition, display, handling, access, and many other aspects of collections management. That policy must respect and accommodate the cultural and religious sensitivities surrounding the Museum's collections. The Museum will develop its detailed collections . procedures in accordance with the policy that culturally-specific information, data, documentation, reproduction and depictions— whether contained or transmitted in written, audio, visual or computer form— are the sole property of the affiliated group, and its consent regarding treatment, care and exhibition of its cultural materials must be obtained prior to decisions being made. The following collections management principles will guide the formulation and implementation of the collections management policy. A. Exhibition and Display. Religious and ceremonial objects shall be exhibited or displayed only with the consent of the culturally-affiliated group. Before displaying religious, ceremonial, or potentially sensitive material as part of exhibitions or public programs, curators shall consult with interested and concerned parties and shall consider and be guided by their views in determining the method of display. Planning of exhibitions— format ar.d content— shall be done in consultation with Native American representatives of the tribe and/or culture involved to assure historical and cultural accuracy in the presentation of all information and materials, and to avoid desecration, insensitive treatment, and inappropriate interpretation of religious or ceremonial materials. B. Curation. Curation and care of cultural materials shall be done in accordance with the highest standards of museum practices and in consultation with the views of appropriate representatives from culturally-affiliated groups, particularly where culturally and religiously sensitive materials are involved. If an American Indian tribe. Native Hawaiian

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 6 9

organization, or Native American group requests that the Museum retain custody of religious, ceremonial, communally—owned, or other tribal property eligible for repatriation, theyshall inform the curator and other appropriate staff regarding permissible methods of handling, care, and protection of such articles. C. Access. Access to the collections for viewing, study, the performance of ceremonies, and for other purposes of Native American people shall be allowed to the maximum extent. Facilities will be constructed within the Museum and/or under its auspices, as appropriate, for the purpose of conducting ceremonies. Public access to the collections for research, study, or viewing purposes may be restricted if such access offends the religions or cultural practices of Native American peoples. D. Outreach. Education constitutes an essential purpose of the Museum. Through the loan and exchange of cultural materials and travelling exhibitions the Museum will endeavor to make its collections more widely available to Indian communities and to present contemporary expressions on an ongoing basis. Provisions shall be made to furnish materials and information to Native people through, but not limited to, the application of telecommunications and other technologies. The Museum also is committed to training Native American people in museology by • developing a full curriculum of programs at all levels— senior management, administration, curatorial, technical, fellowships, support, and security. E. Acquisitions. Objects will not be acquired by gift, purchase, or exchange unless the provenance is complete and consistent with principles of law and policy established by the Museum and the Smithsonian Board of Regents. In its acquisition practices, the Museum endorses and abides by the principles of the UNESCO Convention and the American Indian Religious Freedom Act. The Museum will consult with all concerned parties before acquiring materials that may be culturally or religiously sensitive. Further, the Museum will not accept archeological materials unless they have been excavated in compliance with appropriate international agreements, negotiated tribal agreements, federal laws and guidelines, and such other state and local laws as may be applicable.

Title to all objects acquired for the permanent collections shall be obtained free and clear. As a general rule, the Museum must not accept gifts with restrictions as to use or future disposition. The Museum may, however, permit exceptions to this policy for materials that are religiously or culturally sensitive and where the donor imposes restrictions on access, display, research, treatment, storage, or care. Under exceptional circumstances, and with approval of the Board, the Director may accept objects with restrictions or limitations, provided that the condition shall be stated clearly in the instrument of conveyance and made a part of the records.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Whenever an item of cultural property covered by this policy shall be offered or gifted to the Museum, or whenever it shall come to the attention of the Museum that such item is or is about to be placed on the market for sale, trade or exchange, the Director shall notify the appropriate American Indian tribe. Native Hawaiian organization, or Native American group of the known circumstances. To the extent feasible, and upon the request of the culturally-affiliated tribe or group, the Museum will coordinate efforts with the tribe or group to recover or obtain a treatment-and-care agreement, as appropriate.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 7 1

Si's Office of Design and Construction's Master

Facilities Programming Draft Report lists examples which are

currently on permanent display at the Main Branch at Audubon

Terrace, and that reflect the diversity of the collection:

Early Mississipian mound material Archeological Peruvian textiles Ecuador Archeology Ethnographic Northwest Coast and Arctic material Medicine objects from the northern U.S. Plains Material excavated at Hawikuh, New Mexico Carving in wood, horn, and stone from the Northwest Coast of North America Kachina dance masks and dolls from the American Southwest Textiles from Peru, Mexico and the Navajo Basketry from the American Southwest and Southeast and from Peru Goldwork from Columbia, Mexico and Peru Jade from the Olmec and Maya Inuit/Eskimo Carved Masks Aztec mosaics Featherwork from the Amazon and Peru Painted garments and hides from the North American Plains Archaeological artifacts from the Caribbean13

13Master Facilities Programming, Phase One, Revised Draft Report, "The Way of the People," National Museum of the American Indian, (Washington, D.C.: Office of Design and Construction, Smithsonian Institution, 1991), 39.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Anonymous, "The History of the Museum of the American Indian," 1956.

Arevalo, George and Rosoff, Nancy. "Susan Billy: Summary Report" (Selector's Log - "Points of View Exhibit). New York: Smithsonian Institution, 1991.

"Background Fact Sheet - National Museum of the American Indian." Washington, D.C.: Office of Public Affairs, Smithsonian Institution, 1991.

Barrett, John. "Native Americans to Tell Their Stories." The Torch, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, No. 91-8 August 1991.

Board of Trustees. "Policy Statement on Native American Human Remains and Cultural Materials." National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. March 4, 1991.

Bond, Constance. "An American Legacy." Smithsonian Magazine, October 1989.

Burnett, E.K., Taped Notes of Early History of the Museum of the American Indian, (New York, N.Y.: National Museum of the American Indian).

Braun, Molly and Waldman, Carl. Atlas of the North American Indian. New York: Facts on File Publications, 1985.

Collections Management Policy + Glossary of Terms and Concepts. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, 1990.

Conceptual Development Program, Thematic Organizational Strategies, "Points of View" Exhibition, (New York, N.Y.: National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, 1991).

172

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 173

Design Development. Program. "Pathways of Tradition" Exhibition, National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, (Boston, MA: Krent/Paffett Associates, 1992).

Design Development Program. Phase II, "Points of View" Exhibition, National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, (Boston, MA: Krent/Paffett Associates, 1992).

"Excellence and Equity: Education and the Public Dimension of Museums - A Report from the American Association of Museums Task Force on Museum Education." Washington, D.C., 1991.

Gibson, Eric. "Giving it Back to the Indians - In Quiet Revolt, Museum Pieces May be 'Repatriated'." The Washington Times. May 15, 1991, p. E2.

Gill, Brendan. "The U.S. Custom House on Bowling Green."

"Graphic Project Schedule." Washington, D.C.: National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, 1991.

Gurian, Elaine Huemann. "Let's Empower all Those Who Have a Stake in Exhibitions." Museum News, Vol. 69, No. 2, March/April 1990, pp. 90-93.

"History of Events - The National Museum of the American Indian." Washington, D.C.: Office of Public Affairs, Smithsonian Institution, 1989.

Honan, William H. "Indians Unearth the Past in a Bronx Warehouse." The New York Times, August 3, 1991.

Mason, M.S. "Ceremonial Masks Return Home." The Christian Science Monitor. June 12, 1991.

"Meeting Minutes - Museum Directors, Administrators and Designers Consultation: National Museum of the American Indian." Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, May 2, 1991.

"Meeting Minutes - Contemporary Artists Consultation: National Museum of the American Indian." Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, May 3, 1991.

"Meeting Minutes - Researchers Consultation: National Museum of the American Indian." Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, May 30, 1991.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 174

"Meeting Md.rm.iz3S Educators Consultation: National Museum of the American Indian." Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, June 27, 1991.

"Meeting Minutes - Libraries/Archives/Collections Consultation: National Museum of the American Indian." Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, July 8-9, 1991.

"Meeting Minutes - Santa Fe Consultation (Southwest Tribal Representatives re: facilities/program requirements): National Museum of the American Indian." Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, July 15-16, 1991.

"Meeting Minutes - Washington, D.C. Urban Consultation (#1): National Museum of the American Indian." Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, July 23, 1991.

"Meeting Minutes - Technology Consultation Planning: National Museum of the American Indian." Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, August 5-6, 1991.

Munley, Mary Ellen. Catalysts for Change. The Kellogg Projects in Museum Education, 1986.

Honorary Committee List. National Museum of the American Indian, National Campaign Office. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, 1991.

National Museum of the American Indian Policy Statement on Native American Human Remains and Cultural Materials. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, 1990.

Native Peoples Magazine. The Arts and Lifeways. Phoenix, Az: Media Concepts Group, 1990-92.

"NMAI Master Facility Plan." Washington, D.C.: National Museum of the American Indian, 1991.

"Notebook for Consultations." Washington, D.C.: National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, 1991.

Pepper, George H. "The Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation." The Geographical Review, Vol. 11, No. 6, December 1916.

"Preliminary Exhibition Planning - Customs House (NYC)." Washington, D.C.: National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, 1990.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 175

"Preliminary Thoughts: Architectural Program Plan." Washington, D.C.: National Museum of the American Indian, Smithsonian Institution, 1991.

Proposed Bylaws of the Board of Trustees of the National Museum of the American Indian. Washington, D.C., 1990.

Public Law 101-185, 101st Congress, United States. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1989.

Regulatory Agencies With Preservation Oversight of Smithsonian Buildings, Washington, D.C., 1991.

Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates, Inc. The Wav of the People -National Museum of the American Indian. Master Facilities Programming, Phase I, Revised Draft Report. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Office of Design and Construction, 1991.

Wallace, Kevin. "A Reporter at Large - Slim-Shin's Monument." The New Yorker. 1961.

Weintraub, Judith. "Indian Museum's New Team - Venturi Architects to Help Plan Space." Washington Post, April 11, 1991.

West, W. Richard, Jr. "The National Museum of the American Indian - A Continuing Series of Viewpoints." Native Peoples Magazine. The Arts and Lifeways, Summer 1990, pp. 3-4.

West, W. Richard, Jr. "The National Museum of the American Indian: Images of Indian Culture." 1990 Minary Conference, September 18, 1990.

West, W. Richard, Jr. "The National Museum of the American Indian: Beyond Repatriation (or how the 'other' became the 'we')." American Association of Museums - 86th Annual Meeting, May 22, 1991.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.