December 2, 2022

HEARD MUSEUM

2301 N Central Ave, Phoenix, AZ 85004

“The Heard Museum is a private, not-for-profit museum in Phoenix, Arizona, United States, dedicated to the advancement of American Indian art.” - Wikipedia

The statement above is about all I knew about the Heard Museum before my visit.  I was immediately enthralled when I saw the “American Indian Veterans National Memorial” walking towards the museum.  The memorial tells stories of Native Americans’ involvement in this country’s armed conflicts; stories that have been marginalized over the years.

 Once inside the museum I spent a good deal of time in the signature exhibition titled “Home:  Native People in the Southwest,” which features artwork from Arizona’s 22 tribes.  To enhance my visit, I downloaded the museum’s app onto my phone.  The app’s audio tour of the exhibit started by explaining that much of the art in this exhibit were items people used in their daily lives.  The exhibit included much pottery, clothing, and jewelry from different time periods.  Some of the pieces were made rather recently using the techniques handed down from generation to generation.  For me, the pottery and jewelry were impressive and beautiful.  Also enjoyable was the large display of Hopi Katsina Dolls.  Listening to the audio tour was very informative but it took about 1.5 hours to get through the whole exhibit. 

 Because I had limited time and I spent longer than expected in the first exhibit, I rushed through most of the rest of the museum.  One gallery I wished I would have had more time for was titled, “Away from Home:  American Indian Boarding School Stories.”  Again, the museum’s app had an audio tour for this exhibit telling the troubling story of how American Indian children were forced into these boarding schools which tried to strip them of their native culture. 

I enjoyed my visit to the Heard Museum, and if I return to the Phoenix area I will definitely return, allotting more time for the visit.