Art Break: The Continuity of Indigenous Culture, Portraits by Will Wilson

Will Wilson, a citizen of the Diné (Navajo) Nation, produced a series of photographs under commission from the Delaware Art Museum in 2022 for his Critical Indigenous Photo Exchange. Having been raised on the Navajo Reservation, Wilson is not only connected to the culture and worldview of the Diné people, but also to the issues broadly facing Indigenous people in North America. 

One major issue facing Indigenous people is their erasure from public consciousness. Wilson confronts this issue in these portraits. While photographing living members of the State-Recognized Nanticoke Indian Tribe of Delaware and State-Recognized Lenape Indian Tribe of Delaware, Wilson presents us with the continuity of Indigenous existence in Delaware. Wilson uses a historic photograph technique called “wet plate collodion,” by which glass plates coated in light-reactive chemicals are exposed to the image through the camera’s visible aperture. This technique provides an antique look to the photographs, while the viewer also knows that these individuals are living among us today. This juxtaposition of historical and contemporary demonstrates how Indigenous people are not only historical, but contemporary, and their traditions persist, as they themselves continue to persist, despite attempts by many governments to systematically erase them and their culture. To experience the ongoing lives of Indigenous People, please visit the Delaware Art Museum on Saturday, April 11th for the Powwow of Arts and Culture.

Joseph Soler, PhD
Gallery Learning Assistant

Plan your Del Art visit today to see Principal Chief Dennis Coker, Citizen of the Lenape Indian Tribe of Delaware, currently on view. www.delart.org.