CIAMS Lecture Series: Denene De Quintal Southern New England Native American Baskets and the Narrative of "Disappearance"

This paper discusses my research findings to date about how the location and distribution of Southern Native New England objects contribute to the production of knowledge about these tribes and Native peoples, and in particular, how museums’ treatment of these objects reinforces a narrative of their disappearance. “Native vanishing” is a widespread sense that certain Indigenous cultures have disappeared from Southern New England and other areas. Specifically, my research examines the rich and complicated history of the Denver Art Museum’s woven Native American baskets from Southern New England.  

Using a number of Southern New England baskets that were deaccessioned due in part to their condition to illustrate my points, this paper will consider how historical objects can shed light on issues affecting contemporary Indigenous artists. We will explore the challenges contemporary artists face when engaging with (partially racialized) museum narratives that state their tribes have disappeared, as well as the issues that have arisen from the Indian Arts and Crafts Act, which legislates Native American identity and artwork for authenticity.