Contemporary art is my favorite. So when I find a museum that’s got great art and a unique, authentic spin, I’m all over it. Such was the case this month at the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts of Santa Fe, just off the Plaza. I had the pleasure of slowly walking through all by myself one morning.  Here’s some of what I saw:

Caught my eye instantly.

Bran and jockstrap. Yep.

Closer look at the jockstrap.

I’d love to have this piece in my house.

Angel with a twist.

A large piece….

…a bit of it close up.

Ordinary bags made extraordinary.

Look deep.

Couldn’t stop looking at this one.

More than a first glance.

Otherworldly….

….I love the mix of old and new in the two pieces above.

Exactly. It’s all about honoring treaties and in my opinion, it’s one of our nation’s greatest shames.

Kinky Boots native style?

Way topical for me, since I loved the musical, Kinky Boots.

This stunning piece is another I’d like to have in my home to look at every day.

Motorcycle, Native style.

Beautiful work.

This LV quiver made me laugh.

Wonder about these? Here’s what the piece is called:

Dare you not to smile.

I love the way the artist’s mind works…and the execution. One more added to my list.

Dream catcher tweaked a bit.

Yikes! Interesting, though.

Want to know more about the museum? Here’s what the website says about it:
The Museum of Contemporary Native Arts (MoCNA), a center of the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA), is dedicated to increasing public understanding and appreciation of/for contemporary Native art, history and culture through presentation, collection/acquisition, preservation, and interpretation.

The MoCNA encourages creative expression across the fields of arts and culture as an opportunity to engage/establish/foster/cultivate in cross-cultural dialogue with communities at the local, national and global level.