BUILDING BRIDGES: STUDENTS CONNECT AT ARTS CONFERENCE

Oscar Howe Summer Art Institute students met artists like Dale Lamphere at the state arts conference in Sioux Falls.

Students at the Oscar Howe Summer Art Institute often learn about people like Keith BraveHeart, Roger Broer and Dale Lamphere, but they got to meet and speak with them at the South Dakota Arts Conference held June 7-8 at the Washington Pavilion in Sioux Falls.

A trip to a gallery is a regular feature of the summer art institute, a two-week program for Native youth held at the University of South Dakota in Vermillion. Because of the close proximity and timing of the conference, students bundled the traditional visit with the opportunity to network. “The folks hosting the conference were all thrilled that the students would be there,” said Cory Knedler, chair of the USD art department and summer institute coordinator. “They did a great job of honoring the students. Most of them had never been to a conference like this.

From their point of view, they were treated like royalty.”

Students attended a panel discussion led by BraveHeart that focused on the “Oscar Howe Legacy Exhibition: Across Four Generations,” on display at the Pavilion during the summer of 2024. They met musician Mato Wayuhi, known for his work on the FX series Reservation Dogs, and visited Post Pilgrim Gallery, where Jennifer White — a former institute attendee — works and displays her art.

Knedler said attending the conference allowed students to ask specific questions of each artist and learn how they might follow in their footsteps. “They’re not going to have all the answers,” Knedler says, “but it’s a good opportunity to see that there are professional artists out there who had the same questions when they were students, and now they are doing art as their main career.”