Marlana Thompson (Mohawk Nation of Akwesasne), Ononkwashon: a/Medicine Plants, 2020, black velveteen, red flannel, Czech seed beads, sweetgrass, sage, and leather, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Kenneth R. Trapp Acquisition Fund, © April 28, 2020, Marlana Thompson

Join three experts from across the Smithsonian as they come together to look at protective masks made by Native artists during the COVID-19 pandemic. Anya Montiel, curator of American and Native American Women’s Art and Craft at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, is joined by Alexandra M. Lord, curator and chair in Division of Medicine and Science at the National Museum of American History, and Cécile R. Ganteaume, curator at the National Museum of the American Indian, for this engaging virtual discussion. Learn more about the medical history of masks and their use as well as the impact of COVID-19 on Indigenous communities in the United States.

This program is part of SAAM’s Double Take series. Widen your perspective on American art as Smithsonian specialists from different disciplines team up to talk about artworks from SAAM’s collection. This popular series features experts from an array of fields—from anthropology and geology, to aeronautics and history—and shows how art can connect to just about anything.

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