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National Museum of the American Indian

National Museum of the American Indian
Exhibitions and Programs
The George Gustav Heye Center
Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House
One Bowling Green
New York, N.Y. 10004
(212) 668-6624


Hours: M-Su 10 - 5
Th 10 - 8 FREE ADMISSION
General Admission: $7 Adults
$5 Seniors and Children (ages 7 - 12)


Museum emphasis: Painting, ceramics,textiles and sculptures by native americans.


Website:http://www.si.edu/cgi-bin/nav.cgi

Visted:April 1998
Last update: 25 Dec 98

This facility was an amazing find. Wandering around near the Staten Island Ferry station, I just happened upon this building. The exterior is built in a classic Roman style.
Exterior
Museum Exterior
courtesy Michael Allen
The columns are topped with detailed Indian faces lining the edge of the building's roof. The detail here is what initially caught my attention. As I went to the front of the building on each side of the entrance was accented with two sculptures of Indian scenes. The sculptures were terrific and worth the trip to the museum alone.

I had not heard of this place and I feel very fortunate to have come across it because I had one of the most satisfying experiences at an art show ever.
hopi vase
Hopi Vase
copyright NMAI

The building is made mostly of gray marble. The building had been used as a government building before being renovated for use by NMAI. I've always liked the feeling of stonework in buildings. Stone seems to make rooms dignified and secure.
Beeldlei Blanket
Beeldlei Blanket
copyright NMAI

The building's interior is laid out in a large oval. For a complete view of all the exhibits one lap of the oval will do it.

The exhibits were presented very well with a lot of information on the origin of the piece and descriptions of the ornamentation. During my visit one exhibition was put together with video presentations on the history of certain pieces, stories about their creation and examples of the methods used in making the objects.

The videos made a big impression on me. They made the pieces much more personal and several items were hands on displays. So many museums except for children's museums keep you at arms length from displays. The experience is completely changed when you can feel the textures of the pieces. And the blankets childrens toys and tapestries changes the appreciation of the skill and perception involved in it's creation.
Horse Mask
Tsistsistas Horse Mask
Cheyenne
copyright NMAI

After a number of trips to traditional museums the different perspective of these works really sparks the imagination. It's a non pretentious presentation that focuses the attention not on the reputation of the artist or the presentation of the show but the work itself and the inspiration behind them

The entire experience at NMAI was wonderful. The building was beautiful, the exhibits and their presentation was terrific and the prices were reasonable.

There were no crowds and I had the feeling that this was a well kept secret that deserved to be discovered.

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