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Oxford and Beyond

Three exhibitions explore the 50-year relationship between the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma and Miami University

The relationship is explored through art and history in exhibitions on campus and at the Oxford Community Arts Center

Oxford and Beyond

Three exhibitions explore the 50-year relationship between the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma and Miami University

Miami University and the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the relationship between a sovereign Tribal Nation and a public educational institution.

This unique partnership is expressed through a shared commitment to neepwaantiinki, ‘learning from each other,’ which has played a key role in the Miami Tribe’s language revitalization efforts and has led to the first generation in nearly 100 years learning to speak the Myaamia language.

For more about the history of the Miami Tribe relationship and 50th anniversary events, visit the Miami Tribe Relations 50th Anniversary website. 

Three exhibitions in Oxford explore this relationship through history and art

black and red image of stylized turtles
One of the pieces included the exhibit depicts a version of the Myaamia Heritage Turtle

"weeyaakiteeheeyankwi neepwaantiiyankwi: Celebrating 50 Years of Learning from Each Other" 

  • Oxford Community Art Center, 10 S. College Ave.
  • Oct. 14-Nov. 5

This exhibit explores the 50-year relationship between the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma and Miami University through photography by Myaamia community members and Myaamia Center staff, contemporary art from Myaamia students and alumni, and an exploration of the outcomes of this evolving relationship.

Special event: Second Friday Celebration of the Arts gallery opening reception and performance

  • 6-9 p.m., Friday, Oct. 14; Performance by Lisa Biales and Doug Hamilton, 7:30 p.m.
treaty of montreal
The exhibition includes a facsimile of The Great Peace of Montreal, a treaty agreed to by representatives from almost 40 tribal nations in the Great Lakes region in 1701. Myaamia leader, Chichicatallo, signed the treaty with the image of a crane.

“Since Time Immemorial…The Place of the Miamis”

  • Walter Havighurst Special Collections, King Library
  • Through Winter term 2023

Drawing primarily on items in the Walter Havighurst Special Collections, this exhibition, curated by the Myaamia Center, explores the history of the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma and their relationship with their homelands and Miami University. Stop in to learn more about this unique partnership that now spans five decades.

Special event: Curator’s Tour

  • 1-4 p.m., Friday, Oct. 21

Join Myaamia Center staff who will be on hand to answer your questions about the Special Collections Exhibition "Since Time Immemorial... The Place of the Miamis."

 

swirls cut from paper
Close-up view of a piece in the Student Response Exhibition

“Interconnected: Land, Identity, Community” A Student Response Exhibition 

  • Miami University Art Museum
  • Through Dec. 10 

This Student Response Exhibition (SRE) connects students with the complex theme of Sovereignty. "Interconnected: Land, Identity, Community" was developed in collaboration with the Myaamia Center in association with the 2022-2023 FOCUS theme of Tribal Sovereignty.

In "Interconnected," sovereignty includes inherent and retained political rights and cultural integrity. Three key factors in maintaining Tribal Sovereignty are land, identity, and community. This theme, which was broadened for students to allow for wider contextualization, is also connected with the 50th anniversary of the relationship between the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma and Miami University.

Thirty-one out of the 55 submitted pieces are featured in this exhibition.

Special event:  Celebration of Student Creativity Reception and Awards Ceremony

  • 5-7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 9

The SRE includes an opportunity for the participating students to win cash prizes sponsored by the Art Museum Members Association. Visitors to the exhibition can cast a vote for their three favorite works in the exhibition via a kiosk in the gallery.

Winners will be announced at the special reception.