A Look at Indigenous Artists and their Work

Preservation Long Island is pleased to announce the launch of a new virtual exhibition, “Indigenous History & Art at Good Little Water Place,” on view at  preservationlongisland.org beginning September 3. Artwork from nine contemporary Indigenous artists centers the exhibition. Offering an inquisitive look at the history and on-going relations between Indigenous people and land, the show reminds viewers of a shared responsibility to recognize our common histories and know how they impact our connections to place.

Organized by Preservation Long Island, the show was organized by guest curators Jeremy Dennis, an artist and tribal member of the Shinnecock Indian Nation in Southampton, and Dr. Gwendolyn Saul, curator of ethnography, New York State Museum, the exhibition features objects from the collections of Preservation Long Island, the New York State Museum and the Southold Indian Museum.

“We are thrilled this important exhibition, that began as a collaborative endeavor with the New York State Museum in the fall of 2019, could be reimagined in the virtual realm,” said Alexandra Wolfe, Preservation Long Island’s executive director. “Thanks to the efforts of the project curators, partner museums, and artists, the provocative insights that Long Island Indigenous art offers about history and environment, and the future of our relations to both is now accessible to a wider audience online.”

"The exhibit features indigenous presence and expression from 10,000 years ago to the present,” said Dennis, “and I am proud and excited to be a part of representing this collective."

"I'm honored to be part of a project that directs attention to the diligent, on-going, and talented work of Indigenous artists and intellectuals of what is now known as Long Island," added Dr. Saul.

The exhibition will open with a special Curator Conversations virtual event featuring Jeremy Dennis and Dr. Gwendolyn Saul on September 3, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Advance registration information is available at preservationlongisland.org.

Preservation Long Island is a not-for-profit organization that works with Long Islanders to raise awareness, appreciation, and support for the protection of the shared past through advocacy, education, and the stewardship of historic sites and collections. Its sites include the Custom House in Sag Harbor.