NEAT exhibit opens July 1 at Lander Art Center

"Black Coal" by Colleen Friday

The Native Emerging Artist Training (NEAT) exhibition is scheduled to open July 1, 2011 and run through August 6 at the Lander Art Center in downtown Lander.

The NEAT program began in 2009 to help train Native artists from the Wind River Reservation how to enter juried exhibitions and how to market their artwork.

This year, the show consists of young artists from Wyoming Indian Middle School as well as skillful adult artists.

"Arapaho Journeys" by Sara Wiles set for a May release from University of Oklahoma Press

Sara Wiles has announced the publication of her book, Arapaho Journeys: Photographs and Stories from the Wind River Reservation. Get more information on the book -- and see some of the photos -- at http://www.sarawiles.com/Arapaho_Journeys/Arapaho_Journeys.html

There also will be an exhibit of Sara's work at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody:

“Arapaho Journeys: Photographs and Stories from the Reservation”
April 29-October 2, 2011 in the BBHC Special Exhibitions Gallery
Public reception: Friday, April 29, 5-7 p.m.

Arapaho Journeys features contemporary photographs by Sara Wiles of Northern Arapaho people—elders, children, families, and leaders.

The exhibition's insightful photographs of the people, as well as the tribal activities, of the Northern Arapaho invite viewers into the culture, values, and philosophies that guide contemporary Arapaho life. They also honor individuals who have contributed much to their own communities as leaders, artists, and traditionalists.

While providing a historical background for the Northern Arapaho, the exhibition also depicts the experiences of younger tribal members growing up on the reservation as they participate in traditional cultural activities.

As one of two American Indian tribes with contemporary homelands in Wyoming, the Northern Arapaho constitute an important element of the state's heritage.

Arapaho Journeys is supported in part by a grant from the Wyoming Cultural Trust Fund, a program of the Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources.

11th annual Native American Business Expo set for May 4 at Intertribal Center in Riverton

The 11th Annual Native American Business Expo/Wind River Business Conference will be held Wednesday, May 4, 2011, at the new Intertribal Center in Riverton. The target market includes those located on the Wind River Indian Reservation, Fremont County, and statewide. This year it has three main focuses: "Artisan, General Business, and Government Contracting."

FMI: Margie E. Rowell, Director, Small Business Development Center, 213 W. Main Street, Suite C, Riverton WY  82501; 1-800-969-8639; http://WyomingEntrepreneur.Biz

Scottsdale promotes Dave McGary's sculptures of Native Americans

This video comes to us via the Scottsdale (Ariz.) Convention and Visitors Bureau. It features sculptor Dave McGary and some of his work now on the grounds of the Camelback Resort and Spa. McGary grew up near Cody and got his start as an artist in Wyoming. He's best known for his Chief Washakie sculpture which is one of Wyoming's two pieces in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. A duplicate is in the Wyoming State Capitol Building and soon will be relocated to a spot in front of the Capitol Building. Another Chief Washakie statue resides on the Wind River Reservation. Dave has galleries in Scottsdale and Ruidoso, N.M.

Wind River Dancers perform this weekend at the BBHC in Cody

From the BBHC:

With a theme of “A Cultural Heritage Shared Through Dance and Songs,” the Wind River Dancers perform a variety of American Indian dance styles, which include men’s traditional, grass, and fancy feather, as well as women’s fancy shawl, jingle dress, and traditional. While drums beat and dancers sway, the dance styles are described and explained to audiences to share Native American culture and heritage.

With “A Look at Powwow,” Darrell Lone Bear and the Wind River Dancers from Wyoming’s Wind River Reservation make a return visit to the Buffalo Bill Historical Center on Saturday and Sunday, August 21 and 22 to perform dances and share the tribal traditions and social customs of Powwow. Seating is limited in the Center’s Coe Auditorium; however, there are three performances each day to accommodate visitors: 11 a.m., 1 p.m., and 3 p.m. The popular presentations are free with admission.

The performances are partially funded through a private donation. For more information contact Megan Smith at megans@bbhc.org or 307.578.4028. To stay abreast of activities and news at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center, visit http://www.bbhc.org/.


The Wind River Dancers are members of the Wyoming Arts Council's artist roster. To bring this group to your community, apply for a WAC Arts Across Wyoming grant. Get info and applications at the WAC web site.

Margaret Coel presents "Arapahos, the Spirituality of a Plains Indian Tribe"

Colorado author Margaret Coel will be conducting a program entitled "Arapahos, the Spirituality of a Plains Indian Tribe," July 11-17, at Ring Lake Ranch near Dubois. Get registration information at http://www.ringlake.org/. Margaret's best-selling mysteries are set in Wyoming's Wind River Reservation. Her most recent novel, The Silent Spirit, will be published in September.

Business plaza opens in Fort Washakie

Anne Even sends this invitation:

Wind River Development Fund invites you to attend the grand opening of their new location and be among the first to tour the Frank B. Wise Business Plaza.

Wednesday, June 23, 3-5 p.m.

3 Ethete Road

Fort Washakie, Wyoming

Opening ceremonies will begin promptly at 3 p.m.

Refreshments will be served.

FMI: Anne Even, Business Development Specialist, Wind River Development Fund, Fort Washakie, Toll Free (877) 253-3824, http://www.wrdf.org/, aeven@wrdf.org

Providing financial opportunities on the Wind River Indian Reservation

Native American Business Expo in Lander

The Wind River Development Fund in Fort Washakie presents the Native American Business Expo & Wind River Business Conference on Thursday, April 22, 7 a.m.-5:30 p.m. at the Best Western Inn in Lander.

The Wind River Development Fund (WRDF) provides local entrepreneurs and businesses with small business training, counseling, and business loans.

FMI: 307.335.7330 or toll free 877.253.3824 •

Cheyenne/Arapaho tribes in Wyo., Mont. and Okla. win preservation award

The Billings Gazette reports this:

The National Trust for Historic Preservation has presented its Preservation Honor Award to the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Montana, Wyoming and Oklahoma.

The award to the tribes was one of 23 bestowed by the National Trust during its 2009 National Preservation Conference in Nashville, Tenn.

On Nov. 29, 1864, U.S. military troops attacked a peaceful encampment of Cheyenne and Arapaho along Sand Creek in what is today southeastern Colorado.

More than 150 American Indians -- many of them women, children and the elderly -- were killed in the attack. Nearly four years later, Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer led a surprise dawn raid on a sleeping Southern Cheyenne encampment along the Washita River in western Oklahoma.

Today, more than 140 years after the carnage, both the Sand Creek Massacre Site and the Washita Battlefield are National Historic Sites, thanks in large measure to the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribe members who would not let their history be forgotten.

Along with the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, co-recipients honored were the National Park Service; Steve Brady; Otto Braided Hair; Ben and Gail Ridgely; Lee LoneBear; Richard Williams; Gov. Darrell Flyingman; and Chief Gordon Yellowman.

Winners of the National Preservation Awards will appear in the ovember/December issue of Preservation Magazine and online at www.PreservationNation.org/awards.