Join the Silver City Museum for the opening of the exhibition of work by Allan Houser.

The artwork in this exhibition is on generous loan from Allan Houser, Inc.The Silver City Museum is proud to announce that the museum will host the exhibition Allan Houser: Renowned 20th Century Warm Springs Chiricahua Apache Artist. The exhibition will open at 4 pm on Friday, October 12, 2018 and be on view until January 13, 2019.The first look at the exhibition will be a special opening reception on Friday, October 12, 2018, from 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm, to which the public is invited. Admission is free; donations greatly appreciated. 

We have invited Fort Sill Chiricahua Warm Springs Apache Tribe Tribal Chairman Jeff Haozous and Tribal Historian Michael Darrow as our special guests for the reception. We have asked them to give a presentation on the history of tribe, tentatively planned for Saturday, October 13. Please check our website or Facebook page for a confirmation of the date and time.

Allan Houser (1914-1994) was one of the most important Native American artists of the 20th Century. He embraced contemporary art styles while celebrating his Apache heritage in his artwork. Houser trained as a painter in the 1930s and he created mainly two-dimensional art for the first half of his career. Self-trained as a sculptor, three-dimensional work became an increasingly large area of artistic output. Houser taught sculpture from 1962-1975 and then retired to devote himself solely to his own work. His final 19 years would prove his most productive. 

This exhibition presents some of Houser’s earliest paintings and drawings along with a range of his sculptures, demonstrating the development of Houser’s work over his career and his facility with both abstract and figurative styles.

Allan Houser was a descendent of the Chiricahua and Warm Springs Apache people who lived in southwest New Mexico before 1886. His parents were among the group held for nearly 27 years by the US Government. Houser was born and raised in Oklahoma where his parents were resettled in 1914.

The Silver City Museum creates opportunities for residents and visitors to explore, understand, and celebrate the rich and diverse cultural heritage of southwestern New Mexico by collecting, preserving, researching, and interpreting the region's unique history. Admission is free; suggested donation $5. For more information, please contact the museum at (575) 538-5921, info@silvercitymuseum.org, or go to the museum's website here.