Center of the American Indian facts for kids
| Established | 1978 |
|---|---|
| Dissolved | 1992 |
| Location | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma |
| Type | cultural museum |
The Center of the American Indian (CAI) was a special museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It was led by Native American people. The museum was located on the second floor of the Kirkpatrick Center.
The CAI created a magazine called The Storyteller. It came out four times a year. The museum also offered fun workshops and language classes. They even held big talks, like one in 1989 about Native Americans and bison.
The CAI helped start the famous Red Earth Festival in 1987. In 1992, the museum joined with Red Earth Inc.. This change meant it was no longer led by Native Americans.
Important People at the Center
Mary Jo Watson (from the Seminole tribe) was the museum's director. She led the museum from 1984 to 1988. A famous baseball player, Allie Reynolds (from the Muscogee Creek tribe), was the chairman of the museum's board.
Artists like Benjamin Harjo Jr. (from the Absentee Shawnee and Seminole tribes) and Sharron Ahtone Harjo (from the Kiowa tribe) helped out a lot. They volunteered their time and also served on the museum's board. A collector named Arthur Silberman gave advice to the museum.
Cool Exhibitions and Books
In 1990, the museum created a special exhibit that stayed there all the time. It was called Moving History: Native American Dance. It showed how Native American dances have changed over time. Kiowa artists Sherman Chaddlesone and Allie Chaddlesone also showed their art at the CAI.
The museum also had many changing exhibits. These were temporary shows that came and went:
- Kachin-Tihus: Those Who Sit with the People (1991) – This exhibit came with a special book.
- Moving History: Evolution of the Powwow (1991) – This show explored how powwows have grown. It had a book by Dennis Zotigh (from the Kiowa tribe).
- Songs of Indian Territory: Native American Music Traditions (1989) – This exhibit was about Native American music. It included a book and a cassette tape by Willie Smyth.
- Children of Early America (1987) – This show focused on children from early American times. It had a book by Daniel C. Swan.
- Big War/Little War: Oklahoma Indians in the Civil War, 1861–1865 (1985) – This exhibit taught about Oklahoma Indians during the Civil War. It also had a book.
- Making Medicine: Ledger Drawing Art from Fort Marion (1984) – This exhibit celebrated ledger art. It featured art by David Pendleton Oakerhater (from the Southern Cheyenne tribe).
- Full Blooded (1984) – This was a special show just for the art of Edgar Heap of Birds (from the Southern Cheyenne tribe).
