Norman Akers facts for kids
Norman Akers is a talented Native American artist. He is known for his amazing landscape paintings that mix old traditions, history, and modern Native American life. He is a member of the Osage Nation and teaches painting at the University of Kansas.
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About Norman Akers
Norman Akers was born in Fairfax, Oklahoma. He is a citizen of the Osage Nation, which is a Native American tribe. He studied art at the Kansas City Art Institute, earning his degree in Painting in 1982. The next year, he learned about museums at the Institute of American Arts. Later, in 1991, he earned a master's degree from the University of Illinois.
How He Creates His Art
Akers's art is deeply inspired by his background as a Native American. He explores what it means to be an Indigenous person today. He sees his art as a way to express his culture, history, and even his thoughts on current events, all while keeping his style modern.
His paintings often show different ways of looking at things. They explore how these ideas help people understand spiritual places. Akers explains that these places aren't always physical spots. Instead, they represent the spiritual feelings and cultural connections his images bring him. He sometimes uses maps in his artwork. He says these maps show his spiritual connection to places he hasn't even visited yet.
His art also looks at modern ideas about people moving to new countries. He likes to make people think about what it means to belong and where people come from.
Art Shows and Exhibitions
Norman Akers's artwork has been shown in many places.
Group Shows
- Stories From the Land, Mingenback Gallery and the Birger Sandzén Memorial Gallery, in Lindsborg, Kansas (February 11, 2019 – March 15, 2019)
- Revisions: Contemporary Native American Art, Snite Museum of Art, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana (February 2, 2019 - May 18, 2019)
- (RE)CLAIM: Indigenous Artist Reflect on Identity, Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri (December 14, 2018 - June 16, 2018)
- Art for a New Understanding Native Voices 1950's to Now, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas (October 6, 2018 - January 7, 2019)
- In/Sight, Sherry Leedy Contemporary Art Museum, Kansas City, Missouri (September 7, 2018 - October 20, 2018)
Solo Shows
- Norman Akers: Printed Borders, Phoenix Gallery Underground, Lawrence, KS (2019)
- Norman Akers: Contested Territories, Percolator Art Space, Lawrence, KS (2015)
- Survey, Mingenback Art Gallery, Bethany College, Lindsborg, KS (2013)
Where His Art Lives Permanently
You can find Norman Akers's art in the permanent collections of several museums and institutions. This means they own his work and display it for everyone to see.
- Birmingham Museum of Art, Birmingham, AL
- Library of Congress, Print Collection, Washington DC
- Arrowhead Stadium Art Collection, Kansas City, MO
- Eiteljorg Museum of American and Western Art, Indianapolis, IN
- Fine Arts Center, Eastern Wyoming College, Torrington, WY
- Denver Art Museum, Denver, CO
- Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO
See also
