We drop into Palm Springs for the annual film festival hosted by the Agua Caliente tribe, paired this year with a gala dinner and special art exhibition organized by Blue Rain Gallery. Plus details on other special events of Native interest across North America.
Films, Fine Art and Food in the Desert
Just about the time winter seems interminable, a terrific event set in the Mojave Desert of sunny Palm Springs, California promises to punch your ticket to beating the weather blues: The 5th annual Native American Film Festival & Cultural Weekend rolls into town March 14–19.
left: “Eagle and Bear Totem,” Preston Singletary, blown and sand carved glass, 23" h x 4.5" d; below: “Feast Bowl with Auto Focus,” Richard Zane Smith, natural clay pottery, 9" h by 20" w x 9" d.
The film festival, being held in the town’s Camelot Theatres, will include a good selection of feature-length works, documentaries and shorts from some of today’s leading Native filmmakers. Each screening will be followed by a reception, including people associated with the film. A complete list of films and synopses can be found on the event’s Web site.
On the evening of March 17, attend a gala dinner with special guest speaker N. Scott Momaday (Kiowa), the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of House Made of Dawn and many other novels, short stories, poetry books and non-fiction works. The dinner will include a cocktail reception, auction and preview of a special art exhibition. Tickets are $350 per person.
This exhibition, March 18–19 at the convention center, is being coordinated by Blue Rain Gallery of Santa Fe and Taos. Their 8th annual Show on the Road will provide an opportunity to peruse some of the finest Native art being made today, by the likes of Preston Singletary, Tammy Garcia and Tony Abeyta. Singletary will present glass-blowing demonstrations both days.
The festival is a benefit fundraiser for the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum (see “On the Wind,” this issue). For additional details, call 760/778-1079 or visit www.accmuseum.org.
Elsewhere
The lights go down on Stone Heart: Everyone Loves a Journey West, a play by Diane Glancy (Cherokee), and The Red Road, a play by Arigon Starr (Kickapoo/Creek), presented by the Autry Theater at the Museum of the American West, Los Angeles. Stone Heart runs Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m. through March 12; Red Road runs March 30–April 30 on Thursdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Tickets: $20 general admission, $12 for members. 323/667-2000 or www.autrynationalcenter.org
Dance over to the 10th annual Apache Gold Powwow, March 10–12, Apache Gold Casino Resort, San Carlos, AZ. Some $50,000 in prize money is up for grabs at this event, which will feature categories from children to seniors, with the northern drum hosted by the Kingbird Singers of Ponemah, Minnesota and the southern drum by Bad Moon Rising of Ponca City, Oklahoma. Grand entries on Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 1 and 7 p.m., and Sunday at 1 p.m. 800/APACHE 8 or www.apachegoldcasinoresort.com
Bring your mysterious Indian bracelet, rug or pot to Native Art & Artifacts Appraisal Day, March 18, at the Heard Museum in Phoenix and Heard Museum North in Scottsdale to have its value professionally estimated. $30 for the first item, $25 for the second and $20 thereafter. 602/252-8848 or www.heard.org
Leap over to Native American Celebration, March 24, Pepsi Center, Denver, when the Denver Nuggets host Seattle. Events will include a special halftime show of powwow drummers and dancers drawn from the Denver March Powwow, which kicks off March 24 as well. www.denvernuggets.com, www.denvermarchpowwow.org
Hit the trail to the 17th annual Texas Indian Market, March 24–26, Arlington Convention Center, Arlington, TX, which includes several hundred artists, live performances by musicians Brulé, Arvel Bird, Micki Free, Tom Mauchahty-Ware, country music star Holly Dunn and Ancient Winds (from South America); live dancing by the Ehecatl Aztec Dancers, the American Indian Dance & Music Show, Jackie Bird and Lowery Begay; and comedians James & Ernie, along with actor Steve Reevis, children’s activities and a Native food court. Admission $9 for adults, good all three days. 972/398-0052 or www.indianmarket.net
Visit the 17th annual Invitational Native American Arts Festival, March 31–April 2, Clark County Heritage Museum, Henderson, NV. The festivities include an outdoor arts and crafts market, music and dance performances, a basket exhibition and artist demonstrations. 702/455-7955
Bring an appetite to Food Over Fire, April 1, 7–9 p.m., Museum of the American West, Los Angeles. This unique event will feature Native foods of the Southwest and Northwest Coast cooked over flames by Native and non-Native chefs. Admission $40; $25 for members. 323/667-2000 or www.autrynationalcenter.org
Mosey south to the 30th annual Native American Dance & Crafts Festival, April 1–2, DeSoto Caverns Park, Childersburg, AL. The fair includes Native hoop and powwow dancers (the latter led by host drum Bird Chop Bird from Cherokee, NC), singers and storytellers, as well as more than 100 food and craft vendors. 800/933-2283 or www.DeSotoCavernsPark.com
Turn on the tube for the broadcast of Trudell, airing on Independent Lens, PBS, April 11, 10 p.m. This terrific 60-minute documentary profiles perhaps the most enigmatic, thought-provoking and powerful voice in contemporary Native society: the musician, poet and speaker John Trudell (Santee Sioux). Directed by Heather Rae (Cherokee). www.pbs.org/independentlens/trudell
Don’t miss the 1st annual Albuquerque Indian Market, April 22–23, Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, Albuquerque. The event, sponsored by the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center and the Indian Arts and Crafts Association, will include artists from the United States and Canada. It kicks off with a preview reception and juried art competition on the evening of April 21. Also on tap are artist demonstrations and live entertainment throughout the event. 505/265-9149, www.iaca.com or www.indianpueblo.org
Spend a day at Art Under the Oaks, April 22–23, Five Civilized Tribes Museum, Muskogee, OK, for an outdoor market with some 40 artists and crafters displaying all 3-D works (jewelry, pottery, basketry, gourd art, etc.), plus dancing, live music and foods. Also, tour the museum, celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2006, and catch the special art show and sale April 1–30. 918/683-1701, 888/587-4237 or www.fivetribes.org
Gather round for the 23rd annual Gathering of Nations Pow Wow, April 27–29, the University of New Mexico Arena, Albuquerque, NM, which includes more than 3,000 dancers, singers and drummers from more than 700 tribes in the United States and Canada, plus the Miss Indian World Pageant, the Indian Traders Market, a contemporary live music stage and other events. 505/836-2810
Spend a day at the Spring Wholesale Market, Embassy Suites Hotel, Albuquerque, NM, May 6–7, hosted by the Indian Arts and Crafts Association. 505/265-9149 or www.iaca.org