Mystery & Majesty: Native American Rock Art Opening Reception
Thursday, September 15, 2016, 5:00 - 7:00 PM
Admission: Members/Free, Non-members/$10

The Hockaday Museum of Art announces Mystery & Majesty: Native American Rock Art, an exhibition of Missoula photographer and curator Lee Silliman's black and white photographs, to be on display September 15 through October 29, 2016. Silliman's photos tap into a few of the literally thousands of chiseled and painted constructions left behind by Native Americans upon boulders and stone walls. Researchers still struggle to untangle the ethnic history of this myriad of artworks.

Focusing upon the plethora of imagery left by generations of Native Americans, Mystery & Majesty shares the elements of a tangible record representing their emotions, culture, and understanding of the cosmos. Silliman says "One justifiably strives to assign meaning to the context of animals, anthropomorphic figures, and geometric patterns--and yet, perhaps one ought to simply appreciate petroglyphs and pictographs as pure art. Thus, here the present artist seeks to relay an ancient artist's conceptions."

Over the past five years, Silliman has traveled to rock art sites on public and private lands in Montana, Wyoming, Utah, and New Mexico, where he photographs the designs with his 8 x 10 inch view camera. The majority of rock art photographs shown in this exhibit are the petroglyph type, which is a design chiseled into a darker rock, leaving a lighter figure. Several examples of pictographs (dark pigment painted onto lighter colored rock) are also included in the exhibit.

The opening reception for Mystery & Majesty: Native American Rock Art will be held on Thursday, September 15 from 5:00 to 7:00 PM. Admission is free to the event for members, and $10 for non-members. Throughout the exhibit, visitors may learn more about these petroglyphs and pictographs by joining one of the docent-guided tours held Saturdays at 1:00 PM (included with guest admission). The Museum is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM.

The Hockaday Museum of Art is located in the cultural district of downtown Kalispell at 302 Second Ave East. It is housed in a 1904 Carnegie Library building that appears on the National Register of Historic Places. The Museum is a private nonprofit organization, open year-round, Tues-Sat from 10am-5pm. The mission of the Hockaday is to enrich the cultural life of our community and region, and preserve the artistic legacy of Montana and Glacier National Park. For more information, please visit www.HockadayMuseum.org or call 406-755-5268.

High resolution photos of works to appear in this exhibition are available upon request.

Mystery & Majesty: Native American Rock Art
September 15 - October 29, 2016
Tuesday - Saturday, 10AM - 5PM
Admission: Adults/$5, Seniors/$4, College/$2, K-12/Free, Members/Free