The American Indian Community House

An Urban Indian Center

708 Broadway, 8th floor, New York, NY 10003
Telephone 212-598-1011
AICH Web Site

The American Indian Community House, Inc. (AICH) was founded in 1969 to serve and assist Native Americans in New York City. Since its beginning, AICH has grown from a primarily vounteer effort into its present status as a multi-faceted social support agency and cultural center, with a staff of over thirty. AICH serves more than six thousand Native Americans annually, and has a current membership which represents more than seventy different Native nations.

Gallery and Museum

Location:

Gallery/Museum Entrance:
708 Broadway, 2nd Floor
between E. 4th Street and 8th Street
Wheelchair accessable
New York, NY 10003
Telephone: (212) 598-0100, Ext.241
Fax: (212) 598-4909

Contact: Joanna Osburn-Bigfeather,: Director/Curator of Exhibitions
Hours: Tuesday - Saturday: 12:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.; "The Gallery/Museum and AICH provides an environment for contemporary artists to exhibit experimental work and current trends in the field of art. It is also our intention to bring emerging as well as established artists to the New York City audience. Through our travelling exhibitions we expand this audience. Native artists often work from their cultural taditions blending them with innovative and conceptual themes in order to communicate their ideas. These are the concepts that motivate me as a curator and embody our exhibitions."
--Joanna Osburn-Bigfeather Director/Curator of Exhibitions

Founded in 1978, the AICH Gallery/Museum is the only Native owned and operated gallery in New York City. It exhibits the finest contemporary and traditional art, in every media, by both emerging and established Native American artist. The Gallery presents a minimum of four exhibitions each year, and presents artist lectures and forums on contemporary Native art and artist. In addition, the Gallery sells a wide selection of handmade Native crafts and jewlery and is host to an annual Indian Market crafts fair during the month of December.

The gallery season runs from October through September and there are four to five exhibitions each year. Each exhibition features contemporary American Indian artists. Indian artists are invited to submit slides of their work with a resume so that they can be sonsidered for future showings. Our shows are planned approximately a year in advance. We receive a twenty-five percent commission on artwork that is part of an exhibition and that we sell.

The Gift Shop features contemporary and traditional silverwork, beadwork, basketry, pottery and other traditional arts and crafts made by Indian people across the hemisphere. We carry Molas from Kuna Yala in both pieces -- suitable for framing -- and made into bags and other items, a good size collection of books by and about American Indians, Indian newspapers and magazines, tapes and CD's. Indian designed and made t-shirts, ribbon shirts and, from time to time, other articles of clothing and/or traditional dress can also be found. The Gift Shop carries Buffy Sainte-Marie CD's, audio tapes and video tapes.

Indian artists and artisans are invited to submit resumes and slides/pictures, tapes or other samples of their work. The Gallery is often the site of lectures, artist talks and book signings. Indian I.D. will get you a ten percent discount on all but special items. When finances permit, we can buy handmade items from local and visiting Indian artisans. Primarily, we take items on consignment. Our purpose is to support Indian artists and maintain our shop for both our benefits.

Founded:

1978 by the American Indian Community House, Inc., a non-profit Native American organization.

Purpose:

To exhibit and promote the best of contemporary art, in every media, by Native American artists throughout the country.
To increase education and awareness of Native Art of the living culture.

Selected List of Exhibitions

Volume I: Book Arts by Native American Artists: Multimedia Arts -- Traveling Exhibit
From Mother Earth: Works in Clay
Dispelling the Myths: Controlling the Image
Native Survival: Response to HIV/AIDS: Multimedia Arts -- Traveling Exhibit
Selected Artists in Past Exhibitions: Joe Fedderson
Elizabeth Woody
G. Peter Jemison
Anita Fields
Conrad House
Jaune Quick to Sée Smith
Jesse Cooday
Susan Black
Melanie Printup Hope
Ryan Rice
Joe Martin Cantrell
Dan Lomahaftewa
Larry McNeal

Projects:

To achieve these goals the following projects are sponsored and/or produced at the AICH Gallery/Museum.

A minimum of four exhibitions of works during the season. Past exhibitions have been a continuous and varied exhibit of contemporary Native American arts with items which can be purchased in our museum shop.
Commissioning of works from Native American artists
A series of Gallery lectures, slide shows and forums on contemporary Native American art, artists and issues

Funding:

New York State Council on the Arts, corporate, foundations and private contributions

Past/Present Funding:

NYSCA
NEA
Rockefeller Foundation
D.C.A.
public and private donation, earned income from sales and commissions

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