Winter

Posing in front of painted backdrops and surrounded by artificial plants and animals, photographer Wendy Red Star casts herself within constructed scenes designed to mock outdated and inaccurate natural history museum dioramas.

According to the artist, “When I made Four Seasons, it was based on this feeling of isolation and really missing my home community on the reservation. I knew in a very messed-up way where I could find comfort and that was at the natural history museum … I noticed when people were looking at Native objects that they were sort of spoon-fed to believe that Native people don’t exist anymore, just like the Brontosaurus bones in the gallery nearby. When I was standing in that gallery, I was thinking how strange this all was—being Crow and standing next to those Crow moccasins, when I have my entire outfit in my closet a few miles away that could easily be in one of these glass cases.”