Edgar Heap of Birds
Encyclopedia
Hock E Aye Vi Edgar Heap of Birds) (b. 1954) (enrolled in the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes
) creates art that includes multi-disciplinary forms of public art messages, large scale drawings, Neuf Series acrylic paintings, prints, and monumental porcelain enamel on steel outdoor sculpture.
, where his father worked in the aeronautical industry. He attended East High School in Wichita and graduated in 1972. After graduation in 1972, Heap of Birds studied at Haskell Indian School
in Lawrence, Kansas
.
Heap of Birds received his MFA from Tyler School of Art
, Temple University
in 1979, his BFA from The University of Kansas
in 1976, and has undertaken graduate studies at The Royal College of Art
, London, England from 1976-1977.
, Rhode Island School of Design
, and Michaelis School of Fine Art
, University of Cape Town
, South Africa. At The University of Oklahoma
, Professor Heap of Birds teaches in Native American Studies and Fine Arts. His seminars explore issues of the contemporary artist on a local, national and international basis.
Heap of Birds's critical reputation has been established most by his political and site-specific public signage projects. One example is Building Minnesota (1990), a signage installation mounted on the banks of the Mississippi River in Minneapolis, Minnesota
and commissioned by the Walker Art Center
. In it, Heap of Birds set forty large, metal, billboard-like signs along Minneapolis's downtown riverfront. The signs honored the forty Dakota men who were sentenced to death by Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Jackson after the US-Dakota Conflict of 1862, in what is the largest mass execution in American history.
Recently Heap of Birds created a fifty-foot signature, outdoor sculpture titled: "Wheel," as a signature entrance piece at Daniel Liebeskind's addition to the Denver Art Museum
. The circular porcelain enamel on steel work was commissioned by The Denver Art Museum and is inspired by the traditional Medicine Wheel
of the Big Horn Mountains
of Wyoming.
Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes
The Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes are a united, federally recognized tribe of Southern Arapaho and Southern Cheyenne people in western Oklahoma.-History:...
) creates art that includes multi-disciplinary forms of public art messages, large scale drawings, Neuf Series acrylic paintings, prints, and monumental porcelain enamel on steel outdoor sculpture.
Early life
Hachivi Edgar Heap of Birds was born on 22 November 1954 in Wichita, KansasWichita, Kansas
Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...
, where his father worked in the aeronautical industry. He attended East High School in Wichita and graduated in 1972. After graduation in 1972, Heap of Birds studied at Haskell Indian School
Haskell Indian Nations University
Haskell Indian Nations University is a tribal university located in Lawrence, Kansas, for members of federally recognized Native American tribes in the United States...
in Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence is the sixth largest city in the U.S. State of Kansas and the county seat of Douglas County. Located in northeastern Kansas, Lawrence is the anchor city of the Lawrence, Kansas, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Douglas County...
.
Heap of Birds received his MFA from Tyler School of Art
Tyler School of Art
The Stella Elkins Tyler School of Art, usually just referred to as Tyler School of Art is Temple University's school of art, which confers BFA and MFA degrees. The school was originally founded by sculptors Stella Elkins Tyler and Boris Blai on a separate 14-acre estate in Elkins Park...
, Temple University
Temple University
Temple University is a comprehensive public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Originally founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell, Temple University is among the nation's largest providers of professional education and prepares the largest body of professional...
in 1979, his BFA from The University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
in 1976, and has undertaken graduate studies at The Royal College of Art
Royal College of Art
The Royal College of Art is an art school located in London, United Kingdom. It is the world’s only wholly postgraduate university of art and design, offering the degrees of Master of Arts , Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy...
, London, England from 1976-1977.
Professional career
Heap of Birds has taught as Visiting Professor at Yale UniversityYale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, Rhode Island School of Design
Rhode Island School of Design
Rhode Island School of Design is a fine arts and design college located in Providence, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1877. Located at the base of College Hill, the RISD campus is contiguous with the Brown University campus. The two institutions share social, academic, and community resources and...
, and Michaelis School of Fine Art
Michaelis School of Fine Art
Michaelis School of Fine Art was founded in 1925, and is the Fine Arts department of the University of Cape Town, also housing the Michaelis Collection named for Sir Max Michaelis who in 1920 endowed the chair of Fine Art at the University. It is located at 31-37 Orange Street in Cape Town on...
, University of Cape Town
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...
, South Africa. At The University of Oklahoma
University of Oklahoma
The University of Oklahoma is a coeducational public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two became the state of Oklahoma. the university had 29,931 students enrolled, most located at its...
, Professor Heap of Birds teaches in Native American Studies and Fine Arts. His seminars explore issues of the contemporary artist on a local, national and international basis.
Heap of Birds's critical reputation has been established most by his political and site-specific public signage projects. One example is Building Minnesota (1990), a signage installation mounted on the banks of the Mississippi River in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
and commissioned by the Walker Art Center
Walker Art Center
The Walker Art Center is a contemporary art center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. The Walker is considered one of the nation's "big five" museums for modern art along with the Museum of Modern Art, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Guggenheim Museum and the Hirshhorn...
. In it, Heap of Birds set forty large, metal, billboard-like signs along Minneapolis's downtown riverfront. The signs honored the forty Dakota men who were sentenced to death by Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Jackson after the US-Dakota Conflict of 1862, in what is the largest mass execution in American history.
Recently Heap of Birds created a fifty-foot signature, outdoor sculpture titled: "Wheel," as a signature entrance piece at Daniel Liebeskind's addition to the Denver Art Museum
Denver Art Museum
The Denver Art Museum is an art museum in Denver, Colorado located in Denver's Civic Center.It is known for its collection of American Indian art,and has a comprehensive collection numbering more than 68,000 works from across the world....
. The circular porcelain enamel on steel work was commissioned by The Denver Art Museum and is inspired by the traditional Medicine Wheel
Medicine Wheel National Historic Landmark
The Medicine Wheel/Medicine Mountain National Historic Landmark is a medicine wheel located in the Big Horn Mountains of the U.S. state of Wyoming....
of the Big Horn Mountains
Big Horn Mountains
The Big Horn Mountains are a mountain range in northern Wyoming and southern Montana in the United States, forming a northwest-trending spur from the Rocky Mountains extending approximately 200 miles northward on the Great Plains...
of Wyoming.
Awards
He has received grants and awards from The National Endowment for the Arts, Rockefeller Foundation, Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation, Lila Wallace Foundation, Bonfil Stanton Foundation and The Pew Charitable Trust.Books
- Blasted Allegories, an Anthology of Artists Writings, New Museum-MIT Press, 1987.
- Makers, Point Riders Press, 1998.
- The Myth of the Primitive, Susan Hiller (Editor), Routledge Press, 1991.
- Completing The Circle: Artists’ Books On The Environment, Minnesota Center for Book Arts, 1992.
- Visit Teepee Town, Native Writing After the Detours, Dianne Glancy and Mark Nowak, Coffee House Press, 1999.
External links
- Artist's Official website
- Heap of Birds Venice Biennale 2007 exhibit
- Who Stole the Teepee exhibit at the National Museum of the American IndianNational Museum of the American IndianThe National Museum of the American Indian is a museum operated under the auspices of the Smithsonian Institution that is dedicated to the life, languages, literature, history, and arts of the native Americans of the Western Hemisphere...
(see the Beyond Smoke & Mirrors section) - Continuum 12 exhibit at the National Museum of the American IndianNational Museum of the American IndianThe National Museum of the American Indian is a museum operated under the auspices of the Smithsonian Institution that is dedicated to the life, languages, literature, history, and arts of the native Americans of the Western Hemisphere...
External links
- Hock E Aye Vi Edgar Heap of Birds, Vision Project, Bradley Pecore