Join Aaron Glass and Corrine Hunt on Saturday, February 16th at 12 pm for an exploration of the hidden histories and complex legacies of one of the most influential books in the field of anthropology, Franz Boas’ The Social Organization and the Secret Societies of the Kwakiutl Indians (1897). Focusing on Boas’ work with his Indigenous co-author George Hunt among the Kwakwaka’wakw people of British Columbia, the exhibition—guest designed by artist Corrine Hunt, Hunt’s great-granddaughter—features ceremonial objects as well as rare archival photographs, manuscripts, and drawings that shed new light on the book and advance understanding of the ongoing cultural traditions it documents.

Aaron Glass is an Associate Professor at Bard Graduate Center, whose areas of special interest include Museums and Anthropology, Colonialism and Indigenous Modernities, and Intercultural Encounter, Exchange, and Agency. His research focuses on various aspects of First Nations visual art and material culture, media, and performance on the Northwest Coast of North America, both historically and today. Current projects involve collaborating with the U’mista Cultural Centre to restore and present Edward Curtis’s 1914 silent film, In the Land of the Head Hunters, and to create a critical, annotated, digital edition of Franz Boas’s pioneering 1897 monograph on the Kwakwaka’wakw culture.

Corrine Hunt, also known as Nugwam Gelatleg’lees, is an Kwakwaka’wakw/Tlingit artist, carver, jeweller and designer based in British Columbia, Canada. A member of the Raven Gwa’wina clan from Ts’akis, a Komoyue village on Vancouver Island, Corrine’s rich family history includes internationally renowned First Nations artists Henry, Richard and Tony Hunt, all of whom have influenced her art. Uncle Norman Brotchie was also an early teacher and mentor. Corrine too has mentored First Nations and other artists and continues to be a strong and vocal supporter of the arts in British Columbia. Corrine’s works include engraved gold and silver jewelry and accessories, custom furnishings in carved stainless steel and reclaimed wood, modern totem poles and other sculptural installations.

We are also pleased to extend complimentary need-based community tickets by request to all ticketed events. To learn more, please email public.programs@bgc.bard.edu.

Leading support for Public Programs at Bard Graduate Center comes from Gregory Soros and other generous donors.