Jeremy Dennis: Shared Histories and the Work of Seeing

Photographer Jeremy Dennis, an enrolled member of the Shinnecock Indian Nation, leads an interactive gallery talk that re-examine the portrayal of Indigenous people through a contemporary lens. Centered around the dynamic juxtaposition of Indians Simulating Buffalo (1908) by Frederic Remington and Oh My Aching Breaking Beading Heart (2024) by Shelley Niro, two works featured in Everything Has a Story: Reflections on the Collection, the program creates a dialogue between historic and modern artworks, actively working to decolonize visual narratives and make space for lived Indigenous experiences in museum galleries.

The program will also feature a newly commissioned collaborative artwork created with non-Native contemporary artist Ariel Bullion Ecklund as a direct artistic response to the works, embodying interdisciplinary co-authorship and exploring Indigenous representation through shared visual language. In addition, hear from a model featured in Dennis’s Rise series about visibility and self-representation. The event wraps up with an audience conversation centered on cultural memory.

Jeremy Dennis is a contemporary fine art photographer. Based in Southampton, NY, he is the founder and lead artist of Ma’s House & BIPOC Art Studio, a nonprofit on the Shinnecock Reservation supporting Indigenous and BIPOC artists. His work explores Indigenous identity, culture, and the impacts of colonialism through cinematic, narrative photography rooted in Native oral traditions and contemporary life. He also serves on several advisory boards, contributing to cultural and community initiatives locally and regionally.

Ariel Bullion Ecklund is a curator and multidisciplinary artist in upstate NY. Ariel holds a BFA in Art Photography from the School of Visual and Performing Arts and a Master’s Degree in Museum Studies, both from Syracuse University and is the owner and director of Corners Gallery in Ithaca, NY. Her work employs the mediums of ceramics and photography to explore themes of identity, loss, and memory. She views the work as illustrative of the complexities of the human condition and as a tangible record of her existence.

Support provided by Art Bridges.